[poll id="2489"]After 27 years at TNG I have succumbed to the power of the MAC. Yep, this is my first blog using a MAC and you know what, it’s no wonder Apple is kicking Microsoft’s ass big time. Apple got me hooked first the iPod, then the iPhone and finally the iPad. The MAC does thing users can only dream about. However, one thing it doesn’t do is print money so you still need great ideas to generate enough revenue to pay for it.

black 15in1 is prominently featured in the current issue (January 16, 2012) of People magazine. And Nina Dobrev is the latest actress to fall in love with the product.

How about those Spartans? 15 game winning streak is magical. But we got the short end of the stick finishing 11th overall in football. However we are ranked 9th pre-season. Who decides this anyway?

The news in Wayne County is getting worse and worse. And looks like billionaires go to jail just like everyone else, what was Moroun thinking?

On vacation, I finally read the first two Stieg Larsson books. The first, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo was over the top good and coincidentally the movie is out this weekend. I have the original Swedish version with subtitles that I look forward to watching this weekend. The Girl Who Played With Fire is just as good and at over 600 pages, reads very fast.

Monday is already the second holiday of the year, MLK. Hard to believe how fast January is going. Could it be the mild weather?

The North American Auto Show kicks off tonight at Cobo Hall. Can the Big 3 keep their momentum in 2012? Ford certainly looks very strong in its new offerings.

Detroit Piston’s attendance the worst in decades. The bigger question is why does anyone care about pro basketball?

Have you played the hot word game from W.E.L.D.E.R.? If not and you like word games, this is the bomb. I am on level 12 with 40,000 points. This game is addicting as hell.

Our Discovery Center in THE INDUSTRY SOURCE Ann Arbor location has bit a huge hit, so we are adding to our Maumee and Grandville locations. The Discovery Center allows hairdressers to try our exclusive products risk-free in a comfortable setting complete with shampoo station and styling stations.

Speaking of stores, our new store program for Nailco Rewards customers kicks off next week or so. Very exciting with special pricing throughout the stores.

The tng worldwide Facebook page has been changed over to THE INDUSTRY SOURCE Facebook page. So if you haven’t “liked” the new page, please do so.

Happy Friday!

I don’t know about you, but I am always ready for the new year.

Think about this for a moment. We live our lives based on a 24 hour day, 7 day week, 12 month year. Who decided all this for us?

As 2011 comes to a close, rather than reflecting on all the good and the bad, why not just focus on what’s good on the horizon?

For tng worldwide, 2012 is going to be a swell year. We have put a lot of changes into place along with some very exciting developments:

• Completely updated THE BEAUTY BOOK
• Completely updated THE INDUSTRY SOURCE logo
• Completely updated THE INDSUSTRY SOURCE magazine
• Completely updated Nailco Gold and renaming it Nailco Rewards
• In an effort to increase our 99.1% fill rate, will beginning shipping any backorder items from our Coppell distribution center (if they have in stock)
• Completely new uniforms for THE INDUSTRY STORE store talent
• The much anticipated launch of black 15in1 TWICE A WEEK Miracle Hair Shampoo and Conditioner
• The launch of the new black 15in1 marketing campaign
• The launch of Ginger Lily Farms Botanicals
• The launch of the new Kemon NaYo marketing campaign and salon loyalty program
• An all new charity event to replace Tiffany to be held Sunday, October 7. The new event is super exciting and will feature many celebrities.
• The update of our websites. Look for a completely new look for black15in1.com as well as theindustrysource.com.

2012 is an election year and perhaps the year we will see unemployment drop to 8%, more consumers headed to salons and spas and even some optimism. We are ready for a fabulous new year and cannot wait for the fun to begin.

Healthy, happy and prosperous new year to all. Thank you for your “eyes,” comments and support.

Happy 2012!

Have you noticed the proliferation of signs? They are everywhere. I especially love these signs:

• Employees must wash hands
• Do not throw napkins in toilet
• Do not steal someone else’s food
• No cell phones, no kids, no loud talking (perfect spa sign)
• Tip not included

I was in NYC for a photo shoot and there really is no other city quite like NYC. 9 million people always on the go. Definitely one of the top cities in the world for food . I had the best breakfast at Norma’s. Sorry to tantalize you with this:

Egg white shrimp frittata with sundried tomatoes, spinach, caramelized onions and potatoes on the bottom.

I was in NYC for the black 15in1 photo shoot. The models are out of sight and the talent for photography, video, hair, make-up and such is over the top. It’s no wonder NYC is the place to be for beauty. But hey, we do a pretty damn good job right here in Michigan.

Speaking of Michigan, we apparently are the second fastest growing economy in the U.S.A. thanks to you guessed it, the auto industry.

Starbucks’s already has their Christmas cups out and specialty lattes. It can’t be Christmas time, can it?

Looks like the Colomer deal isn’t done after all. It’s always fun to watch private equity firms battling each other.

More on the black 15in1 scene, we are launching the brand new Signature Travel Kit later this month. The kit features the two newest products that are most exciting: TWICE A WEEK Miracle Hair Shampoo and TWICE A WEEK Miracle Hair Conditioner. These are the first products in either mass or professional to target women that only wash their hair twice a week. The full size products launch January.

Businessweek did a fascinating story this week on the “anti-leader” of Occupy Wall St., David Graeber. No one is certain where this is going but recent port closures and other labor related issues will soon bring this to the forefront. One idea Graeber floats is for the U.S. to have a “Jubilee” and forgive everyone’s debt.

Isn’t it amazing how fast the hair feather craze took hold and how fast it died?

Will student loans be the next scandal? It’s surely the reason for unlimited tuition hikes over the years.

I’m loving the iCloud. Everything is always backed up and all Apple devices are updated simultaneously. If you haven’t updated your iPad software, plug in!

Happy Thursday!

Between breakfast meetings at the Four Seasons, distributor meetings at The Hotel and Mandalay Bay, onsite meetings at the convention center and dinners at night, it was non-stop movement at Mandalay Bay for those lucky enough to endure yet another Cosmoprof. With more meetings off the show floor than in the history of the show, you would think the show organizers would make the show floor more affordable and bring everyone together. But not this group, they would rather have everyone suffer and pay the consequences.

The show floor itself was 75% nail, 15% hair and 10% everything else. Included in the mix was mostly Asian and European companies trying to get a foothold in the USA market along with the typical die hard USA companies such as Helen of Troy, Conair, Spilo and Tweezerman. There are now more nail gel companies than Starbucks has coffee combinations. One booth featured more than 300 colors. Another claimed 1000 colors. There was also no shortage of pedicure spas with each company offering virtually the same units.

The onsite meeting rooms were very scarce as well this year. L’Oreal was nowhere to be found and even TIGI opted off the floor as did Essie and so many others. In one very small secluded section one could find OPI, CND, Keratin Complex and Moroccanoil (which was perfect for me).

George and Bill were very proud showing off their new LED light made in the USA and made of heavy steel. The $399 light will be tightly allocated in 2011 and features quick curing and the ability to do both hands and feet. Looks like the first shipment of Gel Color will arrive late September but even that will be allocated until 2012.

CND was very happy as they shipped their 6 latest shades of Shellac (we have in stock!) and continue to expand the marketing reach of the brand. It will be interesting when CND meets OPI in 2012, sort of reminds me of the Wild, Wild West.

Moroccanoil spared no budget as they offered up lunch each day and imported chocolates from Israel with the MO logo. They also featured an event at MIX on Monday night, no doubt the biggest spender at the show this year.

I bumped into many people along the way, some of which I haven’t seen in a while. There was Bob Furstenberg still loving Oakland and fried chicken. There was Simon (ex-L’Oreal and TIGI) traveling from London representing ghd as they make their USA push. There was Paul Sharnsky, a.k.a. the distributor hanging out with anyone he could latch onto and enjoying an adult beverage at the MO party. There was Jeph Wright (ex Kemon coach) taking yet another cigarette and cocktail break with a fellow stylist at 7:15AM. There was Bo of Wahl playing Texas Hold Em’ and enjoying himself. There was Tony Cuccio (enough said). There was Michael and Zoya Reyzis dining at the Four Seasons (very nice people but did they have to have Leo?). There was MIke Asher flying first class as usual on DELTA also having breakfast at the Four Seasons with Tom Fowler, now of A.I.I. fame. Mike is another nice guy just not sure what his role is these days.

For me, the highlight of the show was meeting with distributors and seeing their faces when they saw the new black 15in1 products, Ginger Lily Farms Botanicals and new PR campaign for Kemon NaYo and Actyva Care. What is very refreshing and positive for our industry is that while a few global giants control the lion’s share, there are still plenty of good guys out there that are independent, like to have fun and want the latest and greatest. As one of them said to me, perhaps we should have our own Cosmoprof and forget all this BS we have to endure. Hmmm, sounds like a good idea to me.

Happy Thursday!

July 4 weekend has come and gone. Now it’s back to work and time to focus on the second half of 2011. Why? Before you know it, we’ll be thinking about candy canes and 2012.

For us, we are ready for a great second half. Both thebeautybook Fall edition and The Industry Source July/August magazine are done and look awesome. Some of the other things I am most excited about include:

• CND Shellac 6 new shades coming this September
• OPI Gel Polish coming late Fall
• NaYo Healthy Hair for a Healthy Body campaign. Already, NaYo is gaining traction is the USA’s best salons as they all crave it’s no ammonia, no PPD and no odor high lifting formula.
• Updated kemonusa.com website
• Enhanced supplier-buyer software to increase order efficiency, enhance delivery dates and increase our fill rate of 99.1%.
• New TEXAS store openings
• black 15in1 new product launch this October, truly one of the most exciting launches ever
• Ginger Lily Farms Botanicals launch this October. This one will be a homerun for salons looking to capture the magic Graham Webb once had with its Back to Basics line
• Launching Coverderm in the USA- this is by far the best camouflage makeup line I have ever seen
• Believe it or not, little square white and orange buffing blocks that you tear off. Cost about a nickel and are disposable for each client. This is very cool.

The economy should grow about 3% in the second half  boding well for employment. It sure would be nice to see the unemployment rate get closer to 8% than 9%. And it sure would be nice to see housing finally moving back in the right direction. For salons and spas, those that survived the downturn should be in good shape and need to continue to tweak their brands, pricing and services offered. Retailers and service establishments are raising prices-salons and spas need to do the same. And brands are more important than ever with the continued success of ULTA and amazon.com, brands that differentiate and not available everywhere will dominate.

On the personal side, exercise, healthy eating, and sleep still remain the keys to success. New warning photos on cigarette packs will help smokers quit but we need to take more responsibility for our own actions. And this will mean we will pay more to indulge. Already companies have quit hiring smokers or have increased premiums (we charge smokers more), but more increases will be on the way for many more categories. It’s motivating to see people take up running, weight lifting and other physical activities. It’s summer, now is the perfect time to at least start walking.

Yes, the second half is encouraging and there are no elections to deal with. 2012 will be a whole new game but until then, let’s make the best of the second half of 2011.

Happy Tuesday!

Subway is cutting the sodium levels in their sandwiches by 15%. That suggests one will only be 110% over the recommended sodium level instead of 125%. And do you notice people actually adding salt to sandwiches?

Do you prefer salt or sugar? I’m a salty type of guy. Costco’s premium peanuts are as good as you can get and love the Cape Cod half fat barbeque chips. However, M&M dark chocolate are pretty addicting.

OPI Black Shatter is hitting our warehouses no later than Monday. This has been a true phenomenon and we are certainly looking forward to the summer Shatter collection.

Apple reported sales growth of 94% over the previous quarter last year. Can you imagine? Apple sold nearly 5 million iPads and could have sold 10 million if they had them. And they sold nearly 20 million iPhones. And when the new iPhone 5 comes out in September, they will sell more than 100 million. Hey Steve Jobs, can you come up with Apple shampoo and conditioner for us?

The sun came out this morning and I had to rush to ER. The doctor told me I had an allergic reaction to something called the sun. But it went away soon enough as the clouds came back in. Is spring ever going to come?

Speaking of lousy weather, I’m off to Chapel Hill, home of the Blue Devils to visit a true devil himself, second son Daniel. Not only is Daniel a Blue Devil, but a Wolverine too. Is there any worse combo? Daniel told me he can count on one hand the days it has rained over the past 8 months. Of course it is raining today and tomorrow.

Is sushi without soy and wasabi worth eating?

Gas is $4 a gallon and will most likely peak at $4.25 – $4.50 before sliding back. With both Ford and Chrysler boasting their top selling vehicles are pick-ups and sales are soaring, do gas prices matter like they used to? Economists claim at $4.50 and higher, they will. Hopefully we won’t need to find out.

Who doesn’t love Moroccanoil?

And who doesn’t love black 15in1? Check out this Facebook page from a salon in Texas:  http://www.facebook.com/pages/Denise-Barker-HAIR-FLAIR/115870085098435

When you get up from a chair, do you push the chair back into position or leave it as is?

Is Greek yogurt your new favorite thing?

The Red Wings swept the Coyotes. Good news or bad news?

Happy Thursday!

As you read from my previous blog, black 15in1 Miracle Hair Treatment is one of the most exciting products in 2011. One thing that makes it so are the comments, blogs, videos and such from people that love the product. Below is one of the latest blogs from teenvogue.com. Beauty Director Eva Chen couldn’t say it any better than me.

I am also excited to announce that the first international country launching black 15in1 is Vietnam. The Vietnamese economy is booming (you should see the traffic competing with scooters, bikes and autos) and consumers have more disposable income to spend. With consistent hot sticky conditions year round (temperatures in the 90’s and high humidity) it is not uncommon for people to take several showers a day. But the water is terrible and creates havoc for the hair. AllGreen Tu Quy, the exclusive Vietnamese distributor, took samples and passed them out to women. They were amazed and shocked how the product worked in the humidity and tamed their hair from the problem water. AllGreen Tu Quy services over 500 salons.

new hair treatment black fixes 15 hair problems with one product

january 03, 2011

A quick trip to the drugstore is never that simple for me. It’s a common conundrum I face, walking into my local Duane Reade to quickly buy a new hair product, then finding myself stationed in the beauty aisle for what seems like hours, debating whether I should purchase the spray/gel/mousse/serum that promises to add shine, the one that blocks humidity, the one that will protect my hair color, or the one that guarantees to straighten my wavy locks, among many other uses. To my relief, I don’t think I’m the only one who often finds myself stuck in this situation, because let’s face it, who really needs to address just one issue when it comes to styling their hair? Luckily, a new product is about to hit the beauty scene that promises to do it all–or at least fifteen different things–in one application. Black, the first ever 15-in-1 hair treatment, claimed it could do all the things I look for most in my hair products: add shine, prevent split ends, stop frizz, seal hair color, and prevent heat-styling and other damage, among many more necessary functions. To be honest, it all sounded too good to be true, so I decided to test it out and see for myself. I added three pumps of it to my towel-dried hair this morning, then blow-dried as usual to reveal hair that was definitely shinier and more manageable than with my normal styling products. Now, I can’t yet vouch for whether or not it really has prevented breakage, drying out, or fading, but for me, it passed the ultimate test when my hair retained its smoothness and shine even after walking through the New York humidity this morning. Definite plus! Black will be available for $20 online at black15in1.com and in more than 1,000 salons throughout the country starting in January!

Happy Thursday!

Ah, nothing like the start of a new year. But this week is very special. It’s the start of not only a new year but a new decade.

Do you remember Y2K? Does it seem like it was 10 years ago? Then think about how fast 2021 will be here.

Truthfully, the thought of entering a new decade is exciting. After all, with the average life expectancy of adults who live past 60 around 80, that means we only  have 7 or so decades to celebrate.

What’s exciting about this decade is that we saw so much tragedy, war, economic famine and other “bad” stuff in the previous decade. If we are truly going to turn the corner, now is the perfect time to lay the foundation, think differently and understand that what we did in the past is for the history books only. This decade will bring changes like we have never seen.

For instance in this decade we can see the demise of:

• Laptops
• Printed books, CD, DVD’s, computer programs
• Ammonia-based hair color
• Cables for connecting anything to anything
• Land phones
• Fax machines
• Menus
• Catalogs
• What else?

Sure, people thought network TV would disappear due to cable. That hasn’t happened. And although Sirius/XM is a game changer, AM/FM radio is as popular as ever. But make no mistake, we will see advances in health care, technology and the way we do business in this decade that will be historic to previous ones.

As expressed earlier, I am most excited about:

• Kemon NaYo: This is the game changer that will move all hair color in this decade to ammonia-free. Being launched this month, demand has been incredible.
• Shellac: CND has created a new category that others are rushing into. Best of all: Women are paying $40 and up for a manicure and are driving salon business up. There is plenty of room for growth in this category.
• Customization: Ginger Lily Farms is more than a brand of wet goods; it’s about customization and giving consumers their choice of goods. There are more than 150,000 apps for the iPhone with more on the way each day. People will continue to love custom.
• black 15in1 Miracle Hair Treatment: The buzz is buzzing.
• Moroccanoil: They have mastered the art of line extensions and continue to build an amazing brand. They are the Apple of argon oil, competitor’s can’t touch them.
• Our industry: Luckily, we don’t sell widgets like the ones I listed above. No matter how much global companies gobble up distributors, manufacturer’s and the supply chain, people still will need their hair cut and nails done. The best part is that hairdressers, manicurists and spa therapists are independent and will continue to enrich the lives of millions.

I look forward to an optimistic 2011, better decade and bringing the personal back to the personal care business.

Happy Wednesday!

New Year’s Eve is in two days, wasn’t it just New Year’s Day 2010? I’m celebrating by having a few friends come over for dinner and watch the Time’s Square ball drop at midnight. That is of course I can stay up that long!

Do you know why it’s called Times Square? In 1904, the New York Times opened their new offices and pleaded with New York to change the name from Longacre Square to Times Square.

What are you doing for New Year’s Eve? Most likely eating. Favorite foods include crab legs, lobster, steak and shrimp.

I’m not sure what I’m going to remember about 2010 five years from now. There were plenty of disasters, a sick economy getting better, the rebirth of GM and Chrysler, the Spartans winning the national championship, OPI and Essie being sold, and the end of the occupation of Iraq.

Gas is $3.18 a gallon and going up even more. Isn’t it strange that the media isn’t commenting on this like the first time it surged past the $3 a gallon mark? I know GM with its Volt and Ford with its Fiesta is smiling all the way to the bank.

Did you make your New Year’s resolutions yet? Forget it, 95% of them are broken after the first week.

What were your favorite new products introduced in 2010? For sure the iPad is #1 followed by the iPhone 4. I can’t recall any beverages that got hot like Red Bull or Vitamin Water in years past.

It appears credit cards will be the next item to disappear. Smart phones will have all the credit card info and you will line up the smart phone at the cash wrap to pay for transactions. No signature required.

I read that the next technology to hit ereaders will be paper. Paper is the perfect medium for electromagnetic particles that when configured a certain way, appears just like ink on paper. And like paper, the reader can be rolled up and once used, can even be disposed of. Apparently this is 3-5 years out.

2011 will be another interesting year. Growth will continue in third world countries (Vietnam for example is booming); Europe will still be constrained by its debt while the U.S. will continue its recovery. Unfortunately, housing will remain weak and unemployment will most likely stay above 9%. With commodities at all time highs, and continuing higher, one wonders if and when prices will start to go up. Pressures to keep prices down and increased productivity will remain powerful incentives to keep prices in line. At the salon and spa level, look for more of the same. Hospitality will see more occupancy at the higher end properties as businesses open their purse strings to more travel and events.

TNG is ready to rock in 2011. thebeautybook Spring 2011 edition and The Industry Source magazine are both in the mail and we have plenty of new initiatives ready to go. One of the most exciting ones is our new capability to customize and fill 8 oz. and 16 oz. bottles for the salon/spa/hospitality industry. Another exciting area is the launch of black 15in1 which has had numerous press mentions from its celebrity launch event. Also, we just updated theindustrysource.com to show real time inventory so when customers order online they will now see stock on hand.

And last but not least, thanks for being part of my blog in 2010. I’m excited to launch the video blog in 2011 and have some fun with technology. Have a safe, healthy, and successful 2011.

Happy New Year!

LA is LA for a reason. Just like NY is NY for a reason. There are no words to describe the vibe when you are living and breathing it.

The LA scene is unlike any other. No where else does one spot have the celebrities, parties, press, paparazzi and Pacific Ocean to boot. And this my friends is where pretty girls and pretty boys come to live, work, play and survive waiting for their big opportunity.

One thing for certain is that hairdressers are in big demand and smart salon owners rake it in. One such salon and owner is Andy LeCompte in West Hollywood. This ultra cool location features wood timbers in the ceiling that after being painted, were scraped off to look “aged.” Celebrities come for their blow-outs, cut and color and walk out FAB.

Andy LeCompte salon was the venue for the LA launch of black 15in1. For the launch, the production company emptied out all the furniture and equipment leaving plenty of room for the Hollywood DJ’s to set up and spin vinyl all night long. They used the shampoo bowls as ice coolers for free-flowing champagne. They added black 15in1 logos and benefits using magic decals to all the mirrors. And the coolest thing was they created a blackboard and provided big chalk to all to write down the one thing they wanted to fix about their hair.

The bartenders, guys out of GQ, made sure the champagne (with a blackberry at the bottom of the glass) and red wine was flowing. The servers, girls decked out in short dresses with a salon belt holding hair clips and donning wigs passed out tasty finger food.

One highlight was the instant photo booth. It was busy all night long as guests stood in front of the camera to pose and the camera took 4 shots about 10 seconds apart. Within seconds, the photo appeared with all 4 shots sporting the black 15in1 logo.

The doors opened at 7PM and everyone was ready. Over the course of 3 hours, more than 300 people came and went. Each time a celebrity came in, cameras flashed, b-roll ran and people watched. But with so many celebrities and cool people coming through, the scene was more like a night club with an occasional “look who just came in.”

It was truly a great experience meeting the guests. Jessica Stroup was very engaging and couldn’t stop talking how much she loved black 15in1. She was so nice and accommodating, it was refreshing to see regardless of her stature, she just wanted to have fun and blend in.

Ashley Simpson looked better live than in magazines and I was a little nervous putting my arm around her; she is that little but very adorable. Nevertheless, she loved her bottle of black 15in1 and enjoyed herself.

The list goes on and everyone was having a great time and some were even dancing. I felt at least 30 years older than anyone in the salon and thought back to my 20’s and if this was a life I would had loved to live. Us Michigan people are very sheltered from the LA’s and NY’s of the world. I recall partying but never during the week. So in retrospect, I didn’t miss anything although there is a lot be said about living the dream in LA.

For one magical night at Andy LeCompte’ s salon, I did just that.

All photos, press releases and video will be uploaded daily on the black 15in1 website, Facebook and Twitter. Be sure to visit and see all the fun and people loving black 15in1 for yourself. I have shared one quick video featuring Jessica Stroup that is very amazing.

Happy Friday!