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Behind the Safe Beauty Association's new campaign
Date Added: 2009-10-12
Founder and CEO of the Safe Beauty Association, Antonia Hawke talks to Salon Business about her inspiration behind a new campaign to promote best practice in the beauty industry. "I have always been involved in projects that have a big vision as I am very passionate about things I believe in," says Hawke. "Ensuring there was a professional entity to support, educate and credit beauty professionals was the next step."
Safe Beauty is a campaign aimed to educate the beauty industry of the benefits of good hygiene. The Association cuts across all sectors of the beauty industry and is one that must be taken seriously by beauticians and makeup artists.
The need for a hygienic salon is an important factor that all professionals must aim to achieve in their salons. "Without practicing good hygiene, the risk of infection through cross-contamination is real and can lead to a range of nasty infections from transference of bacteria and viruses across products, brushes, applicators and person to person." All salons will need to address their own performance and make the necessary changes in order to adapt and become an accredited member of the SBA.
Salons have a responsibility to their clients and employees to ensure both are protected by good working practice and the SBA initiative aims to work with salons to accommodate all the necessary training.
"Belonging to an association that is accredited will enable individuals to promote themselves as members of the Association and provide a unique selling opportunity. As the consumer becomes more and more aware of the issues surrounding hygiene at salons, they will be seeking suppliers who are recognised as practicing "safe beauty" and whose staff are trained and adhering to a code of conduct."
Hawke hopes to see a complete change in the way the beauty industry works from education upwards through to customer-facing practice with health and hygiene standards across all sectors constantly being reviewed and improved upon. "We will have a much more informed public who demand services that meet a code of practice. No more Russian roulette in that you have no idea what you might or might not catch at the beauty salon."
By Jennifer Ebert
