On with the show

Professional Beauty London hit ExCeL in March, bringing professional trade visitors together with some of the biggest brands in the industry, plus education and networking with industry leaders

Headline sponsor

Professional Beauty London returned to ExCeL London on March 5-6, where 19,126 beauty professionals, including salon and spa owners, home-based beauty therapists, nail techs, lash artists, MUAs and more, connected. Visitors took the opportunity to meet with brands, network with other industry professionals, and take part in education sessions and make-up and nail competitions across the two-day event.

Professional Beauty London hosted 100s of exhibitors from across all sectors of the market, including spa, skincare, aesthetic equipment, nails, lashes and make-up. Visitors to the show were blown away by the number of professional brands showing their latest innovations and launches over the two days of the show.

Gemma Holt, owner of Lily’s Beauty Salon in Shropshire, said, “The show’s got an amazing buzz about it this year; there’s some really big brands back and its lovely just lovely to network and to be able to shop as well.”

Lucie Allen, spa therapist and trainer at Chewton Glen, and PB’s Therapist of the Year, added, “I haven’t been for a couple of years because of Covid-19… it’s really amazing to be back and everything to be in full swing again. It means a lot to be able to actually look at products, because to be able to feel them, smell them and get to grips with the actual products themselves is very hard to do online.”

William Foley, aesthetic therapist at One Aesthetic Studio, said, “It’s great to be united as industry leaders. I’m here to see lots of great brands – both new ones and the ones I work with in clinic. I’m excited to be here – there’s a great crowd.”

Kerry Hole-Stuart, owner of Transformation Hair, Beauty, Aesthetics and Day Spa, added, “I’m here to see what’s happening in the industry, to look at latest trends and make sure that we’re on top of our business so that we can take new ideas home.”

Exhibitors were delighted to see so many engaged professional visitors during the event. Headline sponsor Treatwell’s UK & Ireland community lead, Olivia Silver, said, “Professional Beauty London is the biggest exhibition in the UK for all the biggest beauty brands… Treatwell decided to be headline sponsor because we wanted to give our brand maximum exposure – we wanted to be everywhere.”

David Alpert, managing director of IIAA, added, “We’ve had some very interesting discussions. We’ve received an enormous amount of interest. In a post-Covid-19 world the whole business environment is different…this show is an opportunity where people can physically come together and actually meet and see what it is you’ve been talking to them about.”

Charlie Jepson, head of education for Glitterbels, commented, “The show has been amazing. We sold out of so many of our products… we’ve had such a lovely bunch of people coming up, asking questions about the brand. It’s been the best show we’ve ever done!”

Roy Cowley, managing director of 3D Lipo, added, “The show for us has been spectacular… it’s blown us away. Professional Beauty ExCeL is probably the biggest platform for us. It just gives us an opportunity to really touch base with our clients again, and to engage with new clients.”

Education station

Visitors were also able to attend several education sessions across three stages: Business & Digital Skills, Skin & Advanced Treatments, and Trends & Techniques, as well as a number of “how to” demos in the Nails, Make-up, Brows and Waxing Workshops area.

Speakers included aesthetician Mojisola Johnson, facialists Abigail James, Dija Ayodele and Lisa Franklin, business coach Ryan Power, nail techs Kirsty Meakin, Metta Francis, and Chantelle Vermont and leading MUAs Nathalie Eleni, Joy Adenuga, and Lan Nguyen-Grealis.

Some of the most popular sessions covered inclusive and diverse marketing, combining facial massage with advanced treatment techniques, what it takes to become a session nail tech and a guide to lash mapping and choosing the right map for your client’s eye shape.

Cidesco also ran Wellness & Massage Workshops with industry experts, including Massage for Mental Health founder Hayley Snishko, and Repêchage chief executive Lydia Sarfati, while skin specialist Annalousie Kenny ran a Skin Philosophy masterclass, covering how to analyse skin and treat skin conditions using multiple technologies.

Show of skills

The show saw the return of PB’s Nail Competitions, in association with the Federation of Nail Professionals (FNP), with nail techs and students competing across eight categories, as well as the Make-Up Competitions, in association with Lan Nguyen-Grealis, where MUAs competed in six categories.

Make-up competition organiser Nguyen-Grealis commented, “It’s important to enter the competitions and get involved because not only does it give you experience, but you’re here to network.” Find out who took home the competition trophies on pages 80-82.

International focus

Spa leader from across the globe met for the World Spa & Wellness Convention, which saw industry leaders from across the globe come together as they delivered workshops and discussed the state of the spa industry (see page 78 for more).

Meanwhile, the International Manufacturers and Distributors Forum (IMF) covered a range of topics, including building brand-distributor relationships and how to make e-commerce work for your business.

Reflecting on the two-day event, Mark Moloney, managing director of the Professional Beauty Group, said, “Professional Beauty London showed how keen people are to meet and celebrate their profession. From home-based therapists to international spa groups, visitors were enjoying the experience of seeing their suppliers face to face and participating in the talks and seminars - areal melting pot for the industry.”

Thank you to our show, zone and stage sponsors