CHICAGO, ILLINOIS—The 94th America’s Beauty Show (ABS) by Cosmetologists Chicago was one of the most amazing hair and beauty shows we’ve ever witnessed! From the moment we entered Chicago’s magnificent McCormick Place Convention Center and saw over 70,000 salon professionals, students and exhibitors buzzing with excitement, we knew we were in store for nothing but the best! The ABS Exhibit Hall boasted 400+ companies showcasing the most essential products for salons and their clients. ABS Nails Central was the place for nail techs to find their favorite brands they’ll be using in the year ahead. The ABS Barbers Gallery was a blast and rocked! We loved seeing all the amazingly groomed men and witnessing all that’s new for the boys! There were three runways, in conjunction with CosmoProf and SalonCentric, where icons of the industry presented hot new trends and education. The Beauty Changes Lives Experience, hosted by ABS and powered by Pivot Point, was a fab late-night affair featuring NextTGen industry artists’ interpretations of a Shout Your Beauty theme. Of course, there was much, much more: The Beauty Bash, The Jerry Gordon Salon Business Leadership Award, over 70+ education classes, ColorFest and so on and so on! We’re excited to present to you, our Sophisticate’s reader, these visuals on what our industry is all about and what you can look forward to at your salon—your personal sneak peek!

Photography by BABAK, Jordan Chollette, Lora M. Wintz and Bonnie L. Krueger

DATELINE: ORLANDO, FLORIDA Imagine all you can be! Wow! Little did we know when we were invited to the Matrix Destination experience what was in store for us! Over 2,000 beauty professionals attended this three-day inspirational event that brought together stars like Ashley Tisdale, Tabatha Coffey and other industry powerhouses! On opening night, Matrix artists lit the fuse with a world-class hair fashion production that Matrix VP and General Manager Paul Schiraldi said was designed to “light up the world with our imagination.” That it did, and for the next three days, the passion and creativity continued to burn brightly, from general sessions to hands-on classes, trending looks and learning about business building. Matrix, a leading professional haircolor and haircare company in the United States, left no doubt in our minds why they are so beloved by the industry, thanks to their commitment to the development of the salon professional, offering a progressive, creative, fun way to engage in the world of hair! On the last day we heard the salon pros all commenting on how much they loved being part of the Matrix family and hated to leave, but they parted with the tools and ideas to build their salons, delight their clients and reignite their creativity. That really says it all!

DATELINE: SANTA MONICA, CALIFORNIA Sit back in your chair and close your eyes. Picture the bluer-than-blue Pacific Ocean, a beach filled with an eclectic assortment of locals and tourists and a pier that is over 100 years old, featuring an iconic solar-powered Ferris wheel. Continue to fantasize and once you’re done beach-combing it’s time to do some fabulous shopping in the boutiques on the Third Street Promenade in Downtown Santa Monica. But wait—you’ll want to go back to your fab hotel room, change into a less casual wardrobe, make sure your makeup is classic and your hair is on point so when you stop in that cute little alfresco bistro, you’ll feel like the celebrity you are! Stop dreaming! It’s time to book that flight! Presenting the “La La Girls Day One” hair collection by Adam Ciaccia and Katie Sanchez, with styling by Nicole Dwight and photographed on location in Santa Monica by Jez Rozdarz. All for Axis Hair in Canberra, Australia.

Sophisticate’s Hairstyle Guide travels around the globe to bring you the beauty happenings and trends from all the hottest hair shows and events. Click on one of the photos below to join us…

Daytripping in Santa Monica, CA

America’s Beauty Show – 2016

Matrix Destination – 2016

Goldwell’s Global Zoom Challenge

33rd Alternative Hair Show – 2015

jcp salon Launch Party Celebration – 2015

Premiere Orlando International Beauty Event – 2015

America’s Beauty Show – 2015

International Beauty Show NY – 2015

International Salon And Spa Expo – 2015

32nd Alternative Hair Show – 2014

Chicago’s Mario Tricoci Celebration

jcp salon / Women Of America – 2014

DATELINE: LONDON, ENGLAND The 33rd Alternative Hair Show was held at the magnificent Royal Albert Hall in London this past autumn. The hairdressing teams participating—many of their model looks shown here—financed their own shows, completely showing their support for this event that raises money for research and education, to help find a cure for blood cancers, including leukemia. Alternative Hair Founder Tony Rizzo said, “There are no words I can find to thank these wonderful hairdressers. Their support and generosity never fails to make me feel both eternally grateful and humble.” This year’s show was entitled “Aurora” and featured inspirational aspects of dawn/dusk, glacial ice patterns and frozen landscapes woven into the themes and styling. The 2015 Alternative Hair Teams were Saco, Babicz, Rossa Fanagher, Anne Veck, Class, Mario Krankl, Paul Stafford, Gogen, E Salon, TIGI Creative Team, Kohsuke, Alan Edwards, Robert Cromeans, Fehringer, KPO, Laszlo Hajas, Dmitry Vinokurov, Carlo Bay and Sanrizz. Sophisticate’s Hairstyle Guide sends its highest regards to Mr. Rizzo and all the participants who helped raise over $315,000!

DATELINE: LAS VEGAS, NEVADA Over 2500 hairdressers from the world over came together to celebrate the artistic Global Zoom Event. Goldwell and KMS invited stylists to the Global Zoom Event to experience the excitement of inspiration artist sessions, and extraordinary gala show, amazing parties and the world premiere of Goldwell’s Color Zoom 2016 Collection. Sophisticate’s Hairstyle Guide is proud to present just a few of the highlights from the extravaganza, which culminated in the new D!srupt Collection—an inspiring hair fashion collection that breaks with the conventional and invites stylists to challenge conventional style ideas. To create the look for this trend, the Goldwell team disrupted the shape, the color and the texture of hair. Sheer perfection!

Collection photography by Markus Jans.

DATELINE: JCPENNEY CORPORATE HEADQUARTERS, PLANO, TEXAS Sure it was August, but we were so excited to hop on a plane and head to Plano, TX, to visit our friends at the JCPenney Salon Division for a full day immersed in all that is hair. From the fabulous technical training seminars to a state-of-the-industry convo to a gala event in the evening—the energy and enthusiasm was infectious. The gala event was held in the stunning Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center in downtown Dallas. Upon our arrival in the beautiful venue, we were greeted by smiling faces, wonderful wait staff passing the most fabulous appetizers ever (Beef Wellington? You bet!) and lively conversations. Next up was the beautiful The Salon by InStyle Inside JCPenney launch lead by jcp salon Artistic Director Nick Stenson. First a fab custom rap featuring a super-talented duo and a parade of models rocking the looks for 2016 available at all jcp salons! Hair superstars like Matrix’s Chrystofer Benson, Redken’s Sam Villa and Wella’s Sonya Dove all added to the beautiful hair design work showcased. Sophisticate’s Hairstyle Guide was proud to be part of the amazing celebration. And now…we must book that appointment at jcp salon!