Seen & Heard
Medical
Anniversary
Celebrating 10 Years of News Leadership National Hair Journal enters its 11th year
Top Hairloss Experts Gather in San Diego ISHRS Scientific Conference
Women & Fashion
Visit All The Shows
Reinventing The Hair Business
Take the tour starting on...
Jessica Simpson joins Hair U Wear
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The National Hair Journal
VOLUME 10 NO. 40
THE PROFESSIONAL PUBLICATION
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HAIR REPLACEMENT & RESTORATION
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HAIR METRICS – THE NEW SCIENCE When Will We Be Able To Measure If Bigger Is Better? San Diego, 10/06 - In the past the hair industry has been hampered by its inability to quantifiably measure hair loss and growth. In medicine it’s understood “If you didn’t document it – it didn’t happen”. Frustrated by his inability to actually show his patients the hair re-growth from FDA approved drugs such as finasteride (Propecia) and minoxidil (Rogaine), Dr Bernard Cohen, a Miami FL hair restoration surgeon and dermatologist, started looking for
solutions. “Hair loss is like any other medical problem…if it can’t be measured, it can’t be managed”, says Cohen who presented “A New Device for Measuring Fluctuations in Density and Diameter of Hair” at The International Society of Hair Restoration Surgery 14th Annual Scientific Conference in San Diego in October. When NHJ spoke with Dr Cohen he explained this emerging technology means that doctors and hair professionals will be able to discuss hair loss severity using actual numbers from 1 to 100, rather than using meaningless terms like “minimal, mild, moderate, and severe”, and they can track a patients response
Trichotillomania GONE IN 6 MINUTES Awareness Week QVC Extends Hair Invitation Santa Cruz, CA. 10/06 - To break the silence around trichotillomania (compulsive hairpulling), a disorder that affects millions of Americans, the Trichotillomania Learning Center (TLC) announced the first national trichotillomania awareness week last October. Trichotillomania (“trich” for short) is a biological and behavioral disorder that, though little known by the general public and even by most medical professionals, affects approximately 1-2 in 50 people. This disorder often causes serious harm to the sufferer’s self-esteem and quality of life and disrupts the functioning of many families. Children with trich often have problems attending school because of teasing and bullying, as well as studying and reading, due to their strong urges to pull their hair. Adult sufferers, 90% of whom are women, often feel great shame, have difficulty developing intimate relationships, and unnecessarily limit their professional and social lives in an effort to keep their secret. The cause and nature of trich and related disorders is not yet well understood. However, in the past decade successful treatments have been developed that can greatly help control the behaviors and limit their negative impact.
Bosley Iron Man Puts His Legs on the Line
Ed ‘Iron Man’ Suddleson, MD, baton-carrier for Team Bosley, put his legs to the test to raise $1,525 for the Glaser Pediatric Aids Foundation. In this picture he is seen with two other members of the relay team. The Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation creates a future of hope for children and families worldwide by eradicating pediatric AIDS, providing care and treatment to people with HIV/AIDS, and accelerating the discovery of new treatments for other serious and life-threatening pediatric illnesses.
Philadelphia, PA. 10/06 - Jeffrey and Zina Paul took QVC by storm when they offered Jeffrey Paul WrapAround Color Extensions™ on Fashion Friday. In a special beauty segment they sold their entire inventory of 2,000 units in
Baby Toupee Is Back Yes, they’re back. Those lovable baby toupee tots wearing hair that would make their mentors proud. By popular demand, from the crib to your salon, here is another collection of celebrity hairdos modeled by the Baby Toupee Brigade!
to treatment. “The general public can relate to medical numbers, much as they relate to their cholesterol and blood pressure numbers... this understanding and familiarity will generate an increased awareness of hair loss within the general population... and as a result, physi-cians, hair professionals and hair loss product manufacturers, will benefit from the opportuni-ties it provides…patient care will improve…” To learn more about this important technology NHJ will interview Bernie Cohen in Miami. The full story will be in the next issue. How will you measure up? just six minutes. What got viewers so excited? Unlike traditional hair extensions, “WrapArounds” are not created solely for length. They are styling enhancers in seven colors that can be used to add highlights or lowlights that last 3-4 weeks. Women can easily take them out, clean them and put them back in without having to go to a beauty salon. Also included in the special QVC offer were an instructional video, extension remover, reusable adhesive strips and an attractive storage case. The WrapAround adventure began 9 months ago when Jeffrey found himself looking at an amazing invention. He had been contacted by a friend and business associate and asked for his professional opinion. He carried out consumer focus groups to learn how women would respond. When he approached QVC, he found himself among the lucky 2% of applicants who make it through the selection process and get accepted on the show. But the process did not stop there. WrapAround had to pass a total of 42 quality tests before clearing the final hurdle. But QVC is quick to spot a winner. After this first blitzkrieg, Jeffrey and Zina have been invited back a second time. Check your TV listings!
What’s With Tom’s Hair? Hollywood, 10/06 - If only the media would stick to glamour photos the stars would be happy. But that’s not the way it is. There’s no
SKIN HEALTH WINTER 2006
RED LIGHT DISTRICT Redheads Have More Sex, Says German Researcher Hamburg, Germany, 08/06 – Do gentleman still prefer blonds? And do blondes still have more fun? Not any more according to Hamburg sex researcher, Professor Dr. Werner Habermehl. The professor studied the sex lives of hundreds of German women and matched their activity to their hair color. He found that redheaded women were not only more active than women with other colors of hair; they had sex more frequently than the average person and had more partners. Dr. Habermehl told Britain’s Daily Mail newspaper, “The research shows that the fiery redhead certainly lives up to her reputation,” adding that “Even women in a fixed relationship are letting their partners know they are unhappy if they dye their hair red. They are saying that they are looking for something better.”
New Home for Hair Journal Murrieta, CA, 11/06 - The National Hair Group has moved into a handsome new tenroom office suite on Technology Drive in
Murrieta, California. The space has been configured to provide audio-visual facilities for its broadcasting division, a conference room for Hair Society meetings, database-management facilities for The National Hair Journal as well as expanded executive offices. The Journal’s creative studio remains in Pasadena, where Creative Director, Avi Roth has ready access to the talent and resources of Hollywood and the Los Angeles design community.
Batty About Lashes, Silly About Cilia USA Goes Wild For Those “Down Under” Lashes
shortage of make-up artists and hairstylist to help film legends look great, but the combination of paparazzi and gossip columnists can be deadly. Take Tom Cruise. Celebrity watchers are noticing Tom Cruise seems to be sporting a different hairline. They speculate hair transplant surgery may be on Cruise’s list of “Mission Possible!” (as seen in National Examiner)
Women are clamoring for luxuriant, fuller, thicker lashes. Hair Restoration surgeons everywhere are receiving record numbers of requests for eyelash transplants. So what’s new in this field? Dr. Jennifer Martinick, an international leader in hair transplant surgery has come up with the ground-breaking new Martinick Eyelash Transplant Technique. Read the full story inside….
Season Greetings from The National Hair Journal! Wishing you the very best for a peaceful, glamorous and prosperous year ahead!
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Happy holidays! Last night I watched the movie “Twister” on cable and it reminded me of those last few days before the holidays when everything goes out of control. You know there’s a hurricane coming, but you can’t – and don’t want – to get out of the way. In our ecosystem, the first warning isn’t a shaking at the top of the trees, it’s the appointment books that is suddenly full every Saturday, then every late afternoon and evening; and then you notice there’s no time free anywhere! Every client and wouldbe patient wants to look his or her best for the holidays and the days simply aren’t long enough to fit everyone in. It’s a time when stylists and medical assistants forget their lunch hours, skip coffee breaks and give everything they’ve got to take care of their special clients. The six weeks leading up to Christmas are a time when no one calls in sick, there’s no time for office politics… and tips are setting new records! But on Christmas Eve, the last client leaves, the accounts are tallied and the money is deposited in the night safe. It’s time to go home. That’s when it suddenly hits you. You are totally, utterly, overpoweringly exhausted. If this sounds familiar, all of us at the National Hair Journal understand and sympathize. But here’s the great part; those same clients who demanded so much from you are now joyfully embracing the people dearest to them with new pride and confidence. And much of their well-being is due to you and your staff. Few people have the opportunity to change lives the way that you do. So as you sit by the fireside this Christmas, I hope you will feel proud of your professional skills and the superhuman effort that went into those last six weeks. What better gift could anyone receive than their self confidence and good looks? Happy holidays and all the best for the year ahead! Hair Metrics - The International Society of Hair Restoration Surgery hosted its 14th Annual Scientific Conference in San Diego in October. There was a record attendance and a record number of exhibitors too. An important theme that arose in discussion was the question of measuring and documenting hair loss. In the past, we have been limited to comparing patients to the Norwood scale or, if you have the sophisticated equipment, referring to digital images. While this serves as a convenient reference and allows patients to position themselves compared to other people, it does not provide an arithmetical computation of their hair loss or any quantitatively track any new growth that results from surgery or hair regrowth drugs. It is precisely this lack of arithmetical data that many physicians believe to be the root cause of insurance companies and medical providers regarding hair loss as a cosmetic problem and not a physical disease. In 2007, new equipment and analytical procedures are likely to change all this. Andreas M. Finner, MD presented a paper entitled “Hair Density Measurements with Digital Imaging in Hair Transplantation.” He was followed at the podium by Bernard H. Cohen, MD who discussed “A New Device for Measuring Fluctuations in the Density and Diameter of Hair.” Readers of this column will know that the Journal is committed to assisting women with hair loss secure the medical coverage they deserve. These new measurement protocols should play an important part in providing the data that will help insurers document and understand hair loss for what it is. Get familiar with the term, “hair-metrics,” you’re going to hear it a lot in the months ahead. Lasers Update - Interest in low level laser light therapy continues to grow. Everybody is holding their breath waiting for acceptance by the FDA of the HairMax LaserComb clinical trials. Meanwhile, the market appears to be dividing into two camps. Those who believe that laser therapy is a beneficial procedure that can be safely practiced by cosmetologists and those (mainly laser manufacturers targeting medical groups) who believe this technology should be restricted to doctors. There are arguments for and against both positions. The important issue though has less to do with the side effects of laser therapy (no negative effects have been reported in the US or overseas), but more to do with the veracity of the claims being made in marketing and advertising. In our last issue we ran an important article from Don Ozendowski and I encourage anyone contemplating installing a laser in their facility to read it closely.
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The freedom of speech accorded me as a newspaper editor, allows me to state that laser therapy does indeed have beneficial effects on the appearance of the hair, hair growth, pigmentation and the slowing or even reversing of hair loss. My comments are based on interviews with experts around the world, a review of research data, and personal experience. But what works for me doesn’t give a hair studio or clinic owner the right to make medical claims in her marketing materials. Remember, until the specific device you own has completed scientific studies and had them cleared by the FDA, or until it has been accepted as a “predicate device” you can only make “cosmetic” promis-es to your clients. We don’t need to overstep professional guidelines just as this important market is about to take off. If you want to hear the experts talk about low level laser light therapy, visit www. Hairlossnewsmakers.com and listen online to the roundtable discussions conducted at the ISHRS Scientific Conference and hosted by Penny Moss. What’s with cloning? - I know “cloning” is not the right terminology but it’s simpler and faster than the alternatives. So with apologies to our medical readers, let me bring you up to date. There are two medical groups in a neck and neck race to bring this lifestyle-changing technology to market. Both groups employ some of the best hair loss researchers in the world and neither of them is hurting for money! So how are they doing? Well, Intercytex, the UK-based group, has completed Phase 1 medical trials. They have demonstrated that it is possible to multiply hair cells in the laboratory and safely apply them to humans. They recently made news when the British government awarded them a $3.5 million grant to continue their research. It is reported that they intend to use the funds to develop a robotic system to speed up the process of multiplying hair cells before they are replanted. The Aderans research team, based in Philadelphia, has also successfully completed the first stages of its own laboratory testing and has grown “multiplied” hair on laboratory mice. Importantly, the studies showed that the new hairs successfully started to recycle just like their predecessors. Photographs taken during these experiments are impressive and demonstrate the tremendous benefits this technology will offer in the future. The questions researchers are grappling with presently concern the predictability of new hair growth (how many new hairs can you confidently anticipate from one progenitor?), the direction of growth and ways to improve the cosmetic effects. However, the two biggest hurdles have already been crossed; the ability to create multiple hairs from one original donor organ, and the demonstration that this technology is medically safe. From this point forward, no one can state when this bio-technology will be available to the public, but one thing’s for certain. It’s just a matter of time. We’ve moved! As you will have seen on the front page, The National Hair Journal enters its 10th year of publishing in impressive new office space. In November, we started our migration to number 29970 Technology Drive in Murrieta, CA and we expect to spend much of the holiday moving files and equipment. Creative Director, Avi Roth will keep the photography and design studio in Pasadena so artists and models from Los Angeles can get in and out quickly. Mike Ferreri, our award-winning radio producer will continue to work from his studio in Riverside (have you ever tried soundproofing an office suite?), but all our other staff and support personnel will be centered in Technology Drive. We’ll print pictures just as soon as we look respectable! Thanks for your support, friendship and good times in 2006! Please accept our best wishes for you and those close to you for the year ahead! Chris Webb
Editor in Chief Christopher L. Webb
Women Making Waves Elline Surianello is the founder and a client of LeMetric Hair Center for Women in New York City. The company was founded in 1989 and since then it has helped thousands of women find elegant solutions to their hair loss problems. Elline has been wearing hair herself for over 25 years and this continues to be the driving force behind LeMetric. Her goal has always been to produce superior hair systems for women, and her company goes to great lengths to secure the best hair in the international marketplace. LeMetric imports all the hair they use and employs its own ventilators and hair blenders. They work in the company’s midtown hair center to create custom hair systems to Elline’s own specifications. In this interview, Elline describes how LeMetric has changed her life and the women she feels privileged to have helped. NHJ: Elline, you have made a personal commitment to helping women with hairloss. How did this come about? ES: I have a condition called androgenetic alopecia. I have had it since I was 14, so my involvement with hairloss really goes back to the early 70’s. In those days, we did not have many hair replacement choices, so I resolved to find cosmetically attractive solutions for myself and for the thousands of women like me – even if I had to develop them myself. NHJ: Hair loss for women can rob you of your self esteem, change your personality and even compromise your personal relationships. Why did it take so long for the
“Hair loss today has to be seen as part of a medical journey because women are living longer and wanting to keep their looks longer.” hair loss industry to come to the help of women like you? ES: Working with women is very complex. You are typically working with a highly emotional issue and many of the technologies we use today, were simply not available until very recently. NHJ: You use the word “complex” and that’s very appropriate. There are many reasons why a woman may begin to lose her hair. ES: The reason I use the word “complex” is because a lot of women have autoimmune conditions. Aside from hereditary factors and aging, there are auto immune conditions that are triggered later in life as a result of lifestyle or environment. Unfortunately, many women suffering from these conditions have never been diagnosed correctly so they are not receiving the right advice and treatment. NHJ: What is the first thing a woman should do when she notices abnormal thinning? ES: Immediately get fully examined by a good endocrinologist or internal medicine specialist. They should carefully review any hereditary factors to determine whether or not any type of prior auto immune or hair loss conditions exist in the family. In my case, I have it on both my father’s and my mother’s side. NHJ: Many doctors regard thinning hair as a cosmetic problem and don’t treat it as
seriously as the condition deserves. How do you find a doctor who is sympathetic and committed to giving his best professional help? ES: It is up to the patient to do the basic research. The specialist medical groups (like ISHRS) usually have websites that list their members and this is a good place to start. A good physician will take a look at your age, lifestyle and medical history. He or she will take the time to do the homework with you. That usually takes awhile because the endocrine system for females is very complicated. Add the hormonal changes that come with menopause and possible cancer treatments and things get very complex indeed. Hair loss today has to be seen as part of a medical journey because women are living longer and wanting to keep their looks longer. Women who have reached the age of 50 years without cancer or heart disease, now have a life expectancy of 93 years! NHJ: (Stunned silence… ) ES: The medical community really doesn’t know what to do with us because there are so many of us. Now you have a whole segment of the population that’s over 50 years old and saying, “You know what, I don’t want to look 90.” “Even though I may live to be 90, I don’t want to look 90!” This is a huge problem but also a huge marketing opportunity. Many of us who have been in this industry for a long time are coming to realize that we need a better network. We need better links to the medical community and the cosmetic world. NHJ: How do the insurance companies feel about helping women with hair loss? ES: Unfortunately, even women receiving chemotherapy are only given a fixed sum for a wig and that’s the extent of it. If they continue to experience hair loss, perhaps as a result of taking medication for an extended period, medical insurance is not going to be of much help. We have to lobby the insurance companies to be more supportive of women with hair loss. There are millions of women experiencing this problem; it’s not going to go away. It’s going to take a powerful network to change the insurance companies. NHJ: We’re going to step outside this interview for a moment to say how outraged we are that when it comes to women with hair loss that impacts their self confidence and the essence of their femininity, the insurance companies don’t want to know about it. The National Hair Journal will use all its connections and influence to try to correct this injustice. ES: Thank you. It took me 28 years to decide that it wasn’t enough just to be a client, it was my responsibility to do more. I realized that I needed to start my own facility if I was to help women like me. Everybody has a part to play. NHJ: Let’s turn to some of the achievements in the hair industry. Tell us about the products that you’ve developed and what makes them different? ES: Since a lot of women are suffering from auto immune conditions, the form of attachment is very important. You’re dealing with women who have different types of blood cells and different medical concerns, so you must be sure you’re not exacerbating their problem. When it comes to hair systems, I believe custom work is the best way to go. Custom work fits better and lasts longer. The hair I use is the highest grade hair available. It doesn’t knot up and it doesn’t tangle. Some of my hair systems can last 2 to 3 years. I pride myself on that because I’m not about volume; I have been always an advocate of quality. (continued on pg. 8)
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PASSION for FASHION
A Conversation with Mike Napolitano, President of Hair U Wear Hair U Wear is a fashion and glamour trendsetter. The company is a world leader in the category of ‘alternative hair’ accessories, extensions and systems for women and men. The group encompasses well known names such as Jessica Simpson & Ken Paves, Great Lengths, Rachel Welch, POP (Put on Pieces,) Eva Gabor, and American Hairlines. This Fall, Hair U Wear introduced HairDo, a new line of clip-in hair extensions conceived by Jessica Simpson and created by master stylist, Ken Paves. The entire HairDo collection was inspired by styles that Ken has created for Jessica, and each piece was test driven by Jessica herself. “Jessica is my muse,” explains Ken. “She is never afraid to try a new style, length or color with extensions and that is why we have created so many memorable red carpet, movie and music video looks together over In this interview, Michael the years.” Napolitano, president and driving force behind Hair U Wear, describes what it takes to stay on the cutting edge of fashion and talks about the company’s challenge “to bring together the best minds and artistic talent to innovate and create the styles of tomorrow.” The conversation took place one Friday evening. It had been a busy week, but Michael, true to form, was upbeat and punchy…
NHJ: Mike, a short and simple question; Hair U Wear is synonymous with fashion. What are you doing to create this halo of glamour? MN: Everything! (Laughs) Is that short enough for you? NHJ: Our typists love one-word answers! Let’s go to the second question… we’ll try to keep it just as brief. How? MN: Everything we do is different from any other company in the hair market. Our marketing strategies are different. We budget millions - literally millions - of marketing dollars to the projects we do. We’ve got the best of the best when it comes to the strategists, public relations, graphics and advertising people, marketing groups - you name it. NHJ: Your policy is to seek out and attract the best, whatever the price? MN: We don’t just do things for the pleasure of doing them; we do them the best they can be done! If we can’t be the best at what we do, we don’t want to be in the business. I don’t want to be number two, I don’t want to be number three, I want to be number one in everything we do. The approach we take is like GE; a Jack Welch approach. Jack Welch, if you’ve read any of his books, had a simple philosophy; if we can’t be number one or number two in a specific business, whether it’s profitable or not, we don’t want to be in it. That’s exactly what we do. We’re in business to be the best. NHJ: What does “best” mean in the hair business? MN: You set the benchmarks, you set the lead.
In my opinion, we’ve reinvented the hair business by spending millions of dollars on imagery. We’ve invested millions of dollars on advertising in mainstream fashion publications and public relations events. We are in every major fashion publication on a global level every single month. The most amazing thing happened recently. We had a press event for fashion editors at the Ritz Carlton on Central Park South in Manhattan. We were launching the new Jessica Simpson and Ken Paves Hairdo line. Every single editor was alerted and given information on the event. There was not one editor that we invited who did not show up or want to show up. These things are set up in waves, so we’d have twelve to fifteen editors per session and try and earmark about 30-40 minutes to each of them. But guess what? The editors didn’t want to leave. They wanted to stay. They were so enamored by everything we were doing and by Jessica. It wasn’t like coming to another shampoo release or the launch of another make-up or perfume or another skin care product. They’re tired of those things. This was different. The imagery and presentation was second to none. This is what we do in the hair business. This is what we’ve done with Rachel. This is what we’ve done in a more modest way with Eva Gabor, since it’s a more conservative marketplace. This is what we have done with Great Lengths. We’ve made Great Lengths the number one high-end hair extension program anywhere. And this is what we’re now doing with Jessica Simpson. NHJ: Your models and spokespersons are beauty legends. How do these special relationships happen? MN: Raquel Welch had been wearing wigs for her roles in the movies. She was the glamour queen of her time. We took her movie image and brought it to the world of fashion. But our work is not only about fashion and glamour, we try to give back too. That is an important part of our business plan. We support the American Cancer Society by donating millions of dollars in wigs to women who are looking for Raquel’s fashion so they can look terrific even though they’re going through cancer therapy. NHJ: Can fashion imagery carry over to the men’s market also? MN: We’re trying to do that with our Virtual Reality program. A few years ago, I said I would never do marketing like anybody else. I told you I had a different vision. Today, we are reinventing the business with everything we do. That may sound bold, even cocky, but that’s what I’m all about. That is the culture I’ve set in my company, in my employees and the kind of environment we have. That’s our thought process. Everybody has passion for fashion – fashion for men and women. Mediocrity is not an option in our company. NHJ: Interviewing Hair U Wear is a like a day at the races. We line up our thoughful questions,
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get to ask the first one and then there’s no poo companies, the private bottler companies and chintzy little hair extension companies, holding you back! MN: That’s what we’re about! This is not a she stood alone. All the aisles were empty. The job, this is not a business. This is not an booths were empty, with the exception of the income to put food on the table. This is our Hair U Wear exhibit. Never in the history of lives, this is our passion. This is why we get up being in this business, have I seen anything in the morning, look in the mirror and kick like this. ourselves to go out there and be the best and NHJ: And afterwards? make history. That’s what we do. Other hair MN: As a result of that show, we now have companies don’t do that and they never will. major distribution on a professional level for the Jessica Simpson Hairdo line covering the No way, no how, they won’t, but we do. NHJ: Your company mission statement talks entire United States and all of Europe and about “our passion to inspire men and we’re going into Australia and the Orient. And women.” It certainly comes across that way on you know, what we’re doing in the the phone! I’ve never been exposed to so women’s division can be done in the men’s. I refuse not to be number one in the men’s much passion early on a Friday evening! MN: We just came from Cosmoprof. division. Other companies cannot compete Cosmoprof is where distributors and major with this thought process. They do not have buyers from chain operations, OTC’s and dis- the resources I have. NHJ: The women’s tribution companies come. It’s not where hair- market is driven by fash-ion. In the men’s market there isn’t high fashionion awareness dressers charge yet. Could there through the aisles be a “Jessica and converge on “We are reinventing Simpson” for men? your booth to grab MN: No. No. every deal they can, NHJ: Sounds like load their bags and this business with you’re saying ‘no.’ run out of there. This How do you bring is a different envithat same Jessica ronment. It’s where everything we do. Simpson energy to people sit down, do the men’s market? business, make deals MN: I think we’re on and create distribuEverybody has the cusp of doing that tion opportunities. with Virtual Reality. So we went there But it’s a much more and created the most passion for fashion.” difficult process. amazing exhibit Bottom line is you’re space. People called not going to get an from all over the world and said that there was one company ‘A’-List celebrity like Jessica Simpson to prothere that made the difference and created flair mote men’s hair replacement. I think we’re and a fire at Cosmoprof and it was the new getting that accomplished with Virtual Reality Jessica Simpson line. We were the talk of in a different way. We’re getting more press, Cosmoprof. Everyone converged on the more publicity, and more PR exposure with Jessica Simpson Hairdo exhibit. It was Virtual Reality than our competitors. I think jammed. Every major distribution company we lit a spark underneath the dealers. I don’t was in line waiting to negotiate distribution think they were proud about what they were doing in the past. Now they can have pride rights for their company. and an excitement level like I’m exuding right NHJ: Want to take a breath …? MN: (Without pausing or appearing to now. I believe the education we offer is a conbreathe…) Jessica Simpson is the number one tributing factor. There was a time when owners ‘A-List’ celebrity in the world at this point in would sell hair and make a lot of money, but I time. The imagery and the photographs were don’t think they ever believed in the end result. mind boggling. In a sea of cosmetic and sham- Maybe a few of them did, but not the market as
a whole. I think they were embarrassed about what they did and I think their work was embarrassing. That’s changing with Virtual Reality because we’re creating a benchmark. People who want to be part of this group have to make a commitment. I need to hear them say, “My beauticians are going to be the best stylists that exist. I commit to put my stylists in your hands to make them artists and help them do phenomenal work.” Virtual Reality dealers have to make a commitment to look a certain way, act a certain way, and have a certain culture to create an image. There are many hair replacement centers you pass by and say, “Who would ever walk into a place like that?” So many of them still exist. Well, you know
whether we’re talking about the men’s or the women’s market. We demand the same commitment with Great Lengths for example. You can’t just become certified in Great Lengths. You have to submit a photo of your facility; you have to give us your salon menu; you have to give us your history, and you have to be a certain caliber salon. NHJ: How do you get ‘A-List’ men to endorse your men’s products? MN: You’re asking how you take a Jessica Simpson image and excitement and bring that into the men’s industry. It’s tough. You’re not going to get Brad Pitt to endorse Virtual Reality. I know that Brad Pitt has a full head of hair, but you’re not going to get the average
LtoR: Michael Napolitano, Jessica Simpson, Ken Paves & Michael Kleinman what? They’re not going to be a part of this program. NHJ: Brand image is something the industry has never focused on. MN: Right. We’re busting our chops to create an amazing image and create the kind of feeling a consumer should have about what we do. We don’t want all that to stop at the door when they arrive. NHJ: First impressions are vital. But you also place a high value on education and personal commitment. MN: They are fundamental. It doesn’t matter
‘A-List’ celebrity. He doesn’t need the money and even if he did there’s no passion. The difference is that Jessica Simpson and Eva Langoria and Carmen Elektra and Paris Hilton… I could go on and on… all use our product. And they love it! That’s the difference. NHJ: The excitement you are bringing to the consumer is a powerful stimulus to other professionals everywhere. This is truly a case of a rising tide lifting all boats. On a more personal note, we’d like to thank you for starting NHJ our weekend on such a high note!
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Turning Around the Men’s Business
uses today, is communicating just the opposite. What it’s telling the target audience is that we’re peddling the same old product that we did twenty years ago. That’s why men under forty years old are staying away in droves. Steven DiManni
By Steven DiManni
There is turmoil among hair replacement studios when it comes to the men’s business. Once the lifeblood of the industry, there are many studios today that are convinced that the men’s business, for all intents and purposes, is dying out. Many studios are turning to lasers, head rubbing, transplants and women’s hair replacement to take up the slack. Other studios are just throwing up their hands and hoping to sell out to their competitors. Quite a contrast to the men’s business as it existed ten, even five years ago. I’ve asked many studio owners what they think the problem is. What they tell me is that there are too many other alternatives to hair replacement out there today. And in light of these alternatives, the desire for non-surgical hair replacement has quickly faded; it’s something that men just don’t want anymore. Is it really over? What’s driving all the pessimism over the men’s business is the fact that it is very hard to get men to respond to hair replacement advertising. Advertising that once produced many leads now produces very few, if any at all. Worse yet, the few leads that studios are able to get from men’s hair replacement advertising are very hard to reach via phone to book a consultation. And even if they can be contacted, and do schedule an appointment for a consultation, they rarely show up. What’s changed? Obviously, the observation by many studio owners that there are many more alternatives “out there” today is absolutely correct. There are Rogaine and Propecia, there are improved transplants, and there is the recent fad of head-shaving to contend with. This is certainly a great change from the competitive universe as we knew it twenty years ago. Back then, there were no Rogaine and Propecia, transplants meant dime-sized plugs, and only convicts shaved their heads. But.... Ten years ago, when the men’s business was still rather good, Rogaine was “out there”. Not only was it in existence, it had a $60 million dollar advertising campaign supporting it. And it was more than ten years ago that hair transplants went from plugs to mini-grafts that can produce excellent results. Certainly, the problems the men’s business faces isn’t due solely to the few men who shave their heads. So what’s going on? We’ve changed, too Even more dramatic than the improvements in hair transplants are the improvements in nonsurgical grafts. Back when transplants meant “rows of corn”, we weren’t exactly on the cutting edge, either. Our hair was overly dense and the bases were thick and unwieldy. The state of the art attachment business consisted of the old “track and snap”, a track created around the perimeter that literally used snaps to secure the hair. Contrast that with the product we offer today. The thinnest skin or lace, very light ventilation, no edges, everything flush to the scalp with no one to know the difference: Top of the head bonding has become the norm. And our clients look every bit as good as most transplant patients. Doesn’t this mean something? Shouldn’t this increase the desire for non-surgical hair replacement? Here’s the problem Even though our product has changed greatly, our target audience doesn’t know it. Because our advertising isn’t communicating these changes to the consumer. Instead, the advertising that most every studio
You see, even though we might say what the differences are, or demonstrate the differences visually; we’re using the same “advertising cues” that marked our advertising back in the l980s. The format of the commercials - the testimonial commercial format - is exactly the same. The commercials and infomercials keep repeating the same message that has been stated for the past twenty years: namely, that you’ll get your confidence back if you get your hair back. Even the terminology used in the commercials hasn’t changed. Just the other day, I saw a brand new infomercial that referred to our product as a “hair system.” Yes, many studios are calling it a hair system and we wonder why people think we’re selling the same thing as we did twenty years ago. We’re telling them that it’s the same, for goodness sake. It’s not just the advertising The reasons why men are leery of what we’re selling go beyond the actual commercial or print ad itself. There are the brochures that we send out to those who do respond. If the advertising didn’t tell them this was the same old thing that their dad “wore”, the brochures will. The whole format of the brochures, the side-by-side before and after photos, the imagery of women lightly touching the hair of men, the men on skis or jet skis or motorcycles…it’s the same imagery as we used two decades ago. But it’s not just the communications materials, either. The practice of how we go about securing a lead and bringing him in for a consultation is dated. For example, we depend on the telephone to make contact with the client. Even though men in our target audience are very hard to reach, have answering machines, and can use “caller ID” to further monitor calls. The whole architecture of how we secure new clients is not consistent with today’s realities. And that constitutes a major problem.
The product is the solution It all starts with the product, whether you’re making hair or making cars. If the product is indeed good, then that must be communicated, but in a way that allows the consumer to believe that what you have is truly something better than what you offered in the past. Take Cadillac, for example. For the past decade or so, Cadillac has been making cars that are far different from their predecessors. The large, unresponsive “boats” that once made Cadillac a laughing stock for anyone under seventy years of age are long gone. In their place are smaller, high performance cars that are as good as their foreign competitors. However, consumers weren’t “getting” that. Because Cadillac advertising was mired in the same imagery that they had always used: Cadillacs pulling up to country clubs, Cadillacs at a pricey lake house, Cadillacs in front of large office buildings. Someone at Cadillac or their advertising agency finally figured it out. The new advertising features music by Led Zeppelin and images of Cadillacs racing trains, racing each other, and even bullying Mercedes and BMWs. Today, Cadillac sales are on the upswing, because the marketing communications that Cadillac is using finally matches up to the reality of the product they’re manufacturing. Therein lies the answer for the hair industry. The reality of our product What the hair industry needs to do is similar to what turned Cadillac around: Focus on the product, but do so in a manner that strips away the stereotypes and misconceptions of the past. Just as Cadillac abandoned country clubs and lake houses, so too must the hair industry abandon testimonials and men on jet skis. Just as Cadillac retired names like “Coupe de Ville”, so too must the hair industry retire “hair system”. And just as Cadillac left Muzak behind for Led Zeppelin, we too must convey a different “beat” (figuratively speaking) to our prospective clients.
7 The National Hair Journal Winter 2006 But please understand that this is not about smoke and mirrors. It’s not just about making up new names like “Capillaflex” or photographing models with tattoos and rings in their nose. Not at all. Cadillac couldn’t have credibly changed its perception through advertising without having the “goods”, e.g., the Northstar engine, Magnasteer, et. al. All its advertising did was to communicate the nature of its advancements in a way that did not prejudice them to an already skeptical consumer. We must do the same. Because we do have the goods. Top-of-the head bonding is only rivaled by real growing hair in its ability to create a natural hairline. Ninety-nine percent of all people couldn’t tell the difference. Neither could they feel the difference. You can’t rival our product for cosmetic cover-age, either. Or for its universatility in being able to treat all men, whatever their degree of hair loss. I could go on and on, but you certainly get the picture. Now all it takes is a way to communicate this to consumers in a manner that doesn’t “signal” that we’re just selling the same old thing with a different name. That’s a lot easier said than done. But it can be done with out-of-the-box thinking and a high degree of applied creativity. Beyond the advertising OK, so now I’ve made my case for a total revolution in hair replacement advertising that in no way bears any resemblance to anything done in the past. Next, we have to update our methodology for bringing the lead in for consultation: Out with the usual “run a commercial, send a brochure, make an outgoing telemarketing call”. Because it’s just not working. We have to find ways to bring the consumer to us and start a dialogue with him. Not talk at him, as a brochure does, but talk to him, as a person does. We have to find a different way to reach him to follow-up, as well. And give him a new reason to come in for a consultation. A pretty tall order, to be sure. But certainly an attainable one given today’s technology and our knowledge of the under-40 set’s predilections.
Most of all, it takes courage Coming up with a new way to communicate to consumers through advertising is not easy. Finding a new architecture to turn leads into consultations and subsequently, sales, may be even harder. But the most difficult transition of all the industry has to make in order to attract men lies within the studio owners themselves. Even though what we’re doing today isn’t working, it’s still hard to abandon it for something that is totally new. Change is never easy. It’s almost human nature to fight it. So for my new paradigm to work, the corresponding studio owners will need to really take a deep breath and plunge into uncharted waters with no past history to buoy them. But there is something to hold onto, a life raft in this sea of change, if you will… The demand remains strong Forget what your present men’s business has been doing lately. Just because men aren’t killing themselves trying to come into your studio, doesn’t mean that men like being bald. Quite the contrary. The great majority of men still want hair. They spend money on head rubbing treatments, they spend money on drugs, they spend money on transplants. So the market is there. The desire is there. The money to be spent is there. In that regard, nothing has changed. All it will take for the hair replacement industry to be viable again is for it to change. The sooner, the better. Steven DiManni has worked at some of Madison Avenue’s top advertising agencies for 25 years, rising from junior copywriter to Senior Vice President/Creative Director in his current position. For 24 of those years, Steven has also produced advertising for the hair replacement industry. A long-time consultant for On Rite, Steven has amassed a slew of creative awards, including Clios, Andys, Effies and Echoes. In addition, he is a board member of the prestigious John Caples International Awards and a frequent guest speaker at industry functions. NHJ
8 The National Hair Journal Winter 2006
Woman Making Waves (continued from pg.3) NHJ: Everybody says they have the best hair. In fact, so many people claim this, you’d think there was no sub-standard hair on the planet. If you were talking to a cynical retailer, what would you want to point out? ES: When you have years of experience working with hair, you can tell the quality just by watching the ventilators. You know right away. The hair I use cannot be bought in quantity because it comes from Europe and the supply is limited. It’s also very expensive. It’s not like Asia where there are a million Chinese, Indian or Korean women cutting and selling their hair. It’s a completely different grade of hair. That means we would never be able to produce 40,000 hair pieces in a year. That’s just not what my company is about. NHJ: Do you work exclusively with European Remy hair? ES: I work with Italian hair which is one level higher than European Remy hair. It’s the only hair I’ve used for the last 20 years. I know it is good because it has withstood the test of time. A client can wear it every day; wash it in hot water or in cold water. It doesn’t knot up, it doesn’t
EXTEND YOUR HAIR REPLACEMENT OPTIONS! Hair Extensions May Be Exactly What Your Clients Need By Mark Pedersen In years past, professional hair extensions were considered to be an impractical, expensive and downright painful option for adding volume to thinning hair for your clients. Furthermore, they were not generally accepted by the hair replacement community, as early extensions were extremely damaging to natural hair due to the intense heat, strong adhesives and the removal process. For these reasons, hair extensions were typically reserved for aesthetic or superficial applications only, simply because they caused so many problems for the already weakened hair of those in search of a hair replacement option. It wasn’t until recently that professional hair extensions began becoming a viable option for hair replacement in salons, day spas and hair replacement studios. Quantum leaps in bonding technology and hair composition have taken place since the days of braiding and tracking, and the hair extension industry is now enjoying a comeback in the hair replacement arena. Let’s take a look at some of the reasons for this newfound interest, and why one hair extension company in particular is especially dedicated to helping men and women overcome one of their biggest dilemmas: Thinning Hair. Read on to find out if extensions could be the perfect hair replacement option for your next client. Heat Hurts! ~ It’s no surprise that extreme heat can damage your client’s hair. Early hair extension equipment used a type of ‘glue-gun’ to fuse extensions to natural hair, which required very high temperatures to liquefy the adhesive. Not only did the intense heat weaken the natural hair near the bonds, it also made them very difficult to remove. Often times, the hair needed to be cut above the bond, leaving a ‘stub’ of short hair behind. Modern bonding equipment shares little with its earlier predecessors, and uses relatively low temperatures and natural keratin bonds. “Lower temperatures translate to closer bonds, since there is little risk of burning the client’s scalp. These close bonds make the extensions nearly invisible and the absence of extreme heat will not potentially harm the brittle or weak hair often associated with alopecia and thinning hair,” notes Ron Cardillo, president of SO.CAP. USA Hair Extensions, one of the industry leaders in the rapidly expanding world of extensions. (cont. on pg.18)
tangle, it doesn’t turn green, and it doesn’t snap. And like I said earlier, a lot of my work lasts 2 and 3 years. NHJ: Let’s talk about marketing to women. It’s one thing to have a quality product, but how do you communicate with your market? ES: My brand has been out there since 1989. But it was really in 1992 that I got “launched” onto the hair loss market. It happened through a conversation with Ladies Home Journal that resulted in over 9,000 phone calls! NHJ: What was so compelling about the Ladies Home Journal story? ES: The fact that women had so few choices. The Journal was struck by the fact that I had to go out and actually create new solutions to help them. It wasn’t an easy undertaking. NHJ: Did it help that you were based in the economic heart of the country? ES: Probably the opposite. Working in Manhattan is tough because the client is unforgiving. If the workmanship and the professionalism is not there, you will not survive. You must have a clear vision about who the client is. Is she fashion-forward; does she care about how she looks? Is she only interested in cost? Manhattan is not the place to make mistakes. NHJ: How should a stylist brief you to
create hair for their client? You’ve talked about lifestyle and about fashion awareness; do you have a special template or order sheet that records this kind of information? ES: I am working on that right now. I also want to educate people to be more aware of the importance of the client’s way of life and her expectations. My goal is to have classes around the country and here in Manhattan at my facility, and to work owner by owner, stylist by stylist to explain things like measuring, hair types, placement and why we use the materials we do. There aren’t many of us in the country with this level of workmanship, especially not for women. I want to share that knowledge. NHJ: What about educating the client? Hair only looks as good as the way it is cared for and styled. ES: The great thing about my work is it’s very low maintenance because it is such high quality. If the product is well made, and if the styling, cutting and color fit the client’s lifestyle, the rest is likely to follow. NHJ: What about keeping up to date with new trends and styles? ES: I try to challenge hair cutters, stylists and colorists to be more aware of style and fashion. The industry started off as a
male oriented business, with many of the technicians having been barbers. They were not fashion oriented. But as the women’s market has grown, they’ve had to reinvent themselves. The female market is relatively young; it’s only 10 years old. There is a new generation of talented people out there, they just don’t know where to go. I would like to help them. NHJ: You’ve talked about hair quality and special training. This can only come at a price. Does the client have to pay a premium for these services? ES: Absolutely; but women will pay for quality because it will last and it looks and behaves like their real hair. I’ve had very few dissatisfied clients even though my staff and I have helped well over 9,000 women since I started. Certainly it’s expensive, but I learned something a long time ago...if you deliver high quality you cry one time because you’ve got to pay for it. But you only cry one time. When you buy bad quality, you have tears all the time. I would rather deliver high quality and have my client deal with that in the beginning, than deliver something cheaper that I know they’re going to have problems with later. I see things from the client’s perspective because I am a client first and foremost and only secondly, am I the business owner. NHJ
11 The National Hair Journal Winter 2006
The Man Who Seized the Future
Leonard Venti There are not many people who do not know Leonard Venti. He is a legend in the traditional hair replacement, but he caught the industry by surprise when he sold his successful Ft. Lauderdale operation and relocated to Beverly Hills where he started a new career in laser therapy. Leonard is President of Aventi Capillaire Int’l, a hair management group controlling lasers centers in the cities of Brentwood, Newport Beach, Thousand Oaks, Glendale and Upland. In the Fall of 2006, he formed Laser HairTech International to provide guidance and support to people contemplating adding low level laser light therapy to their salon or clinic. In this interview he describes how he hopes to share his experience and help entrepreneurs jump-start a successful laser business of their own. NHJ: Leonard, you made a great leap of faith several years ago when you sold your successful hair business in Florida and invested the proceeds into the laser business. What led to that big decision? LV: It all started with a conversation that you and I had four years ago. We were discussing
Laser Hair Therapy A Physician’s Story Dr. Dan Hale is a board certified hair transplant surgeon with practices in Knoxville and Nashville Tennessee. His clinics provide hair restoration services to some of the most celebrated individuals in the entertainment industry. Dr. Hale was one of the first hair restoration surgeons to integrate laser hair therapy into a medical practice. In this article, first published in Forum, Dr. Hales describes how he came to experiment with laser therapy and became a firm believer. My clinical experience with laser hair therapy is a personal one. Although my own hair loss was too far advanced to benefit from this new technology, I witnessed first-hand the impressive results achieved by my nephews Drew, age 21 and Dane, age 19. Both had inherited the genetic predisposition that had frustrated me, their father and their grandfather. In their late teens my nephews were already manifesting the symptoms that would have them joining us on the seventhrung of the Norwood Classification hair loss ladder. In 1998 my brother Don integrated laser hair therapy into his hair restoration clinic in Grand
trends in the hair industry. I’ll never forget you saying how great it would be if we could get the rights to market “Armani hair.” How it would bring sophistication to the hair loss market. NHJ: That’s right. I thought we needed to bring new life to the hair market and I saw Armani or Calvin Klein hair as a way to add flair to the men’s segment. I also recommended integrating new technologies like light therapy and perhaps even expanding into skin rejuvenation. LV: Well I took that conversation seriously and about six months later I purchased a store in Southern California and committed myself to trying to do just that. I was going to bring fashion into the hair replacement industry. NHJ: Opening a new store is challenging enough; but opening a new business on the other side of the country with a whole new business plan sounds like the stuff that nightmares are made of! LV: Not if you believe in what you’re doing. NHJ: How did you start? LV: The first couple of ads ran in the Newport Beach newspaper and a week later I had three women come in the front door asking for laser hair therapy. I didn’t know a lot about the laser industry at that time. I made mistakes and learned as I went. NHJ: That was twenty-four months ago. How are you doing now? LV: We have increased our business every year. We’ve even created our own product line. NHJ: Tell us some of the things you learned along the way. LV: We found out we had a lot to learn. It’s a completely different business to what we thought. A laser business is not a business where you just go in, turn on the machine and let the client sit underneath it. We take good care of our clients. We analyze their hair every month and we actually give products away with our program. We found that it isn’t the cost of the program that’s important, it’s the way you take care of the client. NHJ: Is this a price-sensitive market? LV: Yes and no. People will pay double for our level of service than they would for some of the cheaper programs out there. Our program at this time costs $3,900 and we do better business than we did when it was $1,900. We’ve just increased some of our services. If we can do something better, we don’t hold back. We keep very, very close contact with our clients and a lot of them come in twice a week. We scope and analyze (cont.on pg 16) Rapids, Michigan where his son Drew became our first patient. At first I was skeptical. Although laser hair therapy was gaining acceptance in Europe and other parts of the globe there were no empirical US studies to suggest that it provided a therapeutic benefit. The “cold” laser, imported from Europe, was a hooded model under which the patient sat for thirty minutes while 15 laser diodes rotated around the cranium delivering soft laser energy to the scalp. We carefully monitored and recorded Drew’s and Dane’s progress and after three months of twice-weekly visits we began to see measurable results. There was a copious overall improvement in hair shaft quality as well as hair shaft thickness. Drew’s vertex area began to exhibit new growth as did the anterior hair line. Dane, being younger, was thinning mostly in the fronto-temporal areas. He equally responded with new growth. My nephews proved not to be isolated cases. Over the last five years I have observed similar results in the majority of my patients. I soon became a student of low level laser therapy and remembered that the word “laser” is an acronym for Light Amplification by the Stimulated Emission of Radiation. The theory was described by Albert Einstein who paved the way for the development of the therapeutic laser. My research taught me that serious investigation into LLLT began in the late sixties with Dr. Andre Mester of Hungary. While conduct-ing wound-healing experiments on laboratory mice, Professor Mester observed not only improved healing of wounds (cont.on pg.13
The Laser Hair Therapy
(cont. from pg.11) but that body hair in the laser treated areas grew faster and thicker than hair in the untreated areas.
In our own hair transplant practice we have observed that LLLT promotes faster healing of the donor and recipient sites while reducing inflammation. I attribute this rapid regeneration, normalization and healing of damaged cellular tissue to improved blood circulation and vasodilatation. Since the 1980’s Tina Karu, PhD of the Laser Technology Center in Russia has researched the effect of light on cells. She has found there are photo receptors at the molecular level which absorb light and provoke a chain reaction of cellular events. These include DNA / RNA synthesis, an increase in protein and collagen synthesis as well as cellular proliferation. Dr. Kara confirmed that light is a trigger for the rearrangement of cellular metabolism. Laser hair therapy has earned a place of respect in our clinics here in Tennessee and has proved to be a viable option for individuals in the early stages of hair loss as well as women suffering from general thinning. It has also proved to be a useful post operative tool for promoting healing as well as stimulating the growth of new grafts. We recommend laser light therapy to 100% of our hair transplant patients. My nephews, Drew and Dane, after 8 years now are classified as Norwood 1. No other male in our family can claim this badge of honor. In addition to our in-house commercial lasers we provide for home use a hand-held device with 8 diodes and an upright version with 20 diodes. Laser hair therapy has proved to be an important and welcomed profit center. We have recently invested in two new 40 diode Alphalase devices for our clinics. Dr. Dan Hale is owner and Medical Director of Hair Replacement Centers, with clinics in Knoxville, Nashville and Johnson City, Tennessee.
Just To Laugh !!!!
The Redhead
A young Redhead goes into the doctor's office and says that her body hurts wherever she touches it. "Impossible", says the doctor. "Show me." She takes her finger and pushes her elbow and screams in agony. She pushes her knee and screams, pushes her ankle and screams. The doctor says, "You're not really a redhead, are you?" "No, " she says, " I'm actually a Blonde." "I thought so, the doctor says. "Your finger is broken."
Little Johnny about baldness Little Johnny was eating breakfast one morning and got to thinking about things. “Mommy, mommy, why has daddy got so few hairs on his head?” he asked his mother. “He thinks a lot,” replied his mother, pleased with herself for coming up with a good answer to her husband's baldness. Or she was until Johnny thought for a second and asked, “So why do you have so much hair?”
Long Hair A young boy had just gotten his driving permit. He asked his father, who was a minister, if they could discuss his use of the car. His father said to him, "I'll make a deal with you. You bring your grades up, study your Bible a little, and get your hair cut, then we will talk about it." A month later the boy came back and again asked his father if they could discuss his use of the car. His father said, "Son, I'm real proud of you. You have brought your grades up, you've studied your Bible diligently, but you didn't get hair cut!" The young man waited a moment and replied, "You know Dad, I've been thinking about that. You know Samson had long hair, Moses had long hair, Noah had long hair, and even Jesus had long hair." His father replied, "Yes son, and they walked everywhere they went!"
13 The National Hair Journal Winter 2006
14 The National Hair Journal Winter 2006
The National Hair Journal PROMOTING
Medical Section
COOPERATION BETWEEN THE ARTISTRY OF HAIR REPLACEMENT AND THE SCIENCE OF HAIR RESTORATION
*THE MASTERS SERIES*
Meet Dr. Craig Ziering: A Man for All Seasons Featuring an elite group of hair restoration physicians, this unique series of in-depth interviews was first heard on www.HairlossNewsmakers.com. Your interviewer is Penny Moss, host of the show. First up, meet TV show Extreme Makeover’s hair transplant guru: DR. CRAIG ZIERING. His patients celebrate their appearance; they know he can put hair back anywhere on the body that hair has grown. Eyelashes, eyebrows, beards, hair in places we never dreamed possible. If more hair is in your future, and you live in the 90210 zip code, you may have already met him! But for the rest of us, let’s meet Dr. Ziering in The Masters Series. PM: Ziering Medical is a private practice dedicated exclusively to the specialty of hair restoration, with locations in Beverly Hills, Orange County, Las Vegas and Salt Lake City. The founder and medical director is Dr. Craig Ziering
Dr. Craig Ziering
and his skills have been seen on numerous television appearances including NBC’s Today Show, Extreme Makeover and E Entertainment. Welcome Dr. Ziering, what are you going to cover today? CZ: Hello, I would like to discuss a new phase in the industry in which we’re using traditional hair restoration techniques to put hair in areas on the face where patients have lost their hair, or it’s been diminished due to some kind of trauma or self inflicted condition, or a medical condition that’s resulted in a hairless area. Facial hair aesthetics is a term used for both men and women. For men, we’re talking about the eyebrows, eyelashes; we’re talking about temporal peak sideburns, mustaches and beards. For women, obviously the focus is on eyebrow and eyelash restoration. PM: Is this brand new technology? CZ: The techniques have changed, but the idea of doing facial hair restoration goes back to the original roots of hair restoration. As a matter of fact, hair restoration came from Japan initially, to treat trauma via eyebrow and eyelash restoration. The idea and philosophy behind it has changed a little bit over the years but it’s becoming more invogue today and especially in Hollywood and Los Angeles, where we see patients requesting these types of procedures more often. With the tech-nology that we have today and with the use of the microscope and microscopic follicular unit graft-ing, together with the idea that we can do single hairs, it’s really a very nice option for the patients.
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BOSLEY MEDICAL GROUP, L.LEE BOSLEY, M.D,
PM: Are you using the same type of surgical technique? CZ: There are some differences. We still use the microscope for the procedures. For many of these cases we’re using single hairs and so that’s a little bit different. We’re taking those units and dividing them down into single hairs. The angle direction and orientation is different than typically done in the scalp. Each procedure has a different nuance, the eyelash procedure is totally different so we’ll have to talk about that - on its own. PM: Which is the most common procedure for men? CZ: For men, they often want to build out the temporal peaks. Years ago when I was working with patients who were wearing hair systems or hair pieces, or wigs as many people call them, one of the things that made the hair look so unnatural was the fact that they were having coverage on the top of their head and in their hairline. When people received so much hair they lost the temporal peak, that temporal peak you can’t reproduce with a hair piece, so what happens is it just doesn’t look natural, no matter how good the hair system is - and for many patients the hair system is a viable option, it looks good but it needs to be tweaked, so to speak, with the temporal peak. If built out, the temporal peak reframes the face and gives a nice masculine look to our male patients. The results have been extremely nice and very rewarding for both the physician and the patients alike. PM: What is the most common procedure you do then for women? CZ: For women it’s more common for them to want to do their eyebrows, although we’re getting a lot of questions about eyelashes over the past year. But eyebrow transplantation is the most common procedure requested by women. I think that women for a long time used permanent make-up and are just tired of that or don’t like the way that it looks. I think years ago women were going for a much thinner eyebrow look and so they plucked and tweezed their eyebrows into a situation in which they no longer grow back. They’re just now realizing that we can actually give them a permanent solution to their hair loss problem with their eyebrows. Eyebrows are very interesting too because the direction is so critical with them. Eyebrows start off by going up - if you start centrally towards the nose they move upwards towards the scalp and then as you move across they actually converge - in the sense that the hair on the top points down and laterally to the outside of the face and the hairs then from the bottom point upward and go towards the midline. So it’s very important that you pay strict attention to the orientation of the hairs, the direction of the hairs. Then they also have to exit the scalp at a very acute angle, and at a very flat angle for them to be very natural. PM: Where does the donor hair come from? CZ: For most of these procedures we’re going to take these hairs still from the back of the scalp, in the safe donor zone, we look at them and dissect them under the microscope into single hairs. We can do them in combinations. Often we’ll get a request for both eyebrows and eyelashes. With the eyelash, I’d like to explain that procedure. The eyelash procedure is unique in the sense that as with most of the techniques currently used, we shave the hair down a bit in the area that we’re going to take it from so that we can very astutely look at the angle and direction at which the hairs exit and since the hairs normally fall out within the first 2 weeks, once they’ve been transplanted and just the root is left where the new hairs are going to come from we like that technique. However, with the eyelashes - the technique is very different. We leave the hairs long and we take the strip of tissue out of the back of the head, then we tweeze the hairs out of the fatty tissue and we keep them long. The reason we keep them long is because we’ll use a needle similar to a fish hook with a little eye on it – if anyone has ever sewn before knows that you have to thread the needle - and what you do is thread the needle with the patients own hair, then you stitch it through the eyelid and pull that hair through until it stops. You don’t suture it in, but you pull it through using that little needle and it actually stops right in place. That way you can get the actual curl that the patient naturally has. It’s a very interesting procedure but it’s got to be done by a specialist for sure. The results are very, very nice. But these hairs, just like the eyebrow hairs, will continue to grow so you have to trim them. PM: I was wondering about that, because in theory the new eyelashes could continue to grow as long as they were going to in the donor site? CZ: Absolutely, so it’s something that you have to trim. These patients are certainly aware of that and don’t mind the trade off of having to do a little bit of maintenance for the new look.
15 The National Hair Journal Winter 2006 PM: If the hair on the back of the head turns grey, therefore, I guess the eyelash will turn gray, does that mean they would color or dye their eyelashes or eyebrows? CZ: Actually that’s not an uncommon procedure for people to do. Not only dye their eyelashes but to dye their eyebrows, but certainly if you put mascara on your eyelashes you’ll have a strong terminal hair that will take that color up and hold that well. It’s very nice. It helps patients in trying to achieve a certain look. These facial hairs enhance expression and they accentuate facial features. They help patients who are trying to reinvent their image or a new look. It’s also beneficial for patients who have had scars from previous surgeries. Perhaps they had a face lift and now they want to hide the scar from the face lift, one that goes in front of the ears. Or men may now want a little bit more of a side burn. I’ve had patients that have had cleft palates; therefore they want to cover up the scar which is in the moustache or beard area. Now they can cover up facial scars. We’ve even had a patient who had radiation treatment for an eye tumor and lost the eyelashes and eyebrows from that and we’re able to give him eyelashes and eyebrows through this hair restoration procedure. This helps with some of the emotional scarring that he had by physically addressing the problem. PM: If the hair on the back of the head turns grey, therefore, I guess the eyelash will turn gray, does that mean they would color or dye their eyelashes or eyebrows? CZ: Actually that’s not an uncommon procedure for people to do. Not only dye their eyelashes but to dye their eyebrows, but certainly if you put mascara on your eyelashes you’ll have a strong terminal hair that will take that color up and hold that well. It’s very nice. It helps patients in trying to achieve a certain look. These facial hairs enhance expression and they accentuate facial features. They help patients who are trying to reinvent their image or a new look. It’s also beneficial for patients who have had scars from previous surgeries. Perhaps they had a face lift and now they want to hide the scar from the face lift, one that goes in front of the ears. Or men may now want a little bit more of a side burn. I’ve had patients that have had cleft palates; therefore they want to cover up the scar which is in the moustache or beard area. Now they can cover up facial scars. We’ve even had a patient who had radiation treatment for an eye tumor and lost the eyelashes and eyebrows from that and we’re able to give him eyelashes and eyebrows through this hair restoration procedure. This helps with some of the emotional scarring that he had by physically addressing the problem. PM: This surgery that you’re doing must be very satisfying. CZ: It’s extremely satisfying for the patients and all of our staff. Those of us that go into medicine want to help people. When we’re able to do a procedure like this that allows us to be creative, to use our hands and at the same time make a difference in someone’s life. It’s the greatest job on earth! NHJ
Aussie Eyelashes take USA by storm The New Martinick Eyelash Transplant Technique San Diego, 10/06 – Dr. Jennifer Martinick, an international leader in hair transplant surgery has captured the imagination of the world with her newest surgical eyelash transplant technique. An Australian who lectures all over the world, Martinick presented her new technique to an elite group of 800 physicians from around the world who attended the International Society of Hair Transplant Surgery (ISHRS) 14th Annual Scientific Meeting. Martinick is seen here drawing a dia-
ly share their new techniques with their peers to advance the hair transplant specialty. In 1995, Dr. Marcelo Gandelman
gram of the procedure and explaining her invention in simple terms to Penny Moss of www.HairlossNewsmakers.com and the National Hair Journal. The Martinick Technique uses the natural shape of each donor hair with its sebaceous gland, and places them into overlapping coronal slits in the eyelids, so that they curve up or down in a natural manner.
flew in from Australia especially for the occasion, demonstrated her new technique to a smaller group of physicians and a media extravaganza. Covered by ABC’s Good Morning America, Reuters, CNN, and many others, the Martinick Technique will go on to inspire both physicians and the public who are looking for the latest and greatest that hair transplant technology can offer.
Three days later Jennifer Martinick, aided by her own surgical assistant who
The ISHRS is instrumental in bringing together surgical innovators who generous-
from Brazil demonstrated to his colleagues one of the first eyelash transplant techniques seen on US soil, the Gandelman Technique. This has since been successfully used by many transplant physicians all over the world. We salute the innovative and unselfish physicians who develop and share their latest techniques and technologies with the other specialists in their field, in order to grow the science of Hair Restoration and provide the public with ever increasing choices and solutions to hair loss problems. NHJ
16 The National Hair Journal Winter 2006
The Man Who Sized The Future (cont. from pg.11) their hair and watch their hairloss to make sure they’re completely 100% satisfied. NHJ: Going back to those early days, what advice would you give someone getting into the laser business? LV: When we started, we copied the way other people were running their businesses. We heard they were offering 6 and 9 or 12 month period programs; even a 3 month program, so we sold all different kinds of programs just like they did. We let people come in, sit underneath the laser and we watched to see how they reacted. We found out that charging less for a reduced level of service was actually the least profitable formula. So we increased our services and increased our prices. We also learned to add scalp treatments. We found that we couldn’t take payments. Clients who wanted to make monthly payments had the highest attrition. Our pay-as-you-go client attrition rate was 25 30%, so we sat down and reworked the program. We doubled the price but included all the support products and procedures. When you offer items a la carte, clients will try to cut corners and then they don’t achieve the results they expect. NHJ: How do you set realistic expectations? LV: Having consultants over-promise was the biggest mistake we ever made. Our programs today promise healthier, betterlooking hair. If our clients experience reduced hairloss or new growth – and most do - that’s a bonus. NHJ: Who is the typical client? LV: It’s quite a paradox. Contrary to what you would expect, we found it’s the same kind of client that used to come into hair stores back in the 80’s; not the client that’s coming into hair replacement centers today. When I came to California, I thought I’d open up an office in Beverly Hills, get the white-collar Porsche client walking through the door and that’s where we’d make our business. Well, guess what? It turned out to be the same client that was purchasing hair replacement 20 years ago. It’s your young 23- 28 year old. We get men and women, a lot of women. Probably 40% of our business now is females. NHJ: How often do your clients come in for therapy? LV: We monitor every visit. Most of our clients come in twice a week at first, then they wean off to once a week. Almost all our clients are on a one year program. NHJ: You are now offering to share these years of experience with members of the Hair Society through a network program that you’re launching. How is this going to work? LV: I hope to educate people and help them not make the mistakes that I made which were very, very costly. A few mistakes can cost hundreds of dollars. I spent three quarters of a million dollars advertising in the wrong places. You have to know how to manage your client relationships too. It’s not just keeping a client for the first twelve months; it’s about keeping a client for the second year. NHJ: I understand it you’re going to offer two types of sup-
port network. One for people starting out in the laser industry who want a no-holds-barred support program, and a second network for people who have already bought the hardware but need marketing help. LV: That’s right. The top package offers a turn-key program that gets a novice educated and up to speed so she or he can be productive and ethical from day one. NHJ: What about the entry level program. You said it was especially valuable for people who’ve got a laser already. What can you do for them? LV: People who have a laser already probably need a little brushing up on technology, FDA regulations and some of the marketing basics. It’s not that they don’t know how to use their laser or take care of a laser client, but there are a few secrets that will keep their clients coming back. NHJ: That’s a support program for people who already have a laser. What about somebody starting from scratch? LV: They are are the perfect candidates; it’s like the first-time golfers every instructor desires. I was already tainted from the hair replacement business when I started. But someone who doesn’t have a lot of baggage can be taught the complete turnkey operation from the second they open the door. We provide assistance with décor, color schemes, logos, the AlphaLase Ecosystem as well as marketing, advertising, support products and scalp treatments. NHJ: Does this program have a name? LV: It’s called the Laser HairTech Network. Members will be able to pool resources and network among themselves. And by collaborating under a common identity, they will benefit from national PR and advertising. NHJ: A lot of people are uncertain about compliance with FDA guidelines. Does the material you offer comply with those guidelines? LV: All the material will be reviewed by a scientific and technical advisory board. We’ve also formed relationships with people who are close to the FDA itself, so are very sensitive to what’s acceptable and what is not. Wherever there is good infor-mation and advice to be found we will find those experts and share their opinions in workshops, bulletins and newsletters that we plan to issue to Laser HairTech Network members. Also, of course, because members will be part of a network, we’re expecting that they will talk among themselves. So if somebody hears a rumor or has a tip, it’s going to reverberate around that network. NHJ: Leonard, I know that lasers have changed your life. You’ve moved from the traditional hair world into a totally different area. How is your work day different today compared with selling ‘programs’ and all the routine details that are part of hair replacement? LV: I’m certainly reaping the harvest of not having to go into an office on a day to day basis. I actually work from my home most of the time. In the laser hair business, if your marketing is
sound, and if your offices are laid out properly and you have the proper consultants and medical assistants, you can pretty well run your laser business from home. NHJ: You’re saying a well structured business virtually runs itself? LV: Using Starbucks as an example, you can have an automated system and still be welcoming. As a matter of fact I only met a few dozen of our clients and we have helped over 1,000 people in the last 2 1/2 years. NHJ: People reading this column might wonder how much it would cost them to get started. What would it cost just to get a foot in the door; and what do you estimate it would take to really do things right? LV: It mostly depending whether they already have some of the equipment. The Rolls Royce laser is the AlphaLase which costs around $25,000. Reliable entry-level units can be as little as $12,500. Then you have to add things like videoscope and computer software. Once you have the hardware and data systems in place, you have to factor in your marketing costs. Add it all up and I would say a person can get into the industry with anywhere from $12,500 up to a $150,000 investment. NHJ: Are they likely to be profitable at the end of year one? LV: Done right, both could be very successful and profitable at the end of year one. Based on my experience, and using my marketing model, I would say that even if a person comes in at the $150,000 level, he should be showing a profit within the first six to eight months. NHJ
Houston, We Have a Problem! Bald astronauts and regular folk who show a lot of skin, may want to check in with Mission Control. This bald head balm is claimed to “Boost chrome-dome envy far beyond unprotected helmet heads.” Who could resist that? It also, “Prevents sun damage while promoting an even-toned dome.” FDA Compliant? 2006 may be the year of the dog, but that doesn’t stop “Billy Jealousy” from displaying a fearsome dragon on its award-winning Hair Raiser! For only $75 you get an “Awardwinning lotion” that with about 4 months of twice daily use will let you, “Experience the beginning growth of terminal hair.” A word of caution from the manufacturers however, “Regrowth will not be experienced if hair follicle has been dead for more than 10 years.”
17 The National Hair Journal Winter 2006
From Your Membership Director
Hair Society News
Happy Holidays from the Society! Happy Holidays! I love winter and the holiday season. It’s a time to reflect on the past year and set goals for the New Year. It’s the Kristie Handzlik season to come together with loved ones and surround yourself with love and laughter! It’s also a time to spend with friends. Speaking of friends, take a look at all my friends in the Society! The people below are the most dedicated and professional people in the industry and I am happy to represent them!
For those of you who aren’t Society members, you are really missing out! Take a moment now and set your New Year’s resolution to become an industry leader and join the Society! We are all here to help you. Give the gift of a Society Membership! Wouldn’t it be nice to give the gift of a Society membership? The more members we have, the Society can offer even more incentives, dis-counts and host more workshops. If money is
an issue over the holidays you can always refer a friend to the Society. Your friend will receive all the benefits of the Society and you will receive 10% off your next year’s dues for every member you refer…and that’s a gift to your pocket book! Have a wonderful Holiday season! I hope you’re able to take some time off to enjoy your family. Gather them around the tree, your dining room table or in sleeping bags on the floor.
It’s a wonderful time to spend together. Oh, and don’t forget to hang the mistletoe! See you next year…
OUR NEW WHOLESALE SOCIETY MEMBERS Leonard Venti joined the Society in October and promises to be a valuable resource for everyone. Not only has he run some of the most successful hair replacement studios in the country, but he is now pioneering new laser therapy services on the west coast. He is offering to network with other Society members and pass on his tips, tricks and resources to help you become successful in this fast developing market. We’ll be mailing out Leonard’s bio and contact information with our next membership update. In the meantime you can reach him at (310) 477-3480.
Anderia Kowalski
Andrea Hayden
Angela Penny
Anthony Provensano
Bill Kelly
Bobbi Russell
Bridget Winton
Bruno Frustaci
Carolyn Evans
Cathy Ingoglia
Cathy Walker
Charlene Blacer
Darryl Graham
Dawn Harrison
Dean Gougoulias
Debbie Mancuso
Dennis Howell
Don Osendowski.
Dr. Randall Sword
Dr.Kingsley
Eddie Goins
Edmarie
Gloria Ford
Gene Pletzer
Gokhan Ormen
Hans J Diks
Isaac Brakka
Jackie Donovan
Jim Toscano
Joanne Shaw
John Robinson Smith
Judy Casper
Lance Centofani
Larry Browning
Peter Lim
Lee West
Martin Byrne
Melinda Beck
Monique Smith
Myun Lee
Peggy Tom
Ray Schneider
Rob Hoffman
Tamarah Woodard
Tom Magliaro
Tony Sciara
Alan Humphreys
Carol Earle
Joseph DeGennaro
Emily Miller
Ron Cardillo
Sal,Darlene,Sal Pumo
Leonard Venti
Norman Brokaw
Scott Voboril
Lucinda Beaty
Pearl Bailey Anderson
Silvia Barboza
Kendall Beleshko
Luigi Caruso
Eli Cohen
Janna Chrissis
Larry Zellers.
Michael Diebold
Robert Buonomo
Elline Surianello
Jeff & Zina Paul
Laurie Nash
Michael Vozzelli
Robert Ward
Virg Christoffels
Vito Mazza
Dr. Alan J. Bauman
Zaida Rios
Members Not Pictured: Chuck Nelson, Fraser Clarke, Julia Meese, Jeff Gill, Joanne Shaw, Jill Sugar, Loren Weeks, Belinda & Bill O’Brien, Wanda Patterson, Daniel Brummel, , Uri Gross, Carmine Pisacreta, Paul Jamieson, Ozzy Vera, Michelle Brooks, Reba Kennedy, Sandie Perry, Jack McRobb, Davine McGuire, Dick Koesters, Steve Latham, Steve Heaton, Graciella Frakes, Keith Bachtell, Keith Zimmerman, Linda Arnold, Cathy Rosselli, Yolanda Rivera, Sunnie Daud, Michelle Brooks, Angelo Ferrari, Laurie Capron, John Florig, Alicia Stevens, Bette Graff, Joe Lore, Frank Malik, Janet Miller, Robert Rider, Loretta Paulus, Le Shi Barnes, Tom & Kim Norman, Patricia Bell, Betty Ann Bugden, Daryl & Judy Grecian, Dennis Pecorella, Yvonne Solomon and Andrea Shearer – Lee. We will publish their pictures as soon as we receive them. Wes Wright
James Britt
18 The National Hair Journal Winter 2006
Extend Your Hair Replacement Options! (continued from pg.8)
While most modern hair extension equipment bonds at low temperatures, today’s most advanced bonding equipment does not use heat at all! Instead, ultrasound waves are utilized to create friction which effectively bonds the extension even closer to the scalp, eliminating any worries of visible extensions entirely.
ABOUT US The National Hair Journal is part of The National Hair Group, a business consortium committed to the development of the hair-management industry. The National Hair Group provides information services via The National Hair Journal, a business newspaper. The National Hair Society is an educational, marketing and networking, professional support organization. The Group also provides consumer education via National Hair Broadcasting, a weekly broadcast show.
NATIONAL HAIR JOURNAL Mission - To provide hair-management professionals from all disciplines with accurate information that will help them make better business decisions and provide superior service to their patients and clients.
Editor In Chief Christopher Webb cwebb@nationalhairjournal.com
Creative Director Avi Roth aroth@nationalhairjournal.com
Contributing Correspondents Educational & Technical Isaac Brakha James Britt Bobbi Russell James Toscano
Fashion Forward Styling and Haircolor Options! ~ Cardillo adds, “Today, hair replacement clients demand more than just added volume. They want creative and fashionable options with texture, haircolor and length! For many, keeping current with fashion trends is essential to feeling good. Today, hair extensions offer endless possibilities to make a strong fashion statement for any woman or man.” To meet the challenge, most of the prominent and leading companies offer several dozen haircolors in a variety of natural textures, ensuring a perfect match. This wide selection gives clients the option to create dimensional highlights, lowlights or funky accents. Extensions also provide endless hairstyling options, something that wigs and hairpieces usually cannot offer. Furthermore, they are relatively easy to maintain as long as your clients follow the home care regimen. Composition ~ Extensions for hair replacement are similar, yet smaller than those used for superficial applications. Generally known as mini or micrographs, these smaller extensions provide the benefits of adding volume without the worry of visibility, which is crucial for clients who have thinning hair. Most quality hair extension companies offer human hair that is pre-bonded with adhesive already applied to the tip, simplifying the application process for the hair extensionist. A few professional hair extension companies, including SO.CAP.USA Hair Extensions have taken the pre-bonded tip one step further by formulating 100% Keratin tips, which is the made of the same protein as our own natural hair. This ensures a strong, healthy and long lasting bond, which is molecularly the same as our own hair. Removing the extension is as simple as applying a specially formulated solvent which quickly and safely dissolves the bond, causing virtually no damage to the hair. Coincides with Topical Hair Re-Growth Products ~ Many of your clients may be looking for a short term solution to a long term treatment regimen for hair re-growth. Many long-term treatments include topical hair regrowth solutions such as Rogaine and Minoxidil. Most topical solutions cannot be used with wigs or hair pieces, which can reduce their overall effectiveness. Since extensions bond to the natural hair close to the scalp, topical re-growth solutions can easily reach the scalp and do not affect the extensions. “With the recent advances in hair extension technology, the hair replacement possibilities are endless. Hair extensions are here to meet the challenge and restore the confidence of your clients, while providing them with a stylish and permanent hair replacement solution that can last up to six months or more,” says Ron Cardillo. With the proper education, training and certification, hair replacement specialists can now offer a new and exciting variety of options for their clients. Mark Pederson is Marketing Director of Marketing Solutions, a marketing, advertising, graphic design, public relations and consulting services agency specializing in the professional beauty business. SO.CAP. USA Hair Extensions is one of the largest professional hair extension companies in the world. They can be found at www.SoCapUSA.com.
Women & Fashion Marilyn Dodds Medical Alan Bauman MD Shelly Friedman DO
NATIONAL HAIR BROADCASTING Mission - To deliver reliable, objective information to men and women who are concerned about their hair loss and want an unbiased perspective on the choices available to them.
Division Director Penny Moss pmoss@nationalhairjournal.com
Production Director Mike Ferreri mike@mfaudio.net
Sound Engineer Dan Feely dan@danfeely.com
NATIONAL HAIR SOCIETY Mission - The Hair Society was created at the request of forward-looking hair-management specialists seeking educational and marketing support to grow their business. It connects manufacturers, distributors, retail salons and medical clinics and provides an ongoing network for crossmarketing and dialogue.
Membership Director Kristie Handzlik kristieh@nationalhairjournal.com
NE Regional Director Catherine Ingoglia
CA Regional Director Edmarie Masters
SUBSCRIPTIONS To subscribe to The National Hair Journal call 1-951-5412809 or send an Email to subscriptions@nationalhairjournal.com. You can also write to us at the address at the bottom of this column. Hair Journal subscription billing and renewals are managed by: Receivables Management Corporation PO Box 50650 Indianopolis, IN46250 Tel: 1-800-894-9031 Email: rwarren023@aol.com ADVERTISING To place an advertisement or request a Media Kit, contact us at advertising@nationalhairjournal.com or call 1-951541-2809. LEGAL NOTICE Notice: The National Hair Journal, Issue number 40 Copyright ©2006. All rights reserved. While great care has been taken to ensure the accuracy of the information in The National Hair Journal, the publisher does not assume liability for decisions based upon it. Readers are advised to seek further independent advice. All statements, including product claims, are those of the person or persons making the statements or claims. The publisher does not adopt any such statement or claim as its own, and any such statement or claim does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the publisher. The National Hair Journal accepts no responsibility for unsolicited materials. All materials in this issue are the property of this publication and nothing shown may be reproduced in any form without obtaining the permission of the publisher and/or any other persons or company who may have copyright ownership. Requests should be addressed to: Publisher, National Hair Journal, 39252 Winchester Rd., # 107-383, Murrieta, CA 92563.
HOW TO CONTACT US National Hair Group 39252 Winchester Rd., # 107-383 Murrieta, CA 92563. Telephone: 951-541-2809 news@nationalhairjournal.com subscriptions@nationalhairjournal.com advertising@nationalhairjournal.com events@nationalhairjournal.com
19 The National Hair Journal Winter 2006
New Image in Amsterdam Europe Symposium 2006 New Image hosted its first annual Europe Symposium in one of the greatest cities in the world... Amsterdam. With its museums, art galleries, cultural sights coupled with open minded tolerance, diversity and its canals, Amsterdam is one of the most intriguing destinations in Europe.
Krasnapolski Hotel’s main dinning hall
with business-to-business electronic ordering. Their vision was realized via an impressive graphic presentation and was well received by all. We cannot overlook the social element of the weekend. On Saturday evening we were all treated to a unique experience. We dined at “The Sea Palace”, a floating restaurant situated on the canal system of central Amsterdam. The Sea Palace offered an incredible selection of Asian Fusion cuisine to suit any palate.
L to R Mr. Tony Sciara-President of New Image, Mr. Michel Michelot-France, Mr. Uri Gross-Israel, Mrs. Angelique Van Boom-Holland, Mrs. Kirsten WaldorfDenmark and Mr. Thomas Hoyer-Norway.
New Image’s 2006 International Symposium was held this Spring at the luxurious NH Grand Krasnapolsky Hotel in the heart of Amsterdam. Some of Europe’s leading hair specialists participated in the event, representing more than 17 countries. Response exceeded expectations as guests throughout Europe helped make this two day event a success.
The success of this first New Image in Europe Symposium provides a foundation for the future. New Image will continue to support this effort in Europe and anticipate further expanding the program in upcoming events. New Image wholeheartedly thanks Ingrid Waals & Ruud Van Wiltenburg for being such gracious hosts, and for their participation and support at our Europe Symposium 2006 in Amsterdam. Dank je!! This commentary was contributed by Oscar R. Urzola, Director of Customs, R & D & Intl. Division.
“X” MARKS THE SPOT A Report on New Image’s Fall Conference by Darryl Graham
L to R Mr. Michael Szegedi-Austria, Mrs Kirsten WaldorfDenmark, Mr. Orsel Renis-Holland, Mr. Finn WaldorfDenmark, Mrs. Angelique Van Boom-Holland, Mr. Matti Heinila-Finland, Mr. Thomas Hoyer-Norway and Mr. Lars Berg-Sweden.
Ft. Lauderdale, 10/06 - Some escaping from early signs of a cold winter others from as far as Europe, a large enthusiastic group of industry professionals had one common direction in mind. All had their sights on one port of call, South Florida. Looking to quench their thirst for knowledge, they landed on the sandy beaches of Ft. Lauderdale during working his magic on the new ICON with MicroMesh 2000 technology and Don taunting the audience with NX-Gen Effects skin. President Tony Sciara greeted the guests and promised an exciting and enlighten weekend, with one or two surprises thrown in along the way… a promise that was definitely kept.
Saturday opened with a brief introduction and highlights by Tony Sciara, President of New Image. Participants were treated to a series of innovative product, technical presentations as well as state of the art tools useful in various business opportunities. Over these two days, attendees were introduced to “ICON,” New Image’s most recent contribution featuring the latest matrix technology “Micro-Mesh 2000.” Tony Sciara shared New Image’s vision of Micro-Mesh 2000 as a true evolution of technology. Micro-Mesh 2000 is finer and softer than French Lace with the stable characteristics distinctive of a Fine Welded Mono. Due to its uniqueness, a nearly invisible knot is permitted, rendering bleaching of the knots redundant. Thomas Hoyer was on the platform displaying his unique skills with ICON. Guests watched in amazement as Thomas performed his magic with ICON. Presentations continued as New Image summarized its success story from 2005. Nx-Gen has single-handedly altered how its customers perceive permanent hair and bonding. As a result of this success, the program has been expanded to include full cap applications for men, and full cap and top of head for women with longer hair. Demonstrations by Holland’s own Angelique Boom, Rick Buikema and Orsel Renis left the audience in no doubt about the depth and increased opportunities now available with Nx-Gen.
Sharing laughs, New Image CEO Les Martin (C)
the weekend of October 21st -23rd for the New Image 2006 Fall Conference at the spectacular Harbor Beach Marriott Resort and Spa. As they traveled past the large lagoon pools and richly manicured courtyard, seeking knowledge, sun and enlightenment from a list of impressive platform artists. New Image did not disappoint them. Delivering new product technologies combined with a series of business titles provided the sought after Treasures they came to plunder. All left with renewed insights and skills that would drive their businesses to new heights. The weekend kicked off on Saturday evening with a casual cocktail reception where guests where greeted by Mr. Les Martin,(CEO) Tony Sciara, (President) and Key members of the New Image Team. The air was filled with the sounds of steel drums and laughter on this warm Florida evening, and the action was only going to get hotter.
Christina Pasateri, Darlene and Tom Usadel at cocktail reception
owners, from staffing issues to financial problems to making your studio more conducive to business. In response to demands from ever growing woman’s market New Image was proud to offer the technical skill and knowledge of Bridget Winton. Bridget’s years of providing hair solutions for many of Hollywood’s top entertainers came in handy while delivering insight into the trends of the Ethnic client.
Jean-Michel Bascole was on hand to demonstrate the latest in hair loss technology… the Scan Hair Tablet. The Scan Hair solution is a combined effort of bio technology and hair loss specialists with the vision of providing a realistic diagnostic within hair centers. This is a valuable tool transitioning between medical and non-medical solutions during a consultation. The parade of innovative products continued with the introduction of ExtendMagic. New Image refers to ExtendMagic as “The Missing Link in Your Hair Extension Arsenal.” This unique instrument is a long awaited addition to hair extension or hair augmentation. ExtendMagic permits micro hair attachments for those difficult places like front hairlines, crowns and parts for both men and women. As Angelique Boom and Thomas Hoyer demonstrated Extend Magic, they were quickly surrounded by curious members of the audience. Everyone looked in disbelieve as Angelique and Thomas made the impossible probable; micro attachments that were literally undetectable! It was obvious by the positive response that ExtendMagic is destined to be a staple tool in hair loss centers. Sunday concluded with an appearance by Jan and Ingrid Waals who shared their vision of the future
Keynote presenter Tom Scotti took to the platform and set the tone for the event with “Getting the Passion Back”. Tom offered several mental exercises to help maintain the drive and focus all business owners need in an often-trying industry. Keith Zimmerman continued the business series with “CPR” and “Business 911” to full audience. He offered solutions to everyday problems faced by
Shawn Peters and Peg Lowe demonstrated New Image men’s hair solutions to a packed house of guests seeking to learn and expand their technical skills. Sharonda DeVall and Patricia Bell offered alternatives for today’s woman, covering a multicultural segment. Collette Peterson and Rick Knowles teamed together to share their secrets to success in hair extensions to an eager group featuring both “Extend Magic” and “Secret Strands”. Rick and Collette as well unveiled the new “Secret Strands Platinum” series together with “Loop n’ Lock” a simple to use cold application system. New Image President Tony Sciara and the “Captain” discuss the finer points of leadership
Opening day Sunday, we where by greeted swashbucklers Keith Zimmerman and Don Baker. Hair was flying as the two dueled side-by-side to the high-energy soundtrack of “Pirates of the Caribbean”. Keith
On the business side, Lenny Venti Jr. offered practical advice for Consultation Maximization. Familiar face and friend Mike Montemurro took the new business owners under his wing and provided facts and figures for The Start Up. As a new business owner himself, he offered his own personal insight and
experiences while getting started. Tom Scotti presented business owners with ideas on how to make more money without spending money. New Image’s Customs Director Oscar Urzola presented a detailed class to “Understanding Custom Order limitations”. All the excitement and energy did not diminish as Sunday night approached. Attendees were greeted in the foyer by Captain Stu and his loyal crew of scallywags for the Pirates of the Floribbean dinner/dance. The crew posed for photos and even playfully tried to pick Tony Sciara’s pocket. What else would you expect from a pirate? Attendees were also delighted and entranced by John the Bird Man, who brought three pure white cockatoos, a beautiful red macaw, an emerald green Solomon Eclectus and the multi-colored Sun Conure. The trained birds would fly on command to an outstretched arm and to the delight of all in attendance, were stacked on top of clients’ heads for a photo opportunity. Attendees danced into the early hours and commented that once again, the New Image staff had outdone themselves with the best party of the year. As in past conferences, the Monday morning general assembly was the setting for Children with HairLoss charity event. Attendees had the opportunity to learn more about the foundation and participate in a raffle of items donated by New Image (Florida Lottery Basket, Relaxation Basket and Money Hat), the Harbor Beach Marriott (Spa Package), and Plan-toPlan President Judith O’Grady (dinner certificates to Marks and Prime One Twelve). Regina Villemure, founder of Children with HairLoss provided an emotional look at the needs of the children and the necessity to raise funds so no child goes without hair. Under the program, children receive hair replacement solutions at no cost until they reach the age of 21, regardless of family financial status. Winners included Lee West, Randy Clark, Kathleen Montemurro, Stacy Beck, Carol Peruch, and Cindy Austin-Ganon. The raffle took a moving turn as winners returned their prizes to Regina for her to auction back to the attendees. Don Baker did a stellar job as auctioneer. In the end the real winners were the kids, with over $4,500 raised that included personal donations by Mr. Martin and Dr. Creamean. With Monday’s sunset at the close of the conference, all set sail for their home ports, the same song was sung over and over… the service, education and entertainment provided by the staff of New Image was second to none. Even clients who had been in the business for many years walked away with fresh ideas to increase their client base and offer extended service to their clients. Like any good pirate, all vowed to ride the next high tide to what new treasures NHJ lay in store.
20 The National Hair Journal Winter 2006
Working with Women and Children with Hair Loss Another Perspective Part II Marsha Scott, owner and founder of the Bethel, Connecticut-based Marsha Scott’s Hair Loss Clinic for Women, says that she gives back to women and children what nature can’t. In this second half of a twopart interview, Marsha talks about what’s closest to her heart: helping children. Her passion and drive comes from her own experience with hair loss. As a juvenile diabetic, she has been a victim of thinning hair all her life. Marsha is currently serving as Vice President of the American Hair Loss Council. She is a member of the National Cosmetology Association and the
National Association for tem free. They get one hair Female Executives. She also system per year up to the acts as a facilitator for The age of 21. They come into American Cancer Society’s, our office to be measured “Look Good...Feel Better” and we contact our manuprogram at a local hospital. facturer to order. The clinic Most recently she has joined provides design and styling forces with “Children with services free of charge and, Hair Loss” a non - profit of course, there is no organization which provides charge for the hair system. I free hair replacement for believe this is the first prochildren coping with hair gram that is totally free to loss. In this interview, she the child. We don’t want to talks with Penny Moss, know what the family’s Marsha Scott director of The National income level is; there’s just Hair Group’s Consumer Division and host a short application that the parents have to of the webcast, HairLoss Newsmakers. fill out that basically states that their son or daughter needs a hairloss diagnosis. That’s PM: I know that children are a very spe- all that’s required. We also like to know who they were referred by. It is absolutely cial part of your outreach. MS: That’s right. Right now, I’m involved free to any child with any type of hair loss in launching the “Wigs for Children” pro- situation. gram. It is a non-profit organization where PM: How does a teenager or parent apply children can receive a complete hair sys- for assistance?
MS: They can apply by going to www.childrenwithhairloss.org. It tells them where the closest participating location is where they can take their child. PM: I’ve heard the heartbreaking story of a child with Alopecia who sat alone on the school bus day after day because the other children were scared hair loss was contagious. What can be done to help children like that? MS: The problem of children with hairloss needs to be addressed in some type of public awareness campaign. Other kids need to know that hairloss is not a disease. When a child goes to school with cancer, everybody understands; often the whole class gets involved. Maybe somebody else will shave their head to show support. But with Alopecia, the victim is alone and often turns inward because they feel isolated and different. That’s why any child with hairloss needs to join a program and get hair. It is not necessary in 2006 for any child to go without hair. (cont. on pg 22)
21 The National Hair Journal Winter 2006
ON RITE GOES “O NLINE ” @ VEGAS M A R K E T I N G M E ET ING Las Vegas, 10/06 -The On Rite Company held its annual marketing meeting on October 9th and 10th in Las Vegas at the Rio Hotel. It turned out to be like no other
the meeting with a simple plea that could improve everyone’s bottom line: Every studio should host a women’s seminar, just once, in the following months, to gauge its
success. He cited two examples of studios in Maryland and Florida who ran seminars using On Rite’s Method Trapeze commercials to attract participants: both seminars generated income in the five figures. On Rite president, Andrew Wright, said that the meeting’s emphasis away from marketing programs didn’t indicate a shift in direcmarketing meeting On Rite had ever put on before. The meeting was themed a “Business Development Symposium”. The focus was on what practices a studio could employ to maximize its profitability, with an emphasis on new client acquisition. However, unlike past marketing meetings, where new marketing programs were presented, not a single commercial or print ad was shown. Instead, the emphasis was on internet marketing, as well as innovative, “out of the box” marketing and sales strategies. Internet guru, Jay Berkowitz spoke at length about website development and optimization, all for the purpose of using a studio’s website to draw in new leads and inquiries. Berkowitz also spoke on the topic of using e-mail to communicate with new leads for the purpose of beginning a dialogue that would subsequently lead to a booked consultation. Jay Benjamin followed Berkowitz and gave a presentation on how to use hair extension marketing to attract women with hair loss to a studio. Jay cited his own experience utilizing On Rite’s Ultratress television commercials to attract leads from women experiencing female pattern baldness. The main point of his presentation was that hair extension advertising casts a “wide net” that can bring in women with all kinds of hair problems, from thin hair to thinning hair and almost everything in between. Joe Lore of the Guci studio in New Jersey gave an “out of the box” presentation on qualifying prospective men and women clients on the phone. In his talk, he demonstrated how he uses assertiveness to target men and women who can afford high price points. Noted South Dakota studio owner Virg Christoffels talked about full head bonding for women and proved that even in a small town it’s possible to do a phenomenal amount of business. Rounding out the day was long-time On Rite sales and marketing consultant, Leo Benjamin who talked about the importance of marketing to a studio’s profitability. The next morning was devoted to the meeting’s featured speaker, Debbie Allen, who comes from the hair industry. In her inspiring presentation, she spoke about retail selling techniques, as well as emphasizing the need for the studio to endlessly self-promote itself. Leo Benjamin concluded the second day of
tion from On Rite: “We wanted to get into more untraditional views of marketing at this meeting in order to give our studio clients a broader spectrum to work from when they returned home. However, we remain committed to producing new marketing programs that generate inquiries and new sales; without them, that broader spectrum becomes pretty narrow.” NHJ
22 The National Hair Journal Winter 2006 makeover. And if that wasn’t enough, Peter Lim also hired a professional production company with videographers, photographers and makeup artists plus wellknown TV host, Yao Wen Long to MC the event.
Now That’s Networking! Virtual Reality in Singapore Peter Lim doesn’t do things by halves. Or even three-quarters. When Peter, a Hair Society member, decided to participate in Virtual Reality Live he pulled out all the stops!
The VR Live makeover took place in the cen-
he was not to be disappointed. Of the 46 customers Lance’s team met, over 95% UPGRADED to VR. You do the math… After the VR Live experience, Lance Centofanti asked Peter why were he was willing to commit to an event like this without even meeting the people who were going to assist him. He replied that he had lost some of his best clients to competition and he needed a new platform to set his business apart. It seemed from the Hair Society manual that VR was the answer. The Society promised to bring ambi-
himself, staggered off the plane in Singapore after an 18 hour flight. They might have been jetlagged, but they were excited and ready to go to work. They checked into their hotel, changed and went straight to the studio. By the time they were done, everyone in Singapore would know about Peter Lim, JPG Enterprise and Virtual Reality!
But even while the VR team was clearing their schedules back home, Peter was running full page ads in Maxim magazine in Singapore telling men and women L to R - Peter Lim with Chris and Lance Centofani about the upcoming event. He invited It all started when Peter “met” Lance people to attend no matter what hair they were Centofanti in his Hair Society Handbook. A wearing or who was styling and servicing it. If couple of weeks later, he came across the they were concerned about hair loss, they were Virtual Reality advertisement in The National welcome to participate and get a risk free
Yao Wen Long signing authographs for his fans
ter of one of Singapore’s largest shopping malls. The TV host asked passing shoppers if their hair was bothering them and five lucky people, four men and one woman, were invited backstage for their makeover. When the transformation was complete, they proudly paraded down the mall escalator to dramatic music, took off their masks and invited the audience to choose a winner. Nothing like this has been seen before in a Singapore mall! The media coverage was incredible. All the major newspapers interviewed Lance, Peter, Dean and Chris
tious people together to pool skills and that was the kind of privileged relationship Peter was looking for. Lance Centofanti replied, “The VR Live team are the most committed people I’ve ever run into (besides my staff in the Florida office.) They are amazing, they perform under the most extreme conditions and they never, ever fail.” VR consultants have visited 72 studios in 2 years. They’ve been challenged by 2,400 customers; clients that dealers couldn’t upgrade. Over 95% bought into the program. Isn’t that what networking’s all about! NHJ
Working with Women & Children (continued from pg.20)
Yao Wen Long showing his new look
Hair Journal and decided there was nothing to lose by phoning to introduce himself. No-one calls “the Energizer” and comes away unmoved and Peter was no exception. In October, five VR team leaders, Chris Licursi, Dean Muraco, Cathy Montefusco, Juliana Jurgensen and, of course the Energizer
Cathy finishing Singapore celebrity Yao Weng Long
The makeover contestants, the VRL team, Aremy staff and celebrity Yao Wen Long
The winer of the makeover
- and JPG got coverage in every Singapore newspaper.
The local mall crowd enjoying the makeover show
What made this VR Live so special? First, the commitment. Peter Lim not only purchased the exclusive rights to the Virtual Reality trademark in Singapore, he also flew five VR staff halfway around the world and hosted them like royalty. All told, he invested $50-$75,000 and
PM: Are hair systems for children created differently? MS: Obviously, the sizes are different. Their heads are much smaller, so we have to make a template or a mold of this child’s head shape and then have a custom hair system made to that size. Up to the age of 21 years, as a child grows the head shape changes. That’s why the “Children with HairLoss” program allows each child one new system every twelve months. Each year, they have a new template made to make sure that the hair system continues to fit their cranium perfectly. You can’t take shortcuts. I know a child who developed Alopecia when she was 15 years old. She ordered a hair system, but only wore one size. When she went to college, her mother had to get her a private room because at night she had to take her hair off and she didn’t want to do it in front of other girls. Years later, her mother showed me a picture of her daughter after college. She had gotten engaged and the funny part about it is she showed me the fiancé’s photo and the fiancé wore hair. So she found somebody who wore hair just like herself! PM: Can a child wearing a hair system run around and play sports? MS: I have a young girl who wears a vacuum system and does gymnastics. She can tumble and roll and is free to live a normal lifestyle. But there are some caveats; first of all the child needs to have a child’s haircut. Long, medium, short bangs. Something very carefree for a child because they don’t spend a lot of time styling like an adult. PM: What can we do to help children? MS: Direct people to the website. We need public announcements, public awareness. How often do you hear there’s a child suffering from hairloss? You hear about men; and you have begun to hear about women, but you rarely hear about children. We need to change that. Get them to visit www.childrenwithhairloss.org.
23 The National Hair Journal Winter 2006
HAIR LOSS LEADERS MEET IN SAN DIEGO Hotel Del Coronado
Proctor & Gamble Exhibit
Merck Pharmaceuticals Exhibit
Mark Kress(L) & Penny Moss
Andy Ellis of Ellis Instruments
Dr Ed Epstein (R) with Chris Webb Editor NHJ
Dr Brooke Jackson (L) with broadcast host, Penny Moss
(R) Thomas Dawson PhD, Proctor & Gamble and Penny Moss
San Diego, 10/06. We were at The Hotel Del Coronado, this year’s stunning location for the 14th Annual Scientific ISHRS Meeting. This is where the world’s leading hair restoration experts present the latest technological advances in diagnosing and treating hair loss. Originally expected to draw at least 400 physicians from around the world, the meeting held October 18-22, swelled to accommodate over 800 persons for some events, according to the hotel staff. The Exhibit Hall was overflowing with cutting edge technologies. Physicians representing more than forty countries came with their families, their technical assistants and their office managers to benefit from the exceptional educational programs, networking and social events.
Broadcast host, Penny Moss
Drs. Ken Washenik and Alan Bauman
Featured guest speakers included Ralf Paus MD, Professor of Dermatology from Luebeck, Germany; Maria Siemionow MD, PhD, Professor of Surgery at Cleveland Clinic, Ohio; Stephen Artandi, MD, PhD Professor of Medicine Stanford University, CA; and Thomas Dawson PhD. An innovation this year was a first time presentation at the ISHRS from a guest scientist in the personal care industry. Thomas Dawson PhD, is the Principal Scientist, Beauty Technology Division of Proctor & Gamble. His enthusiastically received presentation, Hair Cosmeceuticals, provoked a stream of questions from the mainly physician audience who informally clamored to invite Dr Dawson back next year to continue his presentation from an unique consumer-based perspective. The National Hair Journal & HairlossNewsmakers interviewed Tom Dawson; look and listen-out for his indepth interview which will be coming soon to HairlossNewsmakers.com The Annual ISHRS Scientific Meeting offers Continuing Education Credits to its physician members from around the world. Secondary audiences for the CME program include residents, nurses, surgical assistants and other allied health personnel. HairlossNewsmakers interviewed Christine Chen, Surgical Assistant to Dr Krugman, to learn about her vital and sometimes unseen part in the hair restoration process. You can hear this future upcoming interview on HairlossNewsmakers.com
(R) Thomas Dawson PhD, Proctor & Gamble with Chris Web
Dr Leigh Gardner
Christine Chen
Dr Ricardo Mejia
Dr. Trevor Nogueira
Dr Dow Stough
Dr Neil Saddick
As usual every year, the National Hair Journal and HairlossNewsmakers was right there in the thick of things, bringing the experts in hair restoration to the microphone – check out other issues and shows to hear more of their in depth interviews. No large event is complete without the social events, the networking and the FUN! The welcome reception soothed the travelweary with frosty margaritas, snacks and good company. It was held in the Exhibit Hall which was jam-packed with physicians, researchers, educators and vendors. Old and new colleagues enjoyed sunset dinners on the picturesque hotel terrace overlooking the beach, to the sound of strumming guitars. Friends from around the world relaxed, caught up on news and just plain had a good time! “What happens in Vegas…. WON’T stay in Vegas….”- why? Because The National Hair Journal and HairlossNewsmakers.com will be there to tell you what happens! The 15th Annual ISHRS Scientific Meeting is at The Venetian, Las Vegas. See you there!
R to L Randy & Carol Sword, Penny Moss, Chris Webb from NHJ
L to R Tom Dawson, P&G; Hans Diks from the Netherlands, Penny Moss, Heather Simon & Chris Webb from NHJ