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beautystorebusiness.com | March 2014 67 That puts a damper on mobile advertis- ing, which affects social media because Facebook and Twitter traffic is mostly via mobile. Once we grasp that data, we'll see a huge increase in companies that are tracking that data. There will be a big opportunity and increase in mobile conversion rates. How has your business grown over the years? Our top-line growth rates are about 40% year over year, which is strong growth. We started in winter 2007, and in 2009 during the recession we had a rough year. It forced me to think about how we were going to sell instead of just rid- ing the wave, which I think was a good thing. I've always had a strong focus on profitability, which is different than most dot-com sites. I'm always looking at the bottom line. We've been profitable since the second year we started, and we're a debt-free company; we have investors, but they've been paid out. Being debt-free allows us to be flexible, experiment, and develop new and exciting opportunities. International sales have always been a part of our business, and in 2014 we're focusing on it even more. We're really growing that sector. How do you use videos on your StyleBell.com? And why are they important? It's very important to include videos because they offer relevant information and real-time product reviews. We don't publish our videos by ourselves, but we work with YouTube partners who have published videos for us. But this year we're working on exclusive video partner- ships to expand our video offerings, so we'll see a dramatic increase in that area. What's going on with your sister site MyStyleBell.com these days? We started MyStyleBell.com at the same time as StyleBell.com. MyStyle Bell.com is independent, content-only, offering product reviews of anything on the market. We have a lot of celebrity how-tos and information about hair products. It's integrated in that we refer customers there, but otherwise it's an independent site. It's just a content source for our main company. What trade shows will you be attending in 2014? I always go to Cosmoprof North America every year. We do the Eastern Buying Conference. From the retail side, I just went to a big retail show in New York. On the ecommerce side, we're looking at the Women's Wear Daily Digital Beauty Forum, eTail West in San Antonio and the Shop.org online merchandising workshop in the Los Angeles area. We do the Internet Retailer Conference and Exhibition every year in Chicago. I may also go to a New York stylist show to see trends and what stylists are looking at. What are your future goals? We're always looking to grow the brand. We're looking to create more relevant manufacturer partnerships and expand those partnerships to make them more fruitful. We're dedicated to our profes- sional program, and I think that's some- thing we're always going to grow. We're looking into innovating and being on the forefront of mobile advertising. We'll always continue to innovate and provide customers with that personalized and customized user experience, and provid- ing them content in any way possible. We're also looking for technical partners as well as investment partners; both of those are important to growing and expanding. And growing internationally is on our major list for this year. Anyone who wants to discuss opportunities can reach me by emailing sapna@stylebell. com or calling 888.322.9959. ■ Tracy Morin is a freelance writer and editor based in Oxford, MS. Quality you can rely on! Perfect for practicing hair coloring, perming and other chemical treatments. 100 % Human Hair Manikins Since 1948 800 645 5118 Call us today for a current catalog Visit us online at www.burmax.com T h e O n l i n e E m p r e s s . i n d d 6 7 The Online Empress.indd 67 2 / 3 / 1 4 3 : 3 0 P M 2/3/14 3:30 PM