Francis Kirkdjian

Pierce Mattie: Tell us a little bit about your custom-made business, what is the process for a customer to have a fragrance created for them?

Francis Kurkdjian: The process starts with a telephone rendezvous, which helps me to understand my client, his needs and wishes. Then, there is a face-to-face meeting when I present my first ideas and we smell together some materials and fragrance accords. Three or four weeks later, I present the fragrances I have envisioned for my client. It can take up to six months to finalize and come up with the right fragrance.

Borghese's publicity and social media strategies have really caught my eye lately. As a big fan of their skin care products, I wanted to get the inside scoop from their communications and publicity team on what they have been up to and what products we can expect to see this fall.

Pierce Mattie: Borghese sure has caught on to the develops of social media. You have a Facebook fan page, a twitter profile and a flickr page. How has online communication been working for the Borghese team?

Borghese: The social media has been amazing for us. We are connecting with customers from all over the US. We recently launched our Community Page; our customers are sharing stories with each other on when they first discovered Borghese, their favorite Borghese product, etc.

Pierce Mattie: I actually get announcements when to head over to Lord & Taylor for facials, has Facebook announcements like this in the past helped fill the chairs at the department store?

Borghese: It certainly has helped in the past although social media has made it easier for us. Instead of sending out invitations (whether a bounce-back card or email which may be forgotten) to our events by city and state, we are now able to just list all our events and have our customers see it all at once when they log onto their pages with reminders, a list of who else is going, notifications to their friends, etc.

Pierce Mattie: Borghese is doing something quite special because you are remaining true to your loyalty of retail but actually helping the department stores to garner more consumer demand by stimulating customers with your social media strategies, what other ways have you been exciting the shopper?

Borghese: We try to connect with our customers in different ways; a good example is the shopping event, Shecky’s Girls Night Out. We alternate between having a physical presence at this shopping event and just a gift bag presence. With the physical presence, we get to speak one on one, not just with existing customers but new customers and customers who we may have lost. Our R&D is always working on developing new products which use the latest technologies. Also, we sometimes include an invitation back to our retailers for a complimentary facial or makeover in the event gift bags.

Currently Brooke is running commercials for Coppertone, Latisse, Volkswagen, Colgate Total and Tupperware. Sure Brooke’s trademark is her brows – so it sort of makes sense that she would do the Latisse commercial. Being a SPF advocate for Coppertone revealing the damage the UV rays can do, again, is another good move. Especially since she recently found a precancerous spot on her face. But is the number of endorsement deals just too much? What do you think?

Photo Credit: Latisse

I recently had the opportunity to interview Kim Banks, the owner of The Pet Set, a luxury card and stationary company featuring the beauty of dogs. As a dog owner myself to a beautiful Shitzu named Toby, I absolutely love the look of The Pet Set social stationary.

Pierce Mattie: How did you start The Pet Set?

Kim Banks: After considerable research of the stationery market and the multi-million dollar pet industry, I determined that there were no high-end greeting card and stationery products. The Pet Set was initially started by modeling our business strategy modestly on Tiffany's.

Pierce Mattie: Who are some of your biggest clients?

Kim Banks: Our clients are predominantly high-end stationery and pet boutiques across the U.S. and Canada, now also reaching the U.K.

Pierce Mattie: What are some of your most popular breeds?

Kim Banks: While the entire line is very popular, we advise 1st-time clients to begin stocking their stores with the retriever varieties, as they follow the AKC registration list.

Pierce Mattie: In a recent article on Health News Digest you raved about Lumixyl. Would you say that it even works better than Tri-Luma? What do you see as the biggest difference between the two?

Wendy Lewis: Lumixyl is a newly launched peptide based skin brightening/lightening cream that will sell for around $120 US for 1 ounce pump. I love Tri-Luma, which is a prescription drug from Galderma that is modeled from Kligman's Formula and contatins 4% Hydroquinone, retinoid and a mild steroid. Lumixyl is a hydroquinone alternative, and the results of studies conducted at Stanford showed great results, and it is gentle for all skin types. Lumixyl is an OTC product sold through professional channels, whereas Triluma is an Rx and requires a prescription from an MD. I foresee that some dermatologists may put patients on a regimen that contains both of these formulations in some cases. 

Pierce Mattie: There are many aesthetic consultants in Manhattan, Palm Beach and Beverly Hills but no one who executes it as well as you. I have always said it’s your skill to really match up your clients with the right physician. What kind of research goes into your work?

Wendy Lewis: I am flattered Pierce, especially coming from someone who is a guru in the beauty biz. I take my "Knife Coach" brand very seriously and care about my clients and the recommendations I give them. I do a ton of research, attend conferences in the US and Europe, routinely interview and visit doctors in all specialties and read trade journals online so I am up to speed on all the latest developments. I have never altered from my original business model, which differs greatly from other me too "consultants" I have come across; my independence and impartiality is paramount, I treat all clients with total confidentiality, and I am not in anyone's pocket.

When I suggest a product or practitioner for a client, it comes from the heart and from my personal knowledge and expertise. I am doing more phone and webcam consultations today with private clients than face to face, both from an economical point and for convenience for the clients who are busy, active, and international. It's not perfect, but it's pretty close, and I have been at it now for over a dozen years.

As we all know you can’t go anywhere without seeing a McDonald’s in a 20 mile radius. The recession has been good to McDonald’s as consumer’s trade down to cheaper and faster food on the go. But what is next for the golden arches? It may just be the immense buzz going around about their new rollout of their $100 million McCafe campaign starting this year. This long-awaited national campaign for its new coffee line is touted as the biggest launch in its history.

Over the past 18 months, McDonald's has been steadily introducing hot and iced lattes and coffees, cappuccinos and mochas in individual markets across the country, and adding smoothies and frappes to the mix later this year and into 2010. With this coffee push, it’s the biggest menu initiative since it began offering breakfast in the 1970s. The $100 million spent on advertising is going to span across TV, print, outdoor, radio, Internet, and events. These advertisements will start off strongly throughout the summer, and well into next year. You may have already seen their marketing push with coupon booklets in newspapers for McCafe or in national television ads. Their goal is to portray McCafé as a fun, affordable brand that can make even the most mundane daily tasks more enjoyable.

Pierce Mattie: What is Sniffapalooza working on for the Summer and Fall season?

Karen Adams; Karen Dubin: Sniffapalooza is working on many incredible events for the Summer and Fall 2009! In May, we’ll be having a Sniffapalooza at Malin + Goetz in Chelsea for the world premiere of their two latest fragrances and new candles. We’ll also be helping osMoz.com launch their first perfume kits, which is very exciting, as this project has been a work in progress for over a year!

We’ll be speaking at the PXA Perfume Expo at the Javits Center, and managing the Consumer Day, and we‘ve got all sorts of surprises planned for that! We are in the midst of planning our activities for our week-long scent journey to LONDON in July, which is going to be an extraordinary trip. Our legendary Sniffapalooza Fall Ball , which is one of our two mega-Sniffapalooza’s that comprise an entire weekend of sensory stimulation and attract attendees from all over the world, will be happening next October. Fall Ball includes 10 stores,40 speakers,and over 165 guests! We are also planning our first Southern US Sniffapalooza at the Guerlain Boutique at The Breakers Hotel in West Palm Beach, one of the most elegant spas in the country!

And of course our famous Holiday Event – we always do something really special for that. Add to this list all of the other exciting events that pop onto our calendar – like our continuing Master Class Series, wine and fragrance tastings and perhaps even a chocolate and fragrance pairing event!

Pierce Mattie: Tell us more about Cynthia Cosmetics & More.

Cyndi King: We offer authentic mineral makeup, chirally correct skin care and the art of Joan Terrell Smith in the historic Grist Mill of Concord MA. Refill, reuse, recycle is at the heart of the makeup studio philosophy located above Main Streets Market & Café tucked in with Nesting and The Muse’s Window at the top of the stairs. Cynthia Cosmetics & More offers 10% off your purchase when presented with old conventional, traditional makeup or skin care products for recycling. All of our product packaging is recyclable and many are made with the ability to re-fill and re-use the bottle, brush or container that contains the product. Proceeds from the sale of the Revitalash lash conditioner and the Clarisonic professional skin care brush system go to cancer research.

Pierce Mattie: Concord Massachusetts is known for its great literature that comes from that town. It is the biggest little place in America. Are you going to plan anything like; A Book & a Makeover? Or having any book readings at your store while consumers talk shop on lip gloss and sunscreen?

Cyndi King: Absolutely! Our local book store is independently owned; most of the historic Concord shopping district is inhabited by independent businesses. My greatest wish is that when Diane Ranger releases her biography that she does so here in Concord at Cynthia Cosmetics & More! I plan to offer a reading area focused on wellness, skin care and cosmetics education. I feature the art work of Joan Terrell Smith, a locally born, award winning artist, now living in France. More of her work will be on display during the Art Walk in Concord on Saturday, May 16th, 2009. www.joanterrellsmith.com

Earth Day

In honor of this month and to get back to their “green roots,” Estee Lauder is promoting their new “Return to Origins” package recycling program. This program promotes the disposal of cosmetic packaging such as lipgloss containers and moisturizer jars that are routinely tossed in the garbage bin resulting in pileups on waste in landfills (let's face it we all do it, where else would we put our empty shampoo bottles?) Estee Lauder's Origins brand is accepting all empty cosmetic tubes, bottles and jars, regardless of who manufactured them, at any Origins stand-alone or department store. All returned packaging will then be sent to a recycling center where they will either be used for energy recovery or recycled into new materials.

Estee Lauder hosted a horde of local celebrities bringing their used cosmetic containers to be recycled and was hosted by Kelly Rutherford (Gossip Girl). According to BRANDWEEK, the New York press conference alone resulted in consumers dropping off 293 pounds of empty cosmetic jars and palettes! Talk about a successfully green campaign.

In inspiration of Estee Lauders efforts, I have been working toward going green and being more earth-friendly and since April is Earth Month, I thought I’d share some of the ways to try and make your business more environmentally conscious:

I am often asked as a Lifestyle PR firm owner, with a focus on beauty and fashion, why I read romance. It’s not "chic-lit" per say since I am not a chic, rather I tend to read historical romances because of their prose, backdrop setting and the courtship is quite enjoyable. I often find myself drawn to a few key authors; Loretta Chase, Susan Johnson, and Mary Balogh. But why do I like them so much? They don’t involve politics and the economy for one. And they always have a happy ending. I guess I don’t mind the formula and find the routine rather comforting.

So if you are a little stressed this week may I suggest you pick up a romance novel? If you have a favorite book or writer that is helping you take your mind off the world’s stressors, I would love to know what it is, please shoot me an email.

Is it just me or was the last payment at the cosmetic surgeon’s office for your botox injection more painful than the needle itself?

So what are your thoughts on this new injectable, will you be making your appointment this summer to flatten your furrows? Let me know your thoughts.

In recent days the conversation on Twitter (and among bloggers) started getting into a well deserved uproar over Amazon’s catalog misplacing the gay titles into their adult category which prompted Amazon's public relations' to respond. Is this clean up a matter of good PR or a response to full online transparency in the world of social media? It’s interesting to note that in the virtual world you can’t get away with "glitches" such as this because your audience will call you out on it immediately. I am happy that Amazon's PR responded so quickly hopefully averting what could have surmounted to a much bigger PR crisis. Will the news that it was potentially a hacker help recover their reputation?

However, my bigger question is why rank gay subjects as adult, why not label it regardless of sexual orientation? If Ellen Degeneres' biography is a biography then label it as such, not as adult or gay. Her TV show is a talk show, not an adult show, and the list of examples goes on. I personally will be sticking to the NY Times Best Sellers list to get a view of what moves in the book world. What do you think about Amazon's "glitch?"

Photo Credit: Just Jared