The October issue of  Allure is on newsstands now, and savvy beauty store owners and managers are promoting the products they carry that made the magazine’s annual Best of Beauty list. Among the picks are these items:

• Tweezerman’s Slant Tweezer (tweezers)
• ColorMark (home hair color, root coverage)
• Cinema Secrets Ultimate Foundation Palettes (concealer)
• Redken for Men Mint Clean Invigorating Shampoo (men’s stuff)
• Biolage Volumathérapie Bodifying Conditioner (fine hair)
• CND’s Nail Enamel in Serenity, OPI’s Lincoln Park After Dark and Essie’s Limo-Scene (nail polishes)
• Duri Nail Growth System Rejuvacote (basecoat)
• OPI’s Avoplex Cuticle Oil to Go (cuticle cream)
• T3 Bespoke Labs Featherweight Professional Ionic Ceramic Hair Dryer (blow dryer)
• FHI Heat’s Runway Professional Ceramic Tourmaline Styling Iron (flat iron)

For the entire list as well as the selected Breakthrough products, visit allure.com.

See you next Wednesday,
Marc

One of the top events I attend every year at Cosmoprof North America is Procter & Gamble Beauty North America Professional Care’s open-line distributor awards party. In all, P&G handed out 27 awards this year, which tells me that the open-line side of the pro beauty biz is pretty healthy these days.
      In fact, seven distributors took home Achievement Awards for posting 20% annual sales increases: Best Trading; Cygnus Beauty; Hawaiian Beauty Products; Herzfeld’s B&B Supply; JC Young (Always Beauty); South Tex Beauty Supply; and Valley Barber & Beauty.
      Beauty Enterprises, Ben’s Beauty Supply, Jinny Beauty Supply, New York City Beauty Supply and Sally Beauty Supply won Gold Level Awards.
      Beauty Systems Group, Cicely’s Beauty Supply and Nancy’s Beauty Warehouse received Silver Level Awards.
      7 Dollar Beauty, Andy’s Beauty Supply, Burmax, Elegante Discount Beauty Center, Emiliani Enterprises, Gordon Brothers, King’s Beauty Supply, Marlo Beauty Supply, National Beauty Group, Regis Corp., Schoeneman Beauty Supply and Star & Bee Distributor picked up Bronze Level Awards.

See you next Wednesday,
Marc

The organizers of the 24th Annual Western Buying Conference on Jan. 15-16, 2009, at the Bally’s Hotel & Convention Center in Las Vegas told me last week that in addition to the existing air travel perks and hotel reimbursements for qualified attendees there will also be $100 gas allowances for those who choose to drive.

      This may be a first in the professional beauty industry, and it’s great news for a number of Southern California beauty store owners, managers and distributors I know who don’t want to fly to the growing event. As I understand it, the gas allowance works from anywhere (e.g., Utah, Arizona, Colorado, Northern California, etc.) as long as you qualify under the WBC’s rules. In effect, organizers are saying, “It doesn’t matter if you fly or drive as long as you get there.”

      Kudos to them! These days, any assistance helps. See the WBC’s insert and ad on page 51 in the October issue of  Beauty Store Business  that starts mailing from our printer on Thursday. For Bally’s hotel reservations, call 800.634.3434 and mention code SBWBC9. The cut-off date is Dec. 22. For information about the show, email westernbuyingconference@verizon.net.

See you next Wednesday,
Marc

I’ve always liked the Beauty Brands (beautybrands.com) salon-spa-superstore concept that rolled out 13 years ago. In July, I was at a national business-to-business journalism conference in Kansas City, Missouri—where Beauty Brands is headquartered—and I spent some time at one of the chain’s sites near my hotel, admiring the beauty store. Unfortunately, I didn’t have enough time for the $38 introductory, one-hour, basic Swedish massage deal!
      Currently, Beauty Brands has a total of 52 locations in 11 states with each offering more than 10,000 salon-exclusive products, and it should soon be experiencing more growth as it aggressively boosts its cosmetic and skincare lines. Why? On Aug. 21, Beauty Brands announced that 22-year beauty industry veteran Tara Simon (pictured) recently joined the company as vice president of merchandising and supply chain, and will lead the charge to develop salon-exclusive and prestige lines for color cosmetics, skin, bath and body, and natural and organic products. That is, move the business concept “in an exciting direction,” says David Bernstein, Beauty Brands’ chief operating officer.
      Most recently, Simon worked for Sephora (sephora.com), where she served as divisional merchandising manager of color. She also led the team that created Sephora’s private line of bath and body products, and managed various areas, including fragrance, the Sephora brand and business development.
      “Tara brings to Beauty Brands tremendous expertise in merchandising as well as industry perspective, and she shares our customer-centric philosophy and focus on delivering the best customer experience,” adds Bernstein. “We believe that she will help us enhance the categories in which we’re already very successful, as well as grow into new areas.”

See you next Wednesday,
Marc