Priti NYC

Priti NYC is an American nail-care brand based in New York City, founded in 2005 by Kim D'Amato [3]. It specialises in vegan, non-toxic nail polish and a soy-based polish remover, positioning itself as what the company calls "the modern cleaner nail polish formulation." The brand remains active, selling directly online and through a network of international distributors.

The idea grew out of D'Amato's own experience during pregnancy. According to the company, she had switched to organic foods and health products but could not find a natural way to care for her appearance in the same manner, and set out to fill that gap.

Priti NYC's founding is tied to 2005, though the company's own accounts differ slightly on the sequence. One version describes D'Amato launching Priti Organic Spa in 2005 — presented as the first organic spa in New York City — and "eventually" creating the Priti NYC polish brand afterward [2]. Another states plainly that "In 2005, D'Amato launched PRITI NYC" and that the brand has sponsored Fashion Week since that year [3]. Both accounts place the brand's origin in 2005.

The founder's separate retail venture, Priti Organic Spa in the East Village, is listed by Time Out New York as closed [7]. The polish brand itself continued as an independent business.

The brand's core catalogue is nail polish and nail treatments. Its polishes are named after flowers and, by the company's account, are offered in more than 100 shades spanning cremes, shimmers, metallics, neons and nudes [1]. A small wellness range extends beyond nails, including a rosemary mint and tea tree foot spray [5].

Priti NYC's most distinctive product is its Soy Nail Polish Remover, which the company describes as biodegradable, non-toxic and free of acetone. It is infused with soybean esters and scented with essential oils such as lemongrass and lavender, or sold unscented, and is packaged in what the brand calls a recyclable apothecary-style bottle [2]. The company states the remover uses bio-based ingredients and contains no VOCs, the vapours released by many conventional solvents.

The polishes are formulated without a list of ingredients common in the wider nail industry, including toluene, dibutyl phthalate, formaldehyde, camphor, xylene, parabens and TPHP [2]. All Priti NYC products are made in the United States.

Priti NYC describes its polishes as vegan, cruelty-free and gluten-free [2]. The company's site displays a Leaping Bunny cruelty-free logo. Its sustainability messaging centres on the soy remover's biodegradable, low-impact formulation and recyclable packaging rather than on a broader certified programme.

The brand states that its Soy Nail Polish Remover won an Allure Beauty Award in 2012 and was named best polish remover in Elle magazine's "Green Beauty Stars" feature [3]. Both awards are cited by the company itself. In 2020, the trade publication LATF USA profiled the brand in a feature on its vegan, cruelty-free formulation and Fashion Week work [8].

Priti NYC has sponsored New York and Paris Fashion Week since 2005, creating custom runway nail colours for designers including Stella McCartney, Tory Burch, Tommy Hilfiger and Lacoste [3].

Priti NYC is active. Its online store is operational, carries a current copyright notice and lists new-release products, and the brand maintains distributors across several countries, including Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Iceland, the Netherlands, Switzerland, France and Japan [4]. The most recent dated content on its site is a blog post from September 2024 [1].