When I started my career, I started where so many of us in this industry do: behind the chair.
That experience shaped everything for me. It taught me how deeply personal this industry is. Beauty is never just about the product. It is about trust, education, and the relationship between the professional and the client. Working in salons, and later across the salon distribution world, gave me a front-row seat to how brands are built, how professionals influence purchase decisions, and how important the relationship between distributor, stylist, and manufacturer really is.
Over time, my career expanded from the salon into working with distributors, then directly with brands and manufacturers like Reuzel, Balmain Hair, and Davines. Each step gave me a wider view of the professional beauty community and a deeper appreciation for the people and businesses that keep it moving.
Then 2020 changed everything.
The professional beauty world was forced to shift its perspective in a major way. Brands, manufacturers, distributors, and salon professionals suddenly had to think differently about ecommerce, online marketplaces, and the full customer journey. The old idea that professional beauty could remain mostly offline no longer matched reality.
Today, connected commerce is not separate from the professional beauty journey. It is part of it.
It starts with what your stylist chooses to use on your hair. It continues with how they educate you on the products they trust. Then it extends into how consumers discover those products online, research them, repurchase them, and stay connected to the brand across multiple channels long after they leave the salon.
Brands can no longer afford to think about salons, distributors, ecommerce, marketplaces, social commerce, and direct-to-consumer as disconnected pieces. The strongest brands are the ones building strategies that allow all of those channels to work together. When done right, connected commerce strengthens the relationship between the brand, the professional, and the end consumer. It creates more consistency, more visibility, and more long-term loyalty.
That shift is not a threat to our industry. It is an opportunity.
That is why I am so honored to be part of the 2026 PBA Future Leaders Task Force, where I will represent Commerce & Digital Strategy alongside an incredible group of leaders across the professional beauty space.
What excites me most is that this initiative reflects how much our industry is evolving. The Future Leaders platform is bringing together voices from brand leadership, creative entrepreneurship, salon technology, distribution, and connected commerce, which is exactly the kind of cross-sector thinking our industry needs.
I am especially energized by the chance to contribute to the conversation around future-proofing professional beauty.
To me, future-proofing means helping our industry better understand ecommerce, digital marketplaces, changing consumer behavior, and the role technology will continue to play in growth. It also means helping brands think more holistically about omnichannel strategy, so they can meet consumers where they are without losing the integrity of what makes professional beauty unique. And it means helping professionals and brands stay curious, adaptable, and informed as AI and emerging technology create new possibilities for education, discovery, and connection.
We do not need to abandon what makes professional beauty special. We need to protect it while also modernizing how we support it.
The heart of this industry will always be the professional. But the way the industry grows, educates, sells, and serves has changed. The brands that embrace that reality thoughtfully, and build smarter bridges between physical and digital commerce, will be the ones that win.
I am proud to be part of a platform designed to help move those conversations forward.
I am grateful for the opportunity, and even more excited for the work ahead.
The future of professional beauty will belong to the leaders willing to keep learning, keep evolving, and keep building stronger connections between tradition, innovation, and the full omnichannel consumer journey.