DAY TWO. Making a Thing Go Right.

Or left. Or any which way. Thinking the mad chaos of the day before would quell was a mistake and a half, as the morning, noon, and after were still full of interested parties walking by. Karine and Valerie ran back and forth to sales meetings as Sabine and Ana manned the now-famous booth. English, French; distributor, journalist, indian chief -- they're starting to blend together.

A few moments of fresh air and a walk around the expo hall led to some interesting photos of design elements and watching people do what they came here for: business. (Not to be confused with biz-natch, which is something that may have been occurring outside of Beyond Beauty borders.) We'll be keeping a close eye on a few emerging brands that have already been recognized, like YesForLov and Officina, as well as a Korean skin therapy label whose name escapes me. I would look it up, except on principle - if I walk by a stand more than 10 times, hear their name from other people, and still can't remember what it's called, it's time to give up. So the latter two don't get links, as a punishment for being forgettable and un-google-able.

Here's a brand that was quite memorable, particularly due to the blonde Canadian twin tag team that explained the story not behind, but rather of each product. Their concept is too clever for words, but with lip gloss names like "Darling You Look Fabulous", "Who's Your Caddy," and "That's So Eighties" I am sure you are intrigued. Worth a look! Congrats to the two girls, too, who have received awards from Cosmo for being generally 'kick-ass' and for landing a Sephora contract for two of their balms.


Long days followed by even longer nights, following up on contacts and discussing strategy. Whew, these trade shows are exhausting. But, at the risk of sounding like a lame-o, they are truly worth the effort.