We asked our female brand founders why they thought it was important to recognise and celebrate International Women’s Day, here is what they said.

“International Women’s Day creates a bond between like- minded women and it also gives motivation for those women who feel they would like to achieve but do not have the confidence or means to do so.  The sky is the limit for all of us!!” Susan Gerrard, Gerrard International, Chairwoman and Mii founder.

“I think it’s really important to shine a spotlight on the success and achievements of women to provide encouragement and positive role models for young girls and young women to aspire to. Despite progress in the right direction, recent world events like the Covid-19 pandemic has set women back and we are not near achieving gender equality in the UK. For example, even pre-pandemic, only 1 in 3 UK entrepreneurs were female – a gender gap equivalent to 1.1 million missing businesses (1). We have to push women up as hard as we can and amplify their voices. This is what International Women’s Day is for – celebration, unity, support, advocacy and action.” Lucy Palmer, founder, Hair Gain

“Women around the world have contributed so much to their families, careers and life in general. Tirelessly, they have helped to keep things together even through wars, economic hardships, sickness and tragedies. Not to mention the women who have achieved great scientific and medical findings as well as those who have fought along their fellow country men and stood up for what they believed in. We are a strong group often thought of as soft and weak but have proved this not to be true. Recognizing women around the world is key to the future of humanity.” Elaine Binder, founder, Spongellé

“Women have come a long way. We are proud, hardworking and deserve a day to celebrate all women.” Nadia Shamsi, daughter of Jessica Vartoughian founder of Jessica nails

Gerrard International is proud to support all our female founders and all of the amazing women within the industry we get to work with, as well as training the next generation of beauty therapists through the Susan Gerrard Beauty Academy.

Our chosen charities and organisations for this year:

tpot (the power of touch)
Future Dreams
Refuge for women and children. Against domestic violence.
Beauty Banks

Next week, as part of our female founders series, an interview with Gerrard International chairwoman, and Mii founder Susan Gerrard.

(1) Rose review of female entrepreneurship, HM Treasury 2019

Lan Nguyen Grealis, makeup artist, author and guest judge in BBC’s ‘Glow Up’ series, directed her team of 22 makeup artists at the eclectic On/Off Presents catwalk, showcasing five new international designers.  The striking makeup looks were created using Mii Cosmetics, including ‘no makeup makeup’ with soft highlighter and soft washes of colours on the lids through to bold colour pops, graphic brows and embellishment using strategically placed metallic foil and gems.

About Lan Nguyen Grealis

Lead makeup artist Lan Nguyen Grealis is an established name in the fashion and beauty industry. After studying fashion at Central Saint Martins, Lan taught herself the art of makeup, working her way up to designing makeup looks for key shows. She is now a regular name at London Fashion Week. An author of beauty books ‘Art & Makeup’ and ‘ProMakeup Design Book’, Lan has also worked on shoots with fashion titles including Glamour, Vogue, Vanity Fair, Grazia and Stella and most recently featured as guest judge in the BBC’s Glow Up series.

IYANU 

Iyanu’s ‘Things Fall Apart’ collection unites Africa’s past with modern day Nigeria. To complement the bold prints, skin was kept beautifully bare, with bright painterly tribal graphic details, and dark lips.

How to:

Velvet Radiance Face Base Foundation
Illusionist Translucent Powder
Award-winning Brow by Mii Finishing Brow Gel
Power Matte Lip Crème in Supreme 04

YAN DENGYU

Yan Dengyu’s ‘Anthropocene’ collection was futuristic, otherworldly. The focus here was on beautiful flawless skin with red and black crystal accents to give a focal point. With an alien-fantasy feel, skin was softly contoured, brows were strikingly strong, and lips had a healthy nude finish.

How to:

Award-winning Smoothing Face Prep
Flawless Face Base
Double Delight Concealer & Serum
Award-winning Brow by Mii Finishing Brow Gel
Brow by Mii Precision Brow Detailer
Enhancing Eye Prep  
Forever Eye Colour Crayon in Sandstone

Full Focus Lash Duo Mascara
Bronzing Face Finish in Cherish
Light loving Illuminator in Shining Star
Moisturising Lip Lover in Tease
Supercharged Setting Mist

ZAFUL

Zaful was fresh, young beautiful skin with blushed cheeks like warriors in the wind, with metallic silver paint eyeliner details in the socket line.

How to:

Award-winning Smoothing Face Prep
Flawless Face Base
Double Delight Concealer & Serum
Illusionist Translucent Powder
Feature Length Lash Lover
Award-winning Brow by Mii Finishing Brow Gel
Perfect Brow Pencil
Glamorous Trio Bronzing Face Finish
Award-winning Celestial Skin Shimmer
Luscious Lip Sheen Lip Gloss in Pamper

Supercharged Setting Mist

404 Studio

404’s ‘Holy Mountain’ collection embraced diversity and created a sense of magic, referencing the modern witch. Skin was clean and matte with angular contour. Emphasis was on the powerful ‘flaming brow’ –inspired by burning flames, which were framed in solid block colour. Lips were kept nude.

How to:

Eye Loving BB Cream
Absolute Face Base
Double Delight Concealer & Serum
Illusionist Translucent Powder

Bronzing Face Finish in Jewel
Feature Length Lash Lover
Forever Eye Colour Crayon in Sandstone
Moisturising Lip Lover in Tease

HOUSE OF SHELDON HALL

House of Sheldon Hall’s ‘London Calling’ was inspired by the capital and Great Britain. Fun details in the makeup included coloured gold leaf worn in the inner corners of a smokey eye and over the lips. Skin remained flawless with a kohl pencil softly blended on the lash line.

How to:

Award-winning Smoothing Face Prep

Flawless Face Base
Double Delight Concealer & Serum

Award-winning Brow by Mii Finishing Brow Gel
Brow by Mii Precision Brow Detailer
Luxurious Liquid Liner

Enhancing Eye Prep
Forever Eye Colour Crayon in Sandstone
Highliner Black & Glimmer in Black/Blue

One and Only Eye Colour in Natural Base and Flash
Defining Eye Pencil

Full Focus Lash Duo Mascara
Bronzing Face Finish in Cherish

Light Loving Illuminator in Shining Star

Moisturising Lip Lover in Tease

We’re proud to announce receiving  seven incredible awards at The Beauty Bible Awards 2020 last week, adding to a growing number of awards won for our portfolio of brands.

Now in its 24th year, the prestigious Beauty Bible Awards has been referred to as ‘the only Beauty Awards that count – because they’re tested on real women’, and is the biggest-ever independent survey of beauty products ever carried out, with over 1,500 women taking part.

GOLD WINNERS:

Body Wash: Spongellé Wild Flower (and won Beauty Steal Award)

Nail & Cuticle Treatment: Jessica Phenomen Oil

SILVER WINNERS:

Nail & Cuticle Treatment: Jessica Critical Care

Brow Definer: Brow by Mii Finishing Brow Gel

BRONZE WINNERS:

Nail Brand: Jessica Custom Colour

Make-up Primer: Mii Smoothing Face Prep

Highlighter: Mii Celestial Skin Shimmer

Beauty Bible launched in 1996 by award-winning authors and industry-renowned journalists Jo Fairley and Sarah Stacey, and over the years more than 30,000 women have taken part in their trials – the biggest ever independent survey of beauty products ever carried out in the world! Sarah and Jo say: ‘We’ve always know that there are beauty products that truly work. And for 24 years, our mission has been to help identify those products.’

Over 1,500 women took part in this latest round of testing, divided into groups of 10, sharing similar beauty concerns. Each group submitted their scores and experiences after a period of months of actual use, comparing results to promises on packaging.

Susan Gerrard, Chairman of Gerrard International says: ‘We’re delighted to win The Beauty Bible Awards for products that have been tried and tested. This gives both us and you – our spas and salons – the opportunity to shout about our brands with even more pride. We love our brands and now we know your customers do too.’

‘The panel of beauty testers are real women – with real beauty issues – and their honest endorsements count for so much,’ continues Susan. ‘The credibility of these awards – and gaining the love and trust of beauty-savvy women – is invaluable to our continued success. It is an incredible achievement for our brands to be recognised in these Awards – they’re real products for real women that really work.’

Beauty Bible Tester Quotes:

‘I would buy it (Brow by Mii Finishing Brow Gel) again and again.’

‘I love this primer (Mii Smoothing Face Prep) and think it is one of the best I have used. My skin felt soft and moisturised and also clearer and more even.’

‘If it’s (Jessica Custom Colour) good enough for the professionals then you know it’s a great product.’

‘Powerhouse of a product’ (Jessica Phenomen Oil)

Jessica Nails was once again the designers’ nail brand choice at two main catwalk shows at London Fashion Week this season.

At Roksanda, lead nail artist Pebbles Aikens treated the nails as a quiet backdrop to the designer’s vivid palette and grand runway, inspired by dancers and painters, with a celebrity-filled front row including Cate Blanchett, Vanessa Redgrave, Joely Richardson and Anna Wintour. Vogue claimed: ‘Roksanda takes the crown for LFW’s starriest front-row yet’. The Jessica Hands on Team used Phenom Base Coat followed by sheer washes of Phenom in Pink-A-Boo, finishing off with No Shine Matte Finish. Nails were kept short but chic.

Both male and female models enjoyed a manicure courtesy of Jessica at Margaret Howell. To achieve Margaret Howell’s signature clean, healthy nail look, lead nail tech Cherrie Snow used the Gentlemen’s Club (including Smoothe Moves Hand Conditioner, Scrub Away Hand & Nail Exfoliator, Matte 4 Men Treatment and Buff Cuticle Gel) on the male models to freshen hands and nails. For an understated matte look on the girls, she used Flawless to perfectly smooth the nail bed, plus Phenomen Oil and Hydracreme to condition the cuticles and skin.

Photographer: Zoe Georgiou

Photographer: Zoe Georgiou

Click here to watch the action backstage at London Fashion Week.

BeautyLab sponsored one of the first catwalk shows at London Fashion Week A/W 2020, prepping skin backstage at On/Off Presents.

Inspired by the catwalk theme of ‘All Power to the Imagination’, lead makeup artist Lan Nguyen-Grealis created five different looks for each of the featured designers – Iyanu , Yan Dengyu, Zaful,  404 Studio and House of Sheldon Hall.

Understanding that beautiful makeup always starts with beautiful skin Lan Nguyen Grealis directed her team of makeup artists to cleanse, soften, and hydrate models’ skin, creating a flawless base for the makeup.

IYANU 

Iyanu took inspiration from gangster-street with tribal graphic markings. Skin was kept beautifully bare.          

Photographer: James Basire

How to:

Lan prepped the models skin by cleansing with BeautyLab Black Diamond Peptide Cleanser – this luxurious cleanser contains illuminating black diamond and cranberry enzyme to gently exfoliate and brighten the skin.

Black Diamond Moisture Complex was massaged in, instantly flooding the face with moisture. This rich moisturising cream contains energising sapphire and advanced peptides to help plump the skin and boost collagen.

YAN DENGYU

Photographer: James Basire

Yan Dengyu was futuristic, otherworldly, so the focus here was on beautiful flawless skin, while red and black crystal details gave a focal point.

How to:

Once again skin was cleansed with BeautyLab Black Diamond Peptide Cleanser, and moisturised with Black Diamond Moisture Complex.

Launching soon, BeautyLab’s NEW  Amethyst Crystal Facial Roller was gently rolled over the models’ skin to help relieve tension and calm the skin. Naturally cooler than room temperature, amethyst helps to boost micro-circulation, calm inflammation and de-puff the fragile eye area.

ZAFUL

Photographer: James Basire

Zaful’s models were like ‘warriors in the wind’ with fresh, beautiful skin, flushed cheeks and metallic silver eyeliner details.

How to:

Once again skin was cleansed with Black Diamond Peptide Cleanser, and moisturised with Black Diamond Moisture Complex. Selenium in the moisture complex aids in repairing and protecting skin against environmental aggressors.

Body Moisture Serum was applied to bare limbs before the models walked the catwalk. The instantly absorbed serum has skin firming and smoothing benefits and is formulated with Hawaiian sea plant, collagen boosting peptides, water-binding hyaluronic acid, and energising ginseng extracts.

Photographer: James Basire

404 STUDIO

Photographer: James Basire

Inspired by fantasy and witchcraft, eyebrows were sharply framed in solid colour, while the rest of the face was kept clean and matte.

How to:

With the emphasis on clean skin, skin was cleansed with Black Diamond Peptide Cleanser – this luxurious cleanser contains illuminating black diamond and cranberry enzyme to gently exfoliate and brighten the skin.  Black Diamond Moisture Complex was massaged in, instantly flooding the face with moisture. To emphasise the clean lines of the brow colour, excess makeup was gently removed with Oil-Free Eye Makeup Remover.

HOUSE OF SHELDON HALL

Photographer: James Basire

House of Sheldon was inspired by Great Britain and the capital. Fun details in the makeup included coloured gold leaf worn in the inner corners of a smokey eye and on the lips. Skin remained flawless.

How to:

On cleansed skin, Lan applied a few drops of Multi-Vitamin Oil – part of BeautyLab’s Glycolic range – to help brighten the complexion. This nourishing facial oil helps to re-balance city skin, vulnerable to pollution. Anti-oxidant vitamins A and E fight free radicals, while jojoba and super fruit buriti re-hydrate, conditioning argan and anti-inflammatory passion flower promote healthy skin, bringing London skin back to its beautiful best.

Photographer: James Basire

During December Mii Cosmetics were delighted to support a very special event – the Foundation For Change beauty sale, raising much needed funds to Help Refugees UK, a non-profit organisation to support those fleeing war, persecution and climate change.

Now in its fourth year, the charity – with its slogan ‘Choose Love’ –has raised over £51,000 to help the refugee crisis, attracting celebrity support from the likes of Fleabag’s Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Dawn O’Porter and Pamela Anderson, and has been featured in press and supported by big beauty brands. Professional makeup artists Verity Cumming and Oonah Anderson are behind the ‘Foundation For Change’ one-day-only beauty sale.  Taking place in Shoreditch, the sale attracted over 400 people, and Mii donated product to sell with every penny raised donated to the charity.

Verity Cumming said: ‘We wanted to convey our heartfelt thanks to everyone at Mii for your incredibly generous donation to the Foundation For Change beauty sale. We are absolutely delighted to let you know that this year we smashed all of our previous records and raised £21,000 for Help Refugees!’

Verity continued: ‘This money is already going towards food for families, supporting women’s safe spaces and supplying tents, books, life-saving warm clothing for children and adults and much much more. Thank you so much for helping us to make this possible.’

Mii Cosmetics has also supported ‘Make A Difference’, Centrepoint’s very worthy charity for homeless young people. Each year they are sent a Christmas gift of beauty products to open on Christmas day, all donated by beauty brands and companies. This year Mii Cosmetics will be among the beauty treats that will be received.

Jennifer Davies, brand manager for Mii Cosmetics comments: ‘We are thrilled to support such worthy causes, and spread some beauty joy.’

With a line-up of over 100 models, our wonderful Jessica Nails Hands on Team, led by top session techs – with a joint social media following of over 17K – worked at four designer London Fashion Week shows over three days. The Autumn Winter 2019 catwalk celebrated the fierce female, and Jessica Nails was backstage to shout about it.

Eudon Choi

Eudon Choi’s signature earthy caramel and toffee tones were punctuated with azure blue, green and tangerine in varying fabrics from tweed to velvet. The designer chose Jessica Nails Phenom in Cashmere Crème for the nails, which manicurist Pebbles Aikens and the Hands on Team smoothly and precisely applied, finishing with Finale Shine to add glossy luxe to the nails.

Malene Oddershede Bach

At Malene Oddershede Bach, manicurist Joanna Newbold created a sumptuously warm autumnal nail with Jessica Custom Colour in Toasted Pecans with a half-moon in Phenom in Gold Vermeil, for the models to sashay down the stunning leaf-strewn runway.

Fashion East – Yuhang Wang

At Fashion East’s Yuhan Wang, the cherub-like models nails dripped in pearls. Manicurist Lauren Michelle Pires and the Hands on Team painted the nails in Phenom Dare To Dream with Finale Shine top coat, before delicately placing on tiny pearls (tip: Brow by Mii’s Definitive Slanted Tweezers were used) that graduated in size from the fingertips down the fingers and onto the skin, like pearly rain drops. Breathtakingly simple nail art to complement the ‘softness is power’ theme by the designer.  Picked by Elle magazine as one of ‘the best nail looks from fashion week AW19’.

David Koma

David Koma’s strong female warrior designs took a leaf out of a Shakespeare play – dramatic costumes with fanciful butterflies and snakes woven out of silver thread. With a palette of scarlet, black, white and navy as the backdrop, manicurist Ami Streets was instructed by the designer to create a ‘mannequin effect’ on the nails – so the Hands on Team played with a family of sheer neutrals – Phenom in Pink A Boo and Angel topped with No Shine Matte Finish – for a natural nail to flatter every skin tone.

Mii Cosmetics is delighted to announce a new international distributor for Mii – Mauvilac Cosmetics in Mauritius, taking our international presence to 24 countries.

Alicia Maurel, Executive Director at Mauvilac and Gerrard International first met at Cosmoprof in Bologna. Alicia says: ‘We loved Mii – the quality, approach and positioning. It has been lovely to work so closely on our launch with Danielle Gerrard (head of Mii International Markets) – who has been an amazing support. The communication has been great.’

To celebrate the launch of Mii Cosmetics Mauritius, an event took place at Sunset Café at the Caudan Waterfront with a guest list of hotels, spas, pharmacies, journalists, makeup artists and influencers. Professional makeup artists were on hand on the night to give guests makeovers and the opportunity to try the products. The guests received goody bags and the Mii Cosmetics Mauritius team have meetings in the pipeline to discuss further business opportunities. Alicia said: ‘The event was a success. Our clients loved to discover Mii – the extensive range, new launches and quality of the products.’

Looking to the future, Alicia is excited to increase brand awareness and watch customers fall in love with Mii.

Mii is already making a splash in Mauritius at One and Only’s iconic Le St Géran and at the LUX* Collective Resorts.

Danielle Gerrard, who leads Mii’s International Team, enthuses: ‘We are excited to work with such a passionate and dedicated team in Mauritius to launch Mii and are thrilled with the high profile interest so far.’

Following the successful debut of BeautyLab’s Dermaplaning training workshops earlier this month at Gerrard International, demand is at an all-time high for this popular advanced skin treatment. Later this year and early next, Nicola Russell aka The Skin Geek will be back to lead further Dermaplaning training sessions.

As a celebrity facialist and international trainer, Scottish-born Nicola Russell is responsible for the Dermaplaning boom in the UK and throughout Europe, having trained over 750 students.

A highly in-demand rejuvenating treatment with no downtime, Dermaplaning involves a single surgical blade that gently smooths the epidermal (surface) layer of skin by removing dead skin cells and fine downy ‘vellus’ hair. It is also highly effective in minimizing the appearance of fine lines, wrinkles and acne scars, while leaving skin smooth, supple and vibrant. It’s great for prepping the skin prior to peels, enzyme treatments and to increase penetration of active ingredients in the BeautyLab professional and home care products (according to Nicola the absorption rate is increased by 60%). It creates the perfect canvas for makeup application and is the go-to treatment for high profile occasions.

Hair does not grow back stubbly, because Dermaplaning targets vellus hair, the ‘peach fuzz’ found on our cheeks or around the hairline, distinctly different to the dark, thick terminal hair, which grows on our heads, underarms and pubic area.

The Dermaplaning workshops run for Gerrard International customers incorporating the professional, results-driven, high performance active ingredients of BeautyLab’s Glycolic and Black Diamond ranges, to cleverly trigger the cell regeneration process and enhance the glowing, baby-soft skin-results of the treatment.

If you have a BeautyLab account and are interested in attending the 2020 training dates, please email academy@gerrardinternational.com

BeautyLab London unveiled a series of new model and product imagery to help further increase brand awareness.

“BeautyLab London has been a spa insider secret for a while, steadily growing year on year without any real fanfare behind it, other than the fact the products and professional treatments deliver incredible results,” comments Francesca Starling, Brand Manager for BeautyLab London.

“This year, we want to help more spas and salons discover what BeautyLab has to offer and shout about it to their clients,” Francesca adds. “Our new model and product imagery will reflect this – the aim is to increase brand awareness and for all brand touch points and communications to consistently reflect the amazing, results-driven quality of the products.”

Follow BeautyLab London on Instagram here.