Today is Paczki Day and if you have never heard of this day, you are lucky. Paczki’s are jumbo crème and jelly filled donuts perfected by Polish bakeries. We are fortunate (or unfortunate) to have some of the best bakeries right here in Hamtramck, just a skip and a beat from downtown Detroit. Each gut-filling creation is about 500 calories and packs a whopping 50% or more of daily fat content. But what the heck, that doesn’t stop most people from consuming two or more in a single day! For donut lovers, they are the ultimate treat. YUM especially when warm!

Of course it’s also Mardi Gras in New Orleans. Can anyone explain to me when it comes to religious holidays why they are revolve around food and drink? And do you know where the term “Fat Tuesday” came from and hence the creation of paczki’s? To use up all the sugar, flour and lard before lent started.

Do you know people (yourself included) that when in conversation with others use the expressions “Always,” “All the time,” and/or “Never” consistently? And it’s not only politicians.

Yesterday was President’s Day, yet another day off for so many people. Worse, schools are closed for 2-5 days this week and then next month is spring break. Is it any wonder that USA students rank 27th in math and 21st in reading worldwide?

Quick question: What percentage of oil consumed in the USA comes from the Middle East?

As NY Fashion Week comes to a close, isn’t it amazing the power of celebrities and prestige brands have that they can get virtually any company to not only donate their products and educators for an entire week or two but also have them pay for the privilege.

The Detroit Red Wings have won 23 straight home games. The MSU Spartans are in first place after clobbering Ohio State, Wisconsin and Purdue. The Tigers start spring ball with World Series aspirations. Even lowly U-M basketball is doing fairly well. It’s a great time to be a sports fan in Michigan.

Salons are looking for that next big thing in 2012 to replace the feather. What will it be?

Looks like Cosmoprof is supporting the upcoming ABS show while Salon Centric is favoring the ISSE show in November. Either way, Chicago wins.

Is Essie going to launch a gel polish line or stay traditional? My guess is no. Besides Essie is having too much fun partying with the celebrities. But I wonder what Max is doing?

Save the date: Sunday, October 7, 2012. It’s the premier of our new signature charity event, Beauty Buzz and it’s going to be quite spectacular.

And the answer to the above question is 16%. You were way off. In fact, 25% of oil comes right from our next door neighbor, Canada. And by 2020, we will be exporting oil to other countries.

Happy Tuesday!

Way, way back before the iPhone, before the iPod, before WiFi, before. . .OK, after computers and color TV…we launched Brocato in Michigan. Back then it was a small salon line that master stylist Sam Brocato introduced. Sam came in and did the sales pitch, came back to do the launch event and before long, we were selling Brocato on the streets. Shortly thereafter, Sam reorganized the company, refocused on new ideas and we moved on.

Sam is now in New York with his namesake salon doing kick-ass business. Along with that, Sam is still the creative genius behind the updated Brocato brand which is now part of Beautopia. After all these years, we are super excited to bring Sam back to Michigan to unveil the new and updated Brocato line. We are planning the kick-off launch event and have just placed the line in our 20 Michigan stores. Not only is Cloud 9 performing well, their hottest product is their formaldehyde-free straightening system that can be applied to clients hair for either 30 or 90 day intervals, Curl Interrupted. Further, Brocato recently launched their all-new Demi system that goes head-to-head with Shades EQ.

A complete array of classes will be offered at The Academy. Brocato will be a great addition to our line-up and we certainly look forward to launching the line next week. Welcome back Sam Brocato!

Happy Thursday!

It’s amazing. We walk into a typical supermarket and don’t even pay attention that there are approximately 39,000 different items on the shelves. We look for what we want to buy, check out the new stuff and see what is on sale.

But if you actually stopped and thought about how each and every product was developed from start to finish, the number of pages would be exhausting. I know firsthand.

Ginger Lily Farms Botanicals (GLFB) is a blockbuster line focused on salons recapturing the magic of salon retail at not only affordable prices but adding an element of fun and marketing appeal. GLFB consists of 10 signature fragrances each available in four formulations: Moisturizing Shampoo, Moisturizing Conditioner, Nourishing Body Wash, and Hand & Body Lotion. All items retail for $10 each.

With the proliferation of products at both salon and retail, we knew we had to create a unique package that stood out. This is where the story begins and why each product you see on a store shelf should be fully appreciated!

Instead of a “stock” bottle and cap, we wanted something to fit our nostalgia theme, yet elegant and timely. We also wanted the product to be the star and show its rich formulation and personalized color palette. Finally, we wanted the bottle to fit nicely in a woman’s hand. The finished bottle took more than 6 months to create. It’s beautiful and exactly what we envisioned: Soft touch, lightly frosted, and shows off the product perfectly.

Next we had to decide on label or silk-screen. Silk-screen is industry standard and especially prevalent at retail. There is no shortage of products being sold at anywhere from $1 to $5 that offer consumers a huge selection but mass market is mass market. So we opted for a label. But we wanted a label that looked like it was “part of the bottle.” Again, this took time and patience but the results were worth it. The finished product is such that the typical consumer won’t know if it is a label or actually part of the bottle. The colors are rich and inviting.

One year later, GLFB is ready to launch. Come to think of it, it took longer than the time it takes to have a baby. And in both instances, the wait was well worth it.

To finish the project, we had to develop unique merchandising enhancements for salons to retail the products. Once again tying in our nostalgia theme, we developed custom wood crates to display the goods and custom gift crates for consumers to make their own GLFB gifts. The results are fantastic and it’s love at first sight. Below are photos of the new line displayed at our corporate store:

We can’t wait see the creativity salons and spas will use to create their own GLFB story.

All I can say it’s all worth the effort and like good old nostalgia, this will be a lot of fun for our customers!

Happy Thursday!

It’s official. Tuesday, January 31, 2012, Carter Alex Gaynor was born at 6:15PM at the Prentice Women’s Hospital. That is the date the BUB and I became grandparents (I am shopping for my walking stick).

After waiting hour and after hour impatiently, Mom Jen finally did her thing. The first excitement was when Michael came into the waiting room with that “shit ass” grin on his face and I’m not sure he even knew what he blurted out but we knew the baby was born. Naturally we didn’t waste any time celebrating. Mark brought along a fine 21 year old single malt and then was the perfect moment. Come to think of it, why is alcohol part of every tradition, holiday?

Holding Carter for the first time brought back memories. In fact, it was nearly 26 years ago I held a newly born baby and now he is in Med School. That is how fast time zips by. But for now, Carter has black hair, my ears, changing blue eyes and is the attention of focus. He farts at will and doesn’t get yelled at so you know he has certain privileges. It was exciting to be in Chicago for 3 days enjoying and it was also exciting leaving Carter behind knowing that Mom and Dad will tend to his daily needs while we stroll into town on a whim. Hey, that’s the best part about being grandparents.

Thanks everyone who sent us email and text messages. The first one is always the special one. Upon arrival at work today, marketing got their little creative minds together, very cute:

Once we get “permission” to post photos, I will. In the meantime, life moves forward.

Happy Friday!