All Articles Tagged "hair texture"
Crossing Lines Of Culture And Texture, LeMetric Hair Center Offers Fuller Hair To Every Woman
The LeMetric studio during an open house event.
Get your hair done on the go? Of course someone is offering it. From food trucks to mobile medical services, businesses on wheels aren’t exactly new, but they are experiencing rapid growth. With many new entrepreneurs looking to launch a business on shoestring budgets, running a company from a truck rather than leasing a brick-and-mortar property is a cost-saving strategy.
One of the beauty-mobiles taking advantage of this trend is the LeMetric Mobile Hair and Beauty Studio. “Elline Surianello, who has owned the LeMetric Hair Center in Midtown since 1987, recently bought a Mercedes-Benz Sprinter van and had it custom-built into a beauty shop on wheels that offers blowouts and cuts in front of your office, like a taco truck,” The New York Times wrote back in September. We took a tour of the mobile studio just a few weeks ago. Outfitted with comfortable seating and even a runway, the truck can service busy working women or entire parties of ladies looking for a fun way to get ready for a big event, doing hair, nails, eyelashes, and more. Surianello, gave MadameNoire a personal tour of the van, talking about the challenges of a business such as this.
The LeMetric mobile salon.
“Because of the size of it, it’s for a major city like New York, Chicago, or Philadelphia,” she told us later during a phone call. “The goal is this is going to be one of many.”
Surianello has been in the hair business for about 25 years, owning and operating a traditional hair salon business long before the mobile salon took off in more recent months.
“When I first got into this business, no one was talking about additional hair,” she told us. “Now it’s a very open conversation. Hollywood and the runways are very open about it. It makes extensions very accessible. Now young girls regardless of age and income are into fuller hair.” Indeed, Surienello notes that she even gets calls from women in their 80s looking to add a little oomph to their hair.
While this is one of the flashier aspects of the business, what it comes down to is hair. “Women have an emotional connection with their hair and how it makes them look and feel. We have created safe no-evasive & non-surgical approach to the women’s hair issue,” says the LeMetric website. On the site, you’ll also find pictures of Surianello, with and without her own hair. In fact, during the tour we took with her, without prompting, she removed the hair piece she was wearing.
Are You a Rebound Queen? How To Tell If You’re Moving Too Fast…
firstwivesworld.com
You know the saying, “The best way to get over an old man is with a new one.” But are you a Rebound Queen, getting back in the dating game prematurely before you’ve had a chance to get over a heartbreak? While you may want to get on with life and get past the pain, that could spell trouble for anyone who comes in your path and becomes your next victim. Is it all fair in love and war, or should you be considerate of those who are looking for a real relationship? We’ve all been there – we’ve had our hearts broken…and we’ve broken a couple ourselves. Are we all rebounding from someone or are we carrying emotional baggage? If you’re not sure, here’s how to tell if your simply a man-eater, or a Rebound Queen.
Mixed Chicks Founders Face Copycat Dilemma
Kim Etheredge and Wendi Levy were making hair history for multicultural women across the US with their “Mixed Chicks” hair products. They had put in eight years of hard work to develop and market their product, and were earning an annual revenue of $5 million. But then, Inc.com reports, they discovered the alarmingly similar “Mixed Silk” brand. The Sally Beauty Supply product line for mixed race women came in packages that looked all too familiar. And with its cheaper price tag, the imitation brand threatened to ruin everything the entrepreneurs had built.
In 2004, Etheredge and Levy debuted “Mixed-Chicks,” a hair solution to the struggles the two dealt with as women of mixed race that they hoped would also help women with similar hair textures. Their product line, which includes shampoo and conditioner, began to sell in salons and beauty-supply stores across the US. In 2009 it even caught the eye of celebrity actress Halle Berry, who named the brand one of the “must-have products” in three national beauty magazines.
That same year, a representative from Sally Beauty Supply approached the two entrepreneurs at a trade show. The woman liked their product and invited the two to speak further about a partnership with Sally Beauty Supply. At first, the opportunity to have Sally Beauty Supply carry their products seemed incredible. But the two did their research and decided that the corporation’s strict return policies weren’t for them.
The duo’s dismissal wasn’t enough to deter Sally’s Beauty Supply. The chain went on to create “Mixed Silk,” and with Sallys’ clerks claiming it was practically the same thing as “Mixed Chicks” except cheaper, the two soon realized that their business was at stake.
Etheredge and Levy found themselves in a difficult situation. If they sued the billion-dollar company, they faced paying $250-500,000 a year in a legal battle that could last for years. In addition if they lost their case, the two risked having to pay Sally’s for lost revenue.
Then again if they won their case, it was a chance to possibility get rid of “Mixed Silk” and collect damages for lost sales and reputation.
“Kim and I felt the same way,” Levy tells Inc.com. “There was no way we could just sit there.”
In March 2011, “Mixed Chicks” formally filed a lawsuit against Sally Beauty Supply for trademark infringement, trade dress infringement and unfair competition claiming that the chain was selling and advertising an imitation of their product.
The co-founders are still locked in a legal battle, and await their May 15 trial date. The lawsuit has cost them big. Although they won’t disclose how much, they’ve had to postpone their plans to take the business international for now. The business has continued to grow in the US, and last year added seven new products and increased its distribution to 3,000 stores.
At the end of the day, the women have no regrets about their decision to sue. As Etheredge says to Inc.com, “You can’t just bully little companies.”
Relaxed Hair vs. Natural Hair – The Great Debate
There’s always been a little bit of a beef between au natural women and women with relaxers. Well, we’re here to settle the argument with a pros and cons list.
Are You Relaxing Your Hair Too Often?
You see it every couple of weeks. Creeps up on you unsuspectingly leaving you in a frizz. Curly and thick, it’s hard to part, needs constant moisture and looks completely different from the rest of your locks. It’s new growth, and although some like the sign of hair maturing, others rush to their nearest beautician to get a touch-up. The question is: when is it time to run to the salon and are you running too often?
