· By katie masters
Everything you need to know about the Oregon Nail Expo
This is Nail Thoughts x Kokoist's 4th year heading to the Oregon Nail Expo and setting up shop! We will be attending next year (2027) for our fifth year in a row, and you can get your tickets here on the O.N.E. website!
pictured: Nail Thoughts shelf set up at the Oregon Nail Expo. Tap through for my full recap instagram photo dump.
SHOW BASICS:
The Oregon Nail Expo also known as O.N.E. takes place in Portland, Oregon at the Sheraton Airport Hotel. It’s a nails only expo! Which is usually hard to find nowadays! Usually most beauty expos are mixed with other professional salon related brands (hair, skin, makeup etc.), but this one is amazing for nail techs to get all of their supplies all in one expo without having to worry if there will be enough nail brands there to be worth it.
pictured: Nail Thoughts 2026 table display at the Oregon Nail Expo
The expo is also only ONE day, so it’s much less overwhelming than the classic 2 day beauty expo. It’s quite literally a 5-7 minute shuttle ride from the PDX airport, so easy (gorgeous airport btw)! Just call the hotel and ask for a shuttle and they will send it over to the airport. You'll wait like MAXIMUM 15 mins. So easy (and saves you money, love that).
"Call the hotel at 503-281-2500 for free shuttle pick up to the Sheraton." -Oregon Nail Expo Website
I personally stay at the hotel, and I think a lot of other people do. It's just SO easy to wake up and walk down to the expo (it leaves for a little sleeping in). The days before and after the expo, brands host nail classes in the hotel conference rooms, so if you wanted to stay longer than a day, you should take some nail classes and make a little retreat out of it! Keep in mind, those extra days of classes aren't included in your ticket price, BUT during the day of the show, there are free demos/workshops scheduled that you can attend!
"The Oregon Nail Expo is the largest Nails Only Trade Show for licensed nail professionals and students on the West Coast." -Oregon Nail Expo Website
VIP TICKET VS REGULAR:
If you pay for the VIP ticket, you get to access the expo an hour earlier AND get a giant swag bag of nail stuff from the brands that are there. Like okay, mini Ulta Beauty World! Both of those things are worth it in my opinion because for example, if you are coming the the Kokoist x Nail Thoughts booth, being early is key to making sure you grab your essentials before they sell out. We tend to not pack as much for one day expos because, well it’s only one day! I think a lot of other brands are the same because we just don’t want to pack up as much stuff at the end of the expo.
"We feature Nail Companies from all over the United States and Canada who attend to give you the latest products and trends in nails. The show day features on going demonstrations, samples, and show specials. Event Day Presentations included with your show ticket." - Oregon Nail Expo Website
This year (2026) I sold out of all of the following items HOURS before the expo was even over. I would take notes on the most popular sellers here so you can prioritize your shopping list! This year it was
-Nail Thoughts Chrome Classics Palette
pictured: all of the Nail Thoughts gel items I sold out of at the Oregon Nail Expo. tap thru for my full Oregon nail expo photo dump
PARKING INFO:
Another reason why I personally would pay for the VIP ticket, is because I have heard a lot of complaints about the parking situation. The parking IS free, so that's amazing, but the hotel parking lot I think can be pretty limited and crazy so it takes people forever to find a spot. SO if you have parking anxiety, I recommend the VIP ticket for early access. Or just Uber!
Check out how insane our booth was this year and work alongside me in this quick 3 minute vlog of the 2026 Oregon Nail Expo:
pictured: Nail Thoughts YouTube 3 minute vlog of the Oregon nail expo, tap thru to view
Our line this year wrapped around our entire booth perimeter and almost into the next booth! Insane! Definitely something to celebrate :)
FOOD/COFFEE RECS:
Near the hotel:
The hotel food is...fine! Nothing to write home about but when you are starving, their chicken sandwich does hit. I will say though, expo day, the hotel restaurant is SO packed (and slow) so maybe pack some food in advance or get something delivered.
The hotel shuttle actually will take you down the street to a little shopping center called Cascade Station (3 mins away and so convenient to be dropped off!!)and it has around 10 restaurants (including Jersey Mikes, Starbucks, and Crumbl). And my group ate at Zab Pinto Thai and honestly it was really good! The larb was the STAR. I still think about it. Also it was good space for our group of 7.
pictured: the pad thai at Zab Pinto Thai in cascade station
Downtown Portland options (if you feel like exploring and driving 20 mins or so) :
Bluefin Tuna and Sushi- Delish! Our group loves Japanese food and this place was delicious for all of us. The mochi was incredible and their seasonal limeade was sooo yummy.
pictured: some yummy sushi and delish mochi at bluefin sushi and tuna in portland
Hachi Portland- This place...is SO GOOD. If you are a big Japanese food person THIS IS THE PLACE TO GO. All I need to say, is we had an intern here from Japan who- after she took a bit of some yakitori- squealed about how it's so authentic and how she feels like she's back in Japan. Need I say more?
Portland Coffee Roasters- This iced vanilla latte has a special spot in my heart. It's what I've come to look forward to in the PDX airport. It's both inside AND outside the airport security btw, so there's no missing it. I've tried my fair share of iced vanilla latte's around the country and this one is my all time fave. Idk anything about their espresso beans or where they are roasted, all I know is Portland knows what the hell they are doing w/ their coffee. I literally woke up at 5am for my flight EXCITED because I knew I was going to get my vanilla latte. Imagine being excited to go to an airport.
pictured: my official Portland coffee roasters review on my instagram
If you have anymore questions or are curious to see the vibe/lay out of the Oregon nail expo, here is my more thorough and in depth 2025 vlog complete with a quick tour and walk thru of the lay out (not to brag but someone came up to me this year and said this vlog helped them prepare to come to the expo for the first time sooo ;) )