Chinese startup gets its claws into new market for 3D-printed nails

This isn’t going to change people’s lives like that amazing 3D-printed robotic arm we looked at earlier in the week, but 3D-printed nail art is still pretty neat.

That’s what Clawz is all about. The Shanghai-based startup designs and produces 3D-printed press-on nails and then sells them around the world – well, that’s the plan once it launches soon and the first production run begins. Pre-orders are now open. The initial focus is on mainland China, Hong Kong, South Korea, Japan, and the US.

“I’ve always dreamed of bringing a cool product to market. When I learned about 3D printing through my local makerspace, I was instantly hooked on the technology and wanted to enter that world,” says founder and CEO Avery-Anne Gervais, who hails from Canada. “While researching what’s hot in the market, I quickly realized it was a very crowded space of jewelry designers and artists making unique items.” That’s why she decided to focus on 3D printing nails and taking the concept global.

Nailed it

Gervais is sticking with Shanghai after taking the fledgling startup through Chinaccelerator last year. After validating the market and dropping the bit about customized 3D-printed nails, she took on a fellow Winnipegian, Chris Tweten, as co-founder.

Avery-Anne Gervais (right) and Chris Tweten (center) meet the public at TechCrunch Shanghai earlier this month.

Clawz’s 3D printed nails come in plastic and metal options and are priced from US$50 to US$150. They’re reusable so long as you don’t break or lose them, but the plastic ones are only designed for about five wears, so these are things you’ll probably save for fancy events and special days. The adhesive should keep them on for up to 12 hours.

The team uses the DLP (Direct Light Processing) method of printing to ensure precision down to 0.025mm. “We can print a set of nails in less than ten minutes. The main time suck is all the post-processing, which includes the removal of support structures and sanding down of any rough bits,” Gervais explains.

The Clawz estore, pictured today ahead of full launch.