PURPLE BLAB

You may think Crisis Management PR is only relevant to publicists who represent celebrities like Lindsay Lohan, politicians like Elliot Spitzer and models like Kate Moss (our favorite who always comes out on top). Well, think again! Beauty publicists need to be schooled in Crisis Management PR too, right alongside Paris Hilton’s peeps.

Not sure who was hanging out on YouTube last Saturday night at 10pm, but I can tell you who was…me!

Purple Lab ran into a bit of a PR crisis two week ago after posting what we thought to be a successful Dayton, Ohio news segment featuring Huge Lips Skinny Hips.

 Are you watching that show Shark Tank?

Watching it is like a mirror image of my life – presenting a company to big wigs who can help make or break it. This is my own little version of it – without Barbara Corcoran!

Mwah!

Karen

Purple Lab Creatrix

Wanna know how products get in the hands of celebrities (if you’re not personal friends with them)? No writing – let’s get straight to it!

Watch and learn!

See you soon, J.Lo! I’m comin’ for you!

P.S. One thing to note – if a celebrity has a deal with a competing brand in the category you are in, you can NEVER use their names… not unless you want a lawyer on you!

I nurtured this baby for way longer than nine months. I felt it kicking to get out, had morning/afternoon/evening sickness the whole way through, but one early morning, the last week of April, I finally gave birth.

Purple Lab’s Huge Lips Skinny Hips shipped to stores!

It was the greatest feeling I could ever imagine – seeing our babies come to life.

Todd and I were proud parents. And here is the tale… consider this blog the birth certificate.

After the hell of having 30,000 damaged components – and going through weeks upon weeks of debate with the manufacturer to replace them… missing shipping dates… losing the UK opportunity to star in 62 windows (and receiving a 13,000 pound bill for the screw up)… a whole lot of crying… an enormous dose of fear… thoughts of giving up… we had… finally… a moment of success!

In case you missed it, this picture shows you the kind of damage we had when we attempted to fill the components we didn’t know were cracked until we – well – tried to fill them!

At a later date, I must come back to Space.NK – it’s a loooong story, sort of like dating the guy you always, always had a crush on only to find out he’s a terrible kisser!

But now we’re back on the press kit. I was finally able to nip, tuck, finish.

PR 101: Editors, writers, journalists, media types, bloggers… they get hundreds of press kits and product samples every week. When you’re in their position, everyone wants you to cover them so they drench you in product.

I was saying earlier that my other goal – after Scoop – was to be in Space.NK. In the UK – the prestige chain originated in London – it is “the” place to go for beauty. Sophisticated, Calvin Klein-esque, gleaming, modern, the store is a jewel box of faceted brands – and only about 60 well-edited ones.

The store was making a play for the US and opened two NYC stores and two outside of the city. Then there was their store-within-a-store deal with Bloomie’s. A friend of mine knew the founder, a very inspiring woman whose initials are (go figure) NK, and introduced us in an email.

Last I left you, I found the lab. That was the first hurdle (believe, there were plenty more to come…).Here’s how the process works:

1. You tell a chemist/lab about your “product profile,” what you want your claims to be, how you want to market the product, what it should feel like, what you don’t want it to be like (i.e. no parabens!), etc. The more details the better.

2. They send back a “paper formula,” which is a list of ingredients and actives that they feel would fit the bill. We discuss ingredients, blah blah blah.

It was a typical fashion store opening. A stunning blond teetering on the latest wacky Marc Jacobs wacky heels to my left, a sighting of the new Balenciaga bag at 12:00, and behind me – my favorite part of any event – the space from which the waiters emerge with hors d’oeuvres. And this particular soiree was stocked with the best beggar’s purses and salmon croquettes.