The Beauty Connective: the platform helping beauty professionals shine beyond social media
By Jess Watts | 18 June 2026 | North America News, Techs & Salons
What happens when an educator with a passion for nails decides to make her mark on a new industry?
Utah’s Kylee Hone shares her journey from teacher to nail tech and explains how she founded a thriving community platform for the beauty industry.
Kylee Hone’s story starts not in a nail studio, but in an elementary school classroom. After graduating and spending three years teaching, she made a decision that would change the course of her career.
“I’ve always loved painting my nails, but for some reason, I’d never considered it as a career path,” Kylee shares. “After seeing a friend leave her nine-to-five job to pursue nails full-time, I decided to follow my own lifelong passion and do the same.”
Having completed an apprenticeship, Kylee started to build her client base from the ground up. “Interacting with clients and building those relationships felt so fulfilling,” she says.
Kylee’s passion for a flawless finish drives her everyday work. “I know the way a fresh nail set makes me feel – when you just can’t stop staring at your nails and feel suddenly put together,” she smiles. “I love giving that feeling to my clients.”
The desire to transform tiny canvases into mini masterpieces is evident in Kylee’s work. When asked about her favourite nail design to date, she reveals: “It was a style I did on my boyfriend after winning a bet on his favourite football team’s game. It was his very first manicure and he helped me design it. He wore the look for three weeks and got so many compliments everywhere we went.”
An experienced educator
Becoming a nail tech fulfilled Kylee’s need for creativity, but she wasn’t ready to let go of her background in education. Combining her skills for teaching with her passion for nails, she stepped into the world of nail education.
“Disappointed by the quality of education I received during my apprenticeship, I wanted to create training that genuinely helps new nail techs succeed,” Kylee explains. “My goal was to teach skills that lead to high-quality work and sustainable beauty businesses.
“Educators are key to sharing best practices with the next generation of nail techs,” Kylee continues. So, what does she think separates a good educator from a great one? “Good educators show you what they’re doing. Great educators clearly explain why they’re doing it. Good educators provide information. Great educators provide understanding,” she says.
Her three top tips for nail techs wanting to make the move into education are:
- “Fully understand the ‘why’ behind everything you teach.”
- “Practice teaching before you become an educator.”
- “Check your intentions – and be honest about them.”
Kylee adds: “If your primary motivation is making extra money or gaining status in the industry, education may not be the best fit. The most successful educators are the ones who care just as much about their students’ results as they do their own.”
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The Beauty Connective
Kylee’s impact on the nail industry does not stop at education. In early 2025, she founded The Beauty Connective – a platform designed to connect US-based beauty pros with potential customers. “Clients can search and filter by location, specialty, pricing, availability and reviews to find independent beauty professionals who fit exactly what they’re looking for,” Kylee explains.
While The Beauty Connective allows professionals to ‘highlight their work, spaces, specialties, services, pricing, hours, payment options, reviews and personality’, it also simplifies the search process for clients. “Instead of scrolling on social media, posting in Facebook groups or relying solely on word of mouth, clients can search for beauty professionals in one place,” Kylee says.
Due to its position as a ‘discovery platform, not a booking platform’, Kylee notes that The Beauty Connective can be used by any US-based beauty professional, regardless of the booking software they use. “They can easily connect their booking link to their profile,” she adds.
“Our ultimate goal is to become the place where beauty professionals can build visibility and attract clients, without feeling like they have to become full-time content creators,” Kylee reveals. “Social media can be a great tool, but many beauty professionals feel pressure to constantly create content, chase engagement and keep up with ever-changing algorithms just to stay discoverable. We want to create another path.”
From passion to podcast
In addition to being a platform founder, nail tech and educator, Kylee is also the creator of The Beauty Connective Podcast. Born from a belief that the most valuable business conversations in the beauty industry weren’t happening publicly, the podcast covers everything from pricing and burnout to client relationships and financial growth.
“What I love most is that every conversation is rooted in real experiences,” Kylee says. “I’m talking to people who have lived these challenges, made mistakes, learned lessons and found success in their own way.”
Kylee Hone’s career journey has come full circle, taking her from the classroom to the salon, back into education and beyond into digital platforms and podcasting. Whether she’s educating future nail techs, helping beauty professionals grow their businesses or creating new ways for clients and professionals to connect, Kylee remains committed to making a meaningful and lasting impact on the beauty industry.
You can listen to The Beauty Connective podcast via Spotify, YouTube & Apple Podcasts.
