Selling Strength: Alterna Professional Haircare

Beverly Hills, Calif. -- When marketing high-end, professional-only haircare products, an ordinary display just won't do. "We're the Mercedes-Benz of haircare," says Michael Brady, president and co-founder of Alterna Professional Haircare. "We don't want our displays or our packaging to blend in."The company's new floorstand for its enzymetherapy line is now being rolled out to professional hair salons nationwide and Brady is thrilled with it. "The display captures the essence of the image we're trying to put forth as a company and the message that we're trying to establish with our products," he says. "All of that is captured with the design of this unit."A brushed aluminum base and tube bars support six acrylic shelves for the colorful, multi-shaped bottles that make up the line. Copper laminate and patina laminate were used to create an updated art deco look for the outer walls of the floorstand. A dimensional header includes the company logo and the name of the line. "Our previous display was an average, run-of-the-mill rack," Brady says. "This one was designed to bring a higher level of aesthetic to the display."Early feedback from hair salons has been positive, according to Brady. "The reactions I've just received are, 'It's the best the industry has ever seen.' and 'The bar has now been raised for all others to follow,'" he says.The displays are available to Alterna customers who order a set amount of product. They ship unassembled and are accompanied by a separate box of haircare products. "They're extremely easy to assemble," says Brady. He explains that his instructions to the design and production companies were that the display had to be simple enough to be assembled by an inexperienced person in 15 minutes. "This display passed the test," he says."We are at the luxury end of the marketplace for people who are looking for the best," explains Brady. The enzymetherapy line was built on the premise that as people age, their enzyme count decreases and they absorb fewer nutrients into their hair and scalp. The products incorporate both hair's essential building blocks and the specific enzymes required to keep hair healthy, strong and shiny. The line includes products such as age-free protectant styling tonic, hemp seed hydrating shampoo, volumizing spray leave-in conditioner and hemp seed styling mud.In keeping with its pledge not to "blend in," the packages for all of the enzymetherapy products are unusual in shape and color. Shades of blue, purple, orange, red, yellow and green make up a variety of tubes, long-necked bottles, round bottles, slanted bottles and round containers.Brady describes the creation of the floorstand as an "amazing" collaboration between two vendors. It was designed by Katherine Frank Creative, Lombard, Ill., while production and distribution are being handled by Rapid Displays, Chicago and Union City, Calif. Thus far, 3,500 floorstands have been produced."I'm blown away by the reaction that we're getting to this display," Brady says. "I knew it was beautiful and we were very excited about it, but to have the industry embrace it as quickly as they have and to hear the feedback that we're getting has been overwhelming. We're just proud to have it be part of our company."

Selling Strength: Alterna Professional Haircare

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