Salon Only Products

   I was finishing up a color application yesterday when I overheard a conversation that Tom was having with one of his guests. I thought it would make an interesting subject for the blog."Is it alright to buy professional hair care products outside of the salon?"

   This is one of the battles that we  hairstylists fight on a regular basis. It is true that you can occasionally find "Salon Only Products" being sold in the personal care aisles of many grocery stores, pharmacies and big box outlets all across the nation. The professional  companies try their best to prevent the sale of their products from occurring outside of the salon but with so many outlets all over the place it is difficult for them to police the problem of product diversion.

   The problem started years ago when the small, independent distributors were forced out of business by the larger companies that dominate our industry today. The manufacturers wouldn't take the products back so in order to get rid of them they sold them to "jobbers" at pennies on the dollar  to recover some of their losses. These people sold the products for a good profit to companies that were happy to put them on their shelves.That is why you find them among the shampoos, conditioners and such, in places that they shouldn't be but, "Buyer Beware"!!!

   Many of the products are old, well past their expiration date. There are companies that manufacture counterfeit products and sell them to an unsuspecting public who gobble them up, thinking that they are getting a deal. Incidently, when we have found these products on the shelves,  they are generally marked up 20 to 25% higher than what we sell them for in the salon. Add to this the fact that these stores aren't staffed by hair care professionals that can tell you wich products are best suited for your hair and suddenly the great deal that you thought you were getting isn't such a bargain,afterall.

  So the next time you run out of shampoo,conditioner or styling products, stop by your local salon where  highly trained  professionals can help you select what is best for your hair.