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54 June 2014 | beautystorebusiness.com Beauty Store Business: Please tell us about your background and how you entered the beauty industry. PIROK: I started my career in edu- cation with DeVry Educational Group, one of the largest for-profit educational organizations in the country. I quickly decided that while I truly enjoyed work- ing in education, I had a lifelong love for the beauty industry and had to pursue a different path. I left DeVry and accepted a position at Pivot Point International in 2002 to lead sales and marketing for its academies. I was extremely fortunate to work for the late Leo Passage for nearly a decade, where I learned from one of the great- est minds ever to exist in our industry. My career flourished at Pivot Point, and I became the vice president in 2005. During my tenure at Pivot Point, we went through a full rebrand, developed innovative edu- cation and changed beauty education as we once knew it. I was thrilled to be part of such a magnificent team, but after 10 years, I still had a desire to work solely on the product side of beauty. How did you arrive at Fromm? I was fortunate to be introduced to Kevin and Julie Johnson in 2011. In 2012, when I learned that they were looking for a new vice president of marketing to take the company through a full rebrand, I knew I had to be a part of it. In my career, I never expected to have the opportunity to help reinvent a 100-plus-year-old company. It was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and I am forever grateful and honored that Kevin entrusted me with it! Please tell us about the history of Fromm and how it has grown over the years. Our founder, James Simon, started the Illinois Razor Strop Co. in 1907 with a simple mission: to make the best prod- ucts with exceptional quality. Being a Chicago-based company, the success of those first razor strops came from the thriving, local cattle trade. [The strops are made of leather; cattle was the source of materials.] Once we expanded from barber supplies and added salon tools, the Illinois Razor Strop Co. was able to use Chicago's rise as an industrial hub to connect nationally. As the company grew and added product categories, it began selling Fromm Shears—known for high-quality German-made shears. Fromm quickly rose by offering best- selling products, and in 1984 the decision was made to rename the company Fromm. In 1987, Kevin Johnson joined Fromm and invented the "Try-It" card for a "self-selling" shear. The company entered into a major growth era, launching several new brands. In 1992, Fromm launched the André Salon Apparel Line and, in 2000, the Mebco brand of combs. One of Fromm's largest acquisitions happened in 2003 with the purchase of Diane Products, which expanded the Fromm product range to include thou- sands of salon essentials. What have been the keys to Fromm's continued longevity? After 100-plus years, we continue to develop innovative and dependable tools while turning our attention to what styl- ists need. Just as the razor strops were created with the barber in mind, styl- ists shape the products that we create today. We love stylists and respect how they generate beauty in all of our lives. Fromm remains dedicated to helping them serve their clients through detail- oriented market research and student- focused business tactics. We stand by our products, guarantee their performances and have an in-house service department that stands ready to assist stylists with keeping their tools in peak condition. It is this love for the stylists and passion for the industry's future development that makes Fromm a professional-beauty staple. Fromm just underwent a major rebranding. What was the inspiration behind it? I had already spent more than a decade in the beauty business when I started at Fromm, but I was shocked at the num- ber of brands Fromm owned and the depth and breadth of the categories and products available. James Simon started the Illinois Razor Strop Co. Illinois Razor Strop Co. changes its name to Invention of the "Try-It" card for a "self-selling" shear Fromm introduces the Mebco brand of combs Fromm launches the André Salon Apparel Line HISTORY OF FROMM INTERNATIONAL 1907 1984 The company begins selling Fromm Shears and marketing German-made shears 1968 1987 1992 2000 2001 2003 2009 2014 107 Years INDUSTRIES Fromm's Flex 4000 Shear wins International Design Excellence Award for Product Innovation Fromm wins the HOW magazine Merit Award for André Salon Apparel Line packaging and starts to work with one of the largest cosmetology school chains Fromm acquires the Diane Products Co. Fromm launches a revolutionary rebranding: Fromm, 1907 by Fromm and Diane by Fromm Images courtesy of Fromm International A R e v o l u t i o n a r y R e b r a n d . i n d d 5 4 A Revolutionary Rebrand.indd 54 5 / 2 / 1 4 1 1 : 0 9 A M 5/2/14 11:09 AM