They started lining up outside the Granada theater half past five. The weather was overcast and 40 on a football playoff Sunday afternoon. By the time the doors opened at 6PM, more than 300 excited hairdressers and salon owners were in line. The sold-out event attracted 500 altogether.

As I greeted many of the patrons entering, the first thing I noticed was how excited they were to be present at the event. This being their first TNG event and actually their first Dallas event in memory, it was easy to pick up their level of expectation and excitement. I met hairdressers from Houston, Austin, Ft. Worth, places in-between and of course Dallas. With Houston 5 hours away and Austin 3 hours away, they came in for the weekend and had themselves a good time.

The $25 ticket included a buffet dinner which was designed really as deluxe appetizers. But the Granada chefs (who would have known) are master chefs and take pride in their work. They make everything from scratch including their sauces, all this in a kitchen the size of a matchbox. The homemade ravioli was the huge hit as patrons loaded up plates of it. Also popular was the bruschetta on endive leaves, the Granada’s famous brisket sliders, fresh selection of cheese and veggies along with a few other tasty nibblers. The food was a hit.

The place was packed and the curtain opened at 7PM. After our TNG video played, I introduced myself to the audience and once again, they were very excited to be at FRINGE and ready for the show.

The show kicked off with the Kemon Artistic Team which featured seven models all using NaYo color. AMK (Aaron Michael), Nikki Jackson (Salon Lux) were stunning on stage and Andy Bernard was present behind the scenes. It took more than two days of prep for the 25 minute segment but it was worth it. Next up was Eufora followed by Michael O’Rourke (Texans love him), the launch of black 15in1 featuring Luden Henquist, Artistic Director and the finale was Davines featuring two of their top NY stylists.

FRINGE ended around 9:30PM and believe it or not, most people were still in their seats when it ended. They wanted more. Many lounged around the Granada afterwards having yet another cocktail. There was plenty of networking going on and the inaugural kick-off event was in the history books. Plans for FRINGE 2012 are underway.

Happy Wednesday!

P.S. Special thanks to our very own Kelly Vincler and Randy Riggle for their over the top efforts!

 

In the midst of the worse recession; in the middle of the slowest month of the year; and when most people are taking vacation days, TNG rocked yesterday like it was the era of prosperity.

The day started with our Kemon on Tour event at the Taylor store. Aaron Michael and Randy once again wowed the group. It was intriguing to witness hairdressers actually learning something new that they thought they mastered over the past 30 years.

We had veterans of 36, 29, 27 and 19 years. Most used Matrix and L’Oreal products and complained about gray coverage, shine and fading. But along the way, they learned about technique, chemistry, color wheels, tone-on-tones, lifting, highlighting, bleach, and most of all, they learned themselves hands-on.

They all fell in love with Kemon. But what I think hairdressers like these are really falling in love with is that someone cares enough to reach out to them and get them excited about color and products again. And even veterans are finally coming around and saying "it’s not too late to learn."

And that’s what I’m most excited about. The Academy was hopping all day with the Kemon "Bob" course. Over 50 were on hand to learn from our Bob experts, Janan Delly and Denisa Cito (Michigan Hairdresser of the Year).

In the S.P.A. Academy, a be PRO advanced makeup workshop was going on where makeup artists were learning new tricks of the trade.

The grand finale was the Moroccanoil launch event at night. I grilled cheeseburgers and salmon burgers while Liz and Dan took care of the details. Anthony, MO’s guest artist dazzled the audience with his 7 languages and humor to go along with the languages. The 150 in the audience soaked up the knowledge and left energized and excited. Special guests on hand were Miss Michigan, Nicole Blaszczyk, as well as Jon Jordan, fashion reporter for WDIV Channel 4.

All in all, nearly 250 industry peers sought out to learn something new, get motivated about their careers and bring a new level of excitement to their salons. When it comes to education, TNG rocks.

Happy Tuesday!

 

 

This Monday from 9AM to Noon, The Industry Source store in Taylor and the salon next door, Salon Epiphany, are hosting a Kemon party celebrating everything that we stand for.

From what I have gathered, the excitement level Downriver (hey, that’s a Michigan term for the 18 or so cities that are situated near or along the Detroit River and south of Detroit) for something new, exciting and affordable is at a perfect storm.

We have over 50 salon owners and hairdressers coming and the theme is party central. There will be a dozen or so models showing off their new looks and magnificent color.

I’m going to make a visit because one cannot miss a good party. There will be light refreshments, lots of fun and of course, lots of education. If you haven’t been Downriver in a while, this is a great time to get acclimated once again. Wyandotte is a cool city on the river with great restaurants and not too far away-so a great place to have lunch afterwards.

I was told admission is free so come on down!

Happy Wednesday!