The Manicurist| Dimitrina Mancheva
Unlike other days of March 2021, it is a sunny afternoon in the small town of Blagoevgrad, Bulgaria. Kids at the age of five are running and playing in front of a small beauty salon next to the river in the town. The sun is warming the skin of the passengers walking by the river. The breeze is reminding people of the upcoming spring.
Dimitrina Mancheva, the manicurist of the salon, is standing outside for a quick break. “Hey, darling, it is beautiful weather, don’t you think,” she greets one of her clients of the day, puts on her mask and enters the salon.
Dimitrina, or Mimi as her family calls her, is a 28-year-old lady who is following her childhood dream.
“Ever since I was little I enjoyed doing my mother’s nails. I had a passion for drawing which I think turned out to be the basis for my interest in doing nails. Although I am not spending much time drawing these days, I like making designs on women’s nails and seeing their reactions,” Mimi shares what made her become a manicurist as a profession.
Although she graduated from the South-West University “Neofit Rilski” in Blagoevgrad with a degree of Finance, Mimi says she enjoys what she is doing.
“I am not planning to do this my whole life, but for now it makes me happy,” Mimi smiles. “I started my class for manicurists when I was a student at the age of 23. I have worked in one salon for a year and in 2017 we opened this beauty salon, Euphoria,” Mimi is explaining the beginning of her self-employed career while gently pushing back her client’s cuticles.
Mimi is now working in the beauty industry for five years. She says the opening of the salon was a rather spontaneous decision.
“As I mentioned, we opened it in 2017, which makes it three and a half years ago now,” Mimi says. “We are a team of four ladies and we are quite close. We were just talking about it one day and we all got excited about it. Now it is not just a plan but a reality,” Mimi explains how her friends and her decided to start this business together.
Mimi says she is still planning her future, especially when speaking about her career. But for one thing, she is certain.
“I am more of a family-oriented person. One day, when I have my own family, I want to have two or three kids,” Mimi is smiling and applying the first coat of nail polish. “One thing is certain — for me family is the most precious gift and I want a big one. When it comes to my career, I believe everything will fall into place.”
Reaching the moisturizer from the top shelf, Mimi is almost done with her first client of the day. “The most satisfying part of my job is seeing people happy when looking at the final result. Sometimes it is the little things that make you even a bit more confident and beautiful. Knowing that I have contributed to this feeling when women look at their nails is really rewarding.”
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Martina Stoyanova is a student majoring in Journalism and Mass Communication and Business Administration at the American University in Bulgaria. She is fond of learning and exploring people as stories.
