Shop local this holiday season.

With the holidays approaching people are running around buying last minute gifts for their loved ones. Within the salon people are purchasing gift cards, products, and services for their friends and family, however there are a group of people who will pick products out they like and later purchase them online.

I love purchasing stuff online, there have been times I’m up at night browsing through Amazon for that book, kitchen supply, or art piece that I cannot find locally. It’s entertaining browsing the sites and seeing what new items they have available, shopping online can be easy, quick, and convenient. But when shopping online for your beauty products you maybe purchasing diverted products and taking away from those in your community, let me explain.
When purchasing hair or skin care products online they maybe diverted, which means that they may not come from where you think. Diverted products are usually discontinued or expired items, they may also be damaged or formulated wrong. These products are usually taken from the trash of the warehouses they come from, diverted items may also be cut with other products, take a bottle of Aveda shampoo, they may put half of the Aveda shampoo in another empty Aveda bottle and mix it with a generic, cheaper shampoo. You maybe paying a high price for a product that is not what is advertised. With the beauty industry being a $445 Billion-dollar industry[1], it’s not surprising that people are trying to capitalize on it.

If you purchase beauty products online, ensure it is sold through the company itself, if sold from a third party it maybe diverted. Amazon has partnered with haircare companies, like UNITE, to ensure that only authentic products are sold on Amazon, you maybe paying a higher premium on these products, but it guarantees that the product is authentic.

When purchasing products online you are also not supporting your local salon and hairdresser. As a hairstylist I researched and tested many products, I have chosen to use and retail brands that produce amazing results and will help nourish the hair of my clients. I retail these products to ensure that my client is maintaining healthy, beautiful hair. When selling a product to my client I know that it is genuine and authentic, also I receive a commission from the sale and I use that money to invest back into my business, like provide online booking and take continued educational classes. By me providing these products I support my local salon supply distributor and they get commission off my purchases as well.

This is where we see two different types of trickle effect in economics. The first being buying local, purchasing products from your hairstylists supports them and the local company they purchase from. Second effect, when purchasing online you are supporting an international company, which may get you your products fast but supports people in a warehouse. Neither way is better or worse, I am only trying to bring awareness to the economics of local versus online shopping.

There is also an environmental aspect to buying local. When purchasing online companies, like Amazon, have to pack and ship the item which uses excess paper and plastics to ship. Then it’s put on a plane or truck that delivers it to your house. With all these extra steps it’s producing more waste and pollution to get you your items. When shopping locally you eliminate the excess packaging waste and create less emissions, when shopping locally you support your community and your environment.

This holiday season I ask you to support local, if you can purchase your gifts at your local salon, bookstore, boutique, whatever it maybe I encourage you to do so. Not only will you be supporting your community, but you maybe helping cut down on waste and protecting our environment.

Happy holidays and until next time,
DHJ


[1] Sorvino, C. (2017, May 24). Why The $445 Billion Beauty Industry Is A Gold Mine For Self-Made Women. Retrieved December 12, 2018, from https://www.forbes.com/sites/chloesorvino/2017/05/18/self-made-women-wealth-beauty-gold-mine/#15d0d4782a3a