By Deanna Pai, Allure
There's not a person on this planet who hasn't heard of Sally Hansen. Have you ever walked into a drugstore and not
found a vast collection of nail and body products on the shelves?
Exactly. And, chances are, you even own a few colors (or 20). Sally
Hansen is one of those brands that's been around for ages (okay, fine,
since 1957), which means it's had years of research and customer
feedback to perfect the products. That's why it's no surprise that many
of their formulas, like Miracle Gel and 18K Gold Cuticle Eraser, are Allure Best of Beauty Award winners. Here,
[post_ads_2] 1.
Sally Hansen was a real person.
Sally
Hansen was a businesswoman in New York City, and she worked alongside
her chemist husband to develop nail formulas in the late 1950s (and
beyond). "She was really a pioneer and an entrepreneur ahead of her
time," says Jeremy Lowenstein, vice president of global marketing at
Sally Hansen. "The first product she created was Hard as Nails,
the nail stengthener, which remains one of our top-selling products."
Keep an eye out for more about Sally Hansen-the-woman, since the brand
will be re-introducing her to customers later in the year.
The hidden gem in the line isn't actually a nail product.
Sally Hansen Airbrush Legs Leg Makeup
is one of those miracle products that loyal diehards have managed to
keep a secret. "We sell almost two cans every minute," says Chandra
Coleman, vice president of color cosmetics and mass fragrances US at
COTY (Sally Hansen's parent company). "It’s basically a makeover for
your legs." It hides veins and imperfections — and, bonus, is both
water- and transfer-resistant. According to the brand, once someone buys
a can of it, they begin buying five cans a year.
The brand takes your feedback and requests seriously.
[post_ads]Do
you ever feel like you're yelling into a vacuum when you reach out to
huge beauty brands about their products? (Same.) That's not the case for
Sally Hansen, which mans its social media pages and seriously considers
customers' requests. "We are a very consumer-minded, consumer-centric
brand," says Lowenstein. And that input has led directly to new
formulas. "Women said, 'We love the look and the durability of UV-cured
gel, but it’s not realistic because of the time at the salon and the
cost of the salon and the steps it takes'," explains Lowenstein. "We
took those nuggets from women and said, okay, how do we make that
happen?" That's how Miracle Gel
was born. Listening pays off: Since its inception in 2014, over 32
million bottles of Sally Hansen have been sold. That's roughly 10
percent of the United States population.
The brand's intense about their shades.
If
you're looking for a specific shade of purple, Sally Hansen probably
has it. "We launch anywhere from 100 to 200 new shades a year," says
Lowenstein, who calls the color development process "an art and a
science". That's where Madeline Poole
comes in. The manicurist and Sally Hansen Global Color Ambassador works
on editorial shoots and behind the scenes at Fashion Week, so she
directly helps set the upcoming nail trends. "When we do collections,
she works hand-in-hand with my product development and marketing team,
doing mood boards, and then we have research and development teams
color-match them," says Lowenstein. Her most recent project was tweaking
the 38 shades of the brand's latest formula, Color Therapy.
A good brush is the secret to a good DIY manicure.
There
are two types of people in this world: Those who have standing manicure
appointments at the salon, and those who'd rather turn on Netflix and
do it themselves. Sally Hansen is a godsend for the latter, and the
brand knows it, purposely finding ways to make DIY manicures easier.
"What people find unique about the Complete Salon Manicure
range is the brush itself, which has 800 bristles and kind of hugs the
nail," says Coleman. "That makes it easier for the consumer to apply."
Their team is constantly trying to figure out how to improve both
application and color. The reward of this work is quantifiable: Over
5000 bottles of Complete Salon Manicure in Raisin the Bar (a muted,
dusty red) are sold each week.
[post_ads_2]6.
One of the biggest risks for the brands? Nail appliqués.
What's
nail color if not a 24/7 accessory? That was the thinking behind one of
Sally Hansen's riskiest moves: a line of fashion-forward nail polish
strips called Salon Effects.
"We called it the moon launch," says Lowenstein. "Again, it goes back
to consumers, and consumers said they were matching their nails to what
they were wearing. What could we do to simplify nail art as well as
fashion?" Sally Hansen wanted the adhesive polish (seriously, it's
actual nail polish printed on appliqués) to be easy to both apply and
remove — as simple as switching out a purse. In 2011, the brand launched
24 appliqués. The line was a hit. (Proof: Not only was it an Allure Best of Beauty Breakthrough in its first year, but it also won another Best of Beauty Award for nail art in 2013.)
The number-one color isn't what you'd think.
Considering
the popularity of Sally Hansen's Miracle Gel and Complete Salon
Manicure lines, you might think the most popular shade would be from
either — and maybe a mass-appealing nude to boot. Not so much. "Miracle
Gel is our top-seller, but, interestingly, the top-selling Sally Hansen color
is our Insta-Dri Nail Color in Espresso," says Coleman. The deep, dusky
pink shade has held the top spot for the past five years and doesn't
seem to be going away anytime soon.
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