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Out Of My Mind On A Wednesday Mornin’

Updated: May 19, 2023

Where the f—k is the time going? Then again if you are living in Ukraine, each day is a painful reminder of the cost of freedom. It was February 24 when I wrote my special report and it has been five weeks they have been living in hell. I read the story of what happened to their country in 1932-1933, referred to as the Holodomer lead by then leader of Russia, Stalin. He starved to death 4 million Ukrainians, who to this day still never forgot. There is a movie about this called Bitter Harvest in case you want to learn more. Hopefully this war will end soon and with so many companies abandoning Russia, it will be interesting to see the outcome for the Russians.


How much longer is it going to take before the kid yells out, “The king has no clothes on!”. The pro beauty industry is long gone with the only remnants left of Cosmoprof and Salon Centric stores and a few full service distributors still peddling boutique brands that are trying to make a difference. America’s Beauty show next month doesn’t have a single A exhibitor in either the hair or nail care category. And how is Cosmoprof going to have a show in Vegas when there are no exhibitors left and attendees are as sparse as face masks in Florida? It’s no wonder that both Amazon and Ulta own the majority of the business now.

Back at the ranch (I have been watching too much Yellowstone which is totally addictive TV), new product launches are alive and well at TNG. I am very excited to launch our latest products from Ginger Lily Farms: Men’s 3-in-1 Shampoo, Conditioner & Body Wash (available in Energizing and Fragrance-Free)

And our long awaited Kid’s 3-in-1 Shampoo, Conditioner & Body Wash, Fragrance and Tear-Free!

With all the stress, bullshit and anxiety going on these days, we all need a daily reset. What is better than a little meditation and time alone with our new ForPro Expert Rechargeable 6-in-1 Eye Massager! It offers genuine relief and includes heat, 3D massage, music, bluetooth, voice and sleep functions.

One of our best-sellers is our Lavender 10-Minute Paraffin hand and foot treatments. Due to the popularity of our fragrance-free formulations, we just added fragrance-free for both the hand and feet treatments. Just launched, they are already hot sellers.

What happened to Starbucks? I remember the first Starbuck’s that opened in Vegas and loving it. This was well before they opened in Michigan. My go-to drink is a triple Grande dry cap, non-fat and extra-hot. Back then it was $2.45. Now it is $5.90 and that is if you can get it. The stores around here are constantly closed or open limited hours. Starbucks used to be the model for other restaurants and retailers to follow for employee engagement. Now they can’t only keep employees, those that are still around want to unionize. Poor Howard Shultz, Starbuck’s founder. He is back yet again as the interim CEO with a host of issues to solve.

Do we really need award shows on TV anymore?

The NFL came to its senses and will now allow both teams in overtime to get the ball. About time.

The FDA authorized yet another booster shot for adults 50 and over? Sorry, I’m not ready for it.

Inflation is the now the #1 worry for consumers, some 17% of American’s now say inflation is their #1 concern. Price of gas over $4.00 a gallon is right behind. COVID worries now barely register. It is amazing how what is on our mind changes so quickly. And why we still have to wear masks in federal facilities and planes is the $100 question no one has the answer to. Oh wait, Biden extended the mask requirement until April 17. And why do you ask? Biden himself doesn’t have an answer.

Last word on inflation, FCL (full container load) pricing is still over $20,000 after all the fees to Michigan. Yes lower than $25,000 we paid last year, but still more than 5x what we paid before the pandemic. Until the FCL fees go below $10K, we will see inflation well into 2023. Yikes!


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