A Killeen nail salon has been approved to sell alcohol. Azura Nail Salon Bar, 1600 Lowes Blvd. Suite 800, had its zoning changed from a business district to a general business and alcohol sales district by a Killeen City Council ordinance on Tuesday.
Kim Pham, floor manager at Azura, said this change allows the business to begin selling alcohol. The ordinance was approved by a 6-1 vote at the council meeting. Councilmember Joseph Solomon was the lone dissenter.
A public hearing was held before the vote. The general manager of the salon advocated for approving the zoning change. He cited the business’s track record as a reason to approve the request.
Integrity Nail Salon, which is owned and managed by the same family that owns Azura, was approved to sell alcohol approximately two years ago. The general manager pointed to the fact that everything has gone smoothly at that location as a reason to approve this request. “We’ve had no issues,” he said.
A couple of citizens raised concerns at the meeting. Those were primarily centered on potential health and safety problems that could arise. Ramon Alvarez, councilmember, responded to those concerns.
He cited Bell County Public Health’s involvement in the process as evidence that any potential health concerns had been evaluated. With regards to the safety concerns and particularly the fact that children are often in close vicinity to the salon due to more child-friendly businesses being nearby, Alvarez responded by saying, “I do understand.” But, he said, “You see that everywhere you go; they serve beer at Chuck E.
Cheese.” He concluded, “You hope everyone uses good judgment.” The salon had built a bar during its initial construction.
Like the rest of the establishment, it looks exquisite and, if these were antiquated times, it could easily be mistaken for the home of Zeus with white and gold being a dominant color scheme throughout. The drink menu has a full range of options including seltzers, beer and wine. It also includes a variety of cocktails with staples like margaritas and piña coladas.
Particularly notable options include the Hannah Banana, Johnny Handsome and Kim Possible drinks, which were designed by and pay homage to the salon’s management. Evelyn Figueroa, a nail technician, described the latter as a favorite, noting its balance. The cocktail, which is partially named after an animated Disney show from the 2000s, is reminiscent of a Blue Hawaiian with ingredients including pineapple and blue Curaçao plus Hpnotiq, which further adds to the blue color.
Figueroa said, “It’s like the perfect combination between sour and sweet.” The bar is not the chief aspect of the business. Owner Johnny Dang estimated it will account for less than 10% of the salon’s income.
But, he said, “It will help.” He indicated that it is mostly for customers coming in to get their nails done and helps add to the luxury aspect of the business. Azura Nail Salon bar first had a soft opening in late June with its official grand opening taking place on July 9.
Since then, business has been somewhat slow, according to Dang. He indicated the economy and uncertainty about the upcoming presidential election are reasons, saying, “People don’t want to spend a whole lot of money.” That, combined with children going back-to-school, were the biggest reasons Dang cited for it being slower.
He remains optimistic about Azura’s prospects though and said he expects business to pick up by mid-September. Figueroa described the business as “improving very fast.” She said, “It gets pretty busy, especially on the weekends.
” Since the opening, the company has brought numerous jobs to the area by hiring 18 nail technicians, four receptionists and two bartenders. Dang expects the business to continue to expand. “By this time next year, we’ll be double that number,” he said.
One aspect of the hirings that Dang was particularly proud of was the diverse range of individuals hired. Despite everybody coming from a wide range of backgrounds, it has not hampered the staff’s chemistry, with Pham saying, “Everyone here is like a family member.” With business at Azura set to ramp up in the coming months, Dang repeatedly expressed his gratitude for the people that have supported the company so far.
He said, “Thank you to the public that come and support us.”.
