Friday, July 22, 2011

Sojourn

"I have to go call my mom. That was really intense".

Is what our stylist Christie said, after Elan, Vidal Sassoon's son left the salon. For two and a half hours, he and Steven sat and talked the hair business. Our two product reps who are now representing his product line, Sojourn brought him to us to meet. Incredibly gracious, thoughtful, and classy. Steven got a little overly passionate a few times, as he tends to do when talking about hair, and Elan listened intently, never becoming defensive. He's visited 1500 salons, traveling for a year around the country, meeting people and getting a feel for the current climate.
I like to watch people. And I especially like to watch people watch people. And he never stopped.
He and Steven have similar views on education, with Elans goal being to eventually have schools, and in fact he had spent millions for a property in Boston for a school, only to get all the permits right as the bottom feel out of the market.
The backing is there, the marketing is there, everyone really likes the product (we've been testing it for a couple weeks), and I really enjoyed my time with Elan. We bought into the line today, and they have already set up a night for education in the salon for August.


This sort of thing is such a great thing for Steven too. It keeps him motivated, as his biggest desire and biggest letdown is the he wants everyone in the industry to feel as passionately as he does. Talking to people in the industry who know what they're talking about, and care, can keep him going for months. I understand, because it's the same for me.
So far on this venture, we've had a lot of opportunity to connect one on one with higher ups, and it just keeps the feeling of forward progression.

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