Julep has a new item, and they want you to crowdfund it.

The crowdfunding goal is $75,000 and at time of writing they are have reached $48,648 of $75,000 goal.

Here is what you get if you decide to crowdfund this item:

• Just for Mavens

  $19.99 contribution

  Reserve your May Maven Box now and you’ll be one of the very first to experience the Plié Wand.

  • Julep Plié Wand
  • 1 extra Plié cap to use with any Julep nail color
  • 2 new Julep nail colors with Plié caps (as part of your monthly box)
  • Shipping included
  • Attention Mavens: This is the only option that counts as prepayment for your May Maven Box. Dotting tools and striping brushes will be available as add-ons during the May Maven Reveal.

• Front of the Line

  $40.00 contribution

  If you believe your DIY manis could be better, easier, and more fun, show your support by reserving your Plié Wand now.

  • Julep Plié System (Plié Wand, extra cap, dotting tool & striping brush)
  • 2 of our favorite Julep nail colors with Plié caps
  • Shipping included

• The Keeper

  $65.00 contribution

  Want a convenient (and chic!) way to store and display your new Plié-compatible colors? Just line them up on a Plié Color Magnet.

  • Julep Plié system (Plié Wand, extra cap, dotting tool & striping brush)
  • 5 of our favorite Julep nail colors with Plié caps
  • Julep Plié Color Magnet
  • Shipping included

• Ask An Expert

  $120.00 contribution

  Once your Plié Wand arrives, sit down for a 30-minute video chat/training session with one of Julep Nail Parlor’s expert vernisseurs.

  • Julep Plié system (Plié Wand, extra cap, dotting tool & striping brush)
  • 5 of our favorite Julep nail colors with Plié caps
  • Julep Color Caddy (with storage space for up to 57 nail colors)
  • 30-minute video chat with a Julep vernisseur
  • Shipping included

• Paint The Town

  $500.00 contribution

  Polishing your nails is always more fun with friends, so invite three of your besties over to play with the Plié Wand.

  • 4 Julep Plié systems (Plié Wand, extra cap, dotting tool & striping brush)
  • 10 of our favorite Julep nail colors with Plié caps
  • Refreshments
  • Shipping included

• Best Slumber Party Ever

  $5,000.00 contribution

  Host an epic Plié party in a fabulous hotel suite. An expert vernisseur from Julep Nail Parlor will stop by to teach a 2-hour Plié Wand master class.

  • Hotel suite with refreshments for up to 8 guests
  • Up to 8 Plié systems (Plié Wand, extra cap, dotting tool & striping brush)
  • 2-hour master class with a Julep vernisseur

• Create Your Own Color

  $10,000.00 contribution

  Do you dream of having your very own Julep nail color? We’ll make it happen. Work with Julep CEO & founder, Jane Park, to mix and name a brand-new polish.

  • Develop a custom color with Jane Park
  • 10 Plié systems (Plié Wand, extra cap, dotting tool & striping brush)
  • 100 bottles of your new color
  • Shipping included

The new item is the Plie Wand, and CEO & Founder Jane Park explains the Plie Wand here:

If you’re wondering how the plie wand works, here’s more info:

The Julep Plié Wand

• Ergonomically designed to function as a natural extension of your hand, the Plié Wand offers an upgraded DIY mani: more accuracy, better control, and a lot more fun.

• Features:

• Long, balanced handle offers stability, comfort, and control, especially in your non-dominant hand.
• Adjustable design twists, pivots, and bends so you don’t have to. This keeps your polishing hand steady and puts less strain on your wrists.
• Interchangeable dotting tool and striping brush help you unleash your inner artist.

• How it Works:

• • 1. Snap magnetic Plié Wand into a new Julep polish cap.
    2. Unscrew cap and start polishing.
    3. Experiment with different grips and angles in each hand until you find a comfortable combination that feels right.

    

  Will all new caps have that hole for the magnet? What is going to happen with the swatch stickers?

  Julep: We’ll start transitioning to our new Plié-compatible caps in May. You will also have the option to purchase new caps for your existing Julep nail polishes. Unfortunately due to the design of the new caps the swatch me stickers will longer be available.

You need to make a cap that snaps on to the old bottles. I like the idea, but I do not like the idea of having to buy new caps for the old bottles.

Julep: We are going to do everything we can to help make the transition as easy as possible by offering special promotions on caps for our Mavens.

• My thoughts

The whole crowdfunding thing seems odd to me though. Why not just sell it as usual? They have millions in venture capital but its almost like they are afraid the plie wand is going to bomb, so they want Mavens to reserve their boxes in advance so they have a reserve number for it. I do like the idea of having more control with my non-dom. hand, and Julep probably thinks that crowdfunding helps generate publicity, but I don’t know why an exisiting company would go this route. It’s like they don’t believe in the product enough to finance it.

Will all of that said, If you pre-order your box, it is the same price as usual ($19.99), and you get the new wand along with some new nail polishes. If you pick the Just for Mavens contribution, you are just committing yourself to that particular month’s box (May), so you aren’t paying anything extra (you’re just prepaying 4 months in advance).

Would be nice if I could afford contributing enough to have my own name in a nail polish though 😛

xoxo,

Emmy