Trailer for the film Beautiful LieS

Press Release for The Film “Beautiful Lie’s”
Beautiful Lie’s is being produced by Jotovi Designs, Inc., and will be released in December 2013. Beautiful Lie’s will encompass entrepreneurs, manufacture deception, ingredients, product labeling, deceptive labeling ,formulations, health and welfare, as well as uncovering what professionals are using in the salon and what is in salon/consumer products. In Beautiful Lie’s, we will hear from OSHA and FDA on the topics of health and welfare in beauty/cosmetic products.
“Beautiful Lies” will be completed by December 2013.
This film was solely funded by Jotovi Designs Inc., and is not seeking any form of sponsorship.
And as of February 11, 2012 “Beautiful Lie’s Copy Written in this Website (including, without limitation, Text, Images, Software, Logos, Icons, Sounds Recordings. Films and HTML code) is owned or licensed by Jotovi Designs Inc. All editorial content and graphics on this site are protected by U.S. copyright and owned by Jotovi Designs Inc.

Manufacturers finally getting there due in court!

 

Three of the cosmetics industry’s biggest companies, Mary Kay, Avon, and Estee Lauder (and all the brands under them!) have been named in a class action lawsuit filed in California on behalf of American consumers. The lawsuit sites that these companies fraudulently claimed not to be doing animal testing when in fact they were, misleading the American public. Defendants later purported to disclose, at least on their websites, that they in fact were animal testing, but the disclosures were wholly inadequate and deceptive, the lawsuit states. As a result of their claims of no animal testing, Avon, Estee Lauder and Mary Kay gained and held onto a spot on the much coveted, “Do Not Test” list compiled by PETA. This list indicates which companies do not test products on live animals. Until recently, Estee Lauder, Avon and Mary Kay were among the largest mainstream corporations to be included on PETA’s cruelty-free lists. Specifically, the lawsuit states “As a result of being included on the list, as well as many similar lists, defendants enjoyed the support of PETA and millions of consumers who buy cosmetics only from companies that do not conduct animal testing.  And hence, the commercial success of defendants’ products during the class period was positively influenced by their direct representations regarding animal testing. Simply put, defendants reaped hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue from US consumers who otherwise would not have purchased defendants’ products. Filed in October, and entitled Marina Beltran et al. v. Avon Products Inc., Case No. 12-cv-02502, this amended class action lawsuit is the third filed against Avon, and has two new named plaintiffs that are alleging claims of fraud and violations of California’s Unfair Competition Law and Consumer Legal Remedies Act. The Plaintiffs allege that Avon is required to disclose its animal testing practices.

The “minerals” in Bare Minerals are a patented blend of 72 minerals (containing Mercury, Arsenic, and many more). Animal research is actually cited in the patent (held by Roger Blotsky and Leslie Blodgett). Fun fact: it’s also sold as a supplement for animals. Biokool is the company that produces it. Google away!

This lawsuit comes after the news in February that PETA was removing these companies from their cruelty free list. The reason that these companies were removed is they are sold in China. China requires cosmetics to be tested on animals, so there isn’t any way these companies could truly be cruelty free. The lawsuit seeks more than $100,000,000 in punitive and compensatory damages for a class of more than 1,000,000 consumers.

I hope this makes them wake up and pay attention!

I am actually really happy to hear about this. Whether or not you are a cruelty free beauty user exclusively, I like the idea of these corporations being held responsible. I hate that companies are able to get away with being vague about their practices, and maybe this lawsuit will help encourage other companies (okay, scare them) to be more transparent and forthcoming with information to consumers. Maybe it will also make them think twice about this whole thing, and flex their power and influence to get China’s animal testing policies changed. Cosmetics are a multi billion dollar industry. Surely there’s something someone can do?

US District Judge Cormac J. Carney ruled that the plaintiffs sufficiently pled their causes of action that Avon fraudulently concealed that it tests on animals.

I hope they win. How dare these companies lie to their consumers, THE ONES WHO PUT THEM IN BUSINESS. I wished I had known about this lawsuit & been able to be apart of it. I TOO had spent money on these companies with the impression that they were cruelty-free.

The technology is already out there to test cosmetic products without the use of animals. Usually these matters all come down to one thing: money. And that is why I hope the lawsuit not only goes forward, but that they win. You can’t teach a large company anything unless you hit them where they will feel it: their bottom line. Whether or not you are worried about animal testing, we simply cannot allow companies to lie to consumers, even by omission.

Avon lied to customers by claiming its products are cruelty free. For years, Defendants marketed and advertised their companies and their cosmetic products as not being tested on animals, when in fact Avon, Mary Kay, Estee Lauder were testing their cosmetic products on animals so that they could sell products in China and other foreign countries, thereby reaping hundreds of millions in sales.

Blog courtesy of The Gloss Managerie.com

How to file a complaint with OSHA if you are a Salon Employee or Booth Renter!

You know that industry we are in “The so-called professional beauty industry”, were everything is swept under the rug, and deception is rampant. Well if you are a salon employee or a booth renter and you feel you are working around chemicals that make you feel sick. They may be hazardous.
A salon owner has the responsibility to have proper ventilation in the salon and the proper posting of all MSDS Sheets provided from the manufacturer of the products you use for your salon services. If you are unsure just go to your salon owner and ask for the proper information.
Nine times out of ten they don’t have it and wouldn’t give you the time of the day to produce it for you. Your health is important and to be working around a atmosphere where you may have close to 10-20 employees or booth renters then salon products may vary depending on the interests of all the employees.
Take it upon yourself to find out if the products you are using are hazardous to you or your client. It is your health and your life and you have only one to live. TAKE CHARGE, TAKE RESPONSIBILITY!
 
The Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 gives employees and their representatives the right to file a complaint and request an OSHA inspection of their workplace if they believe there is a serious hazard or their employer is not following OSHA standards. Further, the Act gives complainants the right to request that their names not be revealed to their employers.Complaints from employees and their representatives are taken seriously by OSHA. It is against the law for an employer to fire, demote, transfer, or discriminate in any way against a worker for filing a complaint or using other OSHA rights. OSHA will keep your information confidential. We can help.

If you think your job is unsafe and you want to ask for an inspection, contact us. It is confidential. If you have been fired, demoted, transferred or discriminated against in any way for using your rights under the law, you must file a complaint with OSHA within 30 days of the alleged discrimination.

Employees or their representatives have a right to request an inspection of a workplace if they believe there is a violation of a safety or health standard, or if there is any danger that threatens physical harm, or if an “imminent danger” exists. Employee representatives, for the purposes of filing a complaint, are defined as any of the following:

  1. An authorized representative of the employee bargaining unit, such as a certified or recognized labor organization.
  2. An attorney acting for an employee.
  3. Any other person acting in a bona fide representative capacity, including, but not limited to, members of the clergy, social workers, spouses and other family members, and government officials or nonprofit groups and organizations acting upon specific complaints and injuries from individuals who are employees.

In addition, anyone who knows about a workplace safety or health hazard may report unsafe conditions to OSHA, and OSHA will investigate the concerns reported. Employees or their representatives must provide enough information for OSHA to determine that a hazard probably exists. Workers do not have to know whether a specific OSHA standard has been violated in order to file a complaint.

The following are examples of the type of information that would be useful to OSHA when receiving a complaint. It is not necessary to have the answers to all these questions in order to file a complaint. The list is provided here as a guide to help you provide as much complete and accurate information as possible:

  • How many employees work at the site and how many are exposed to the hazard?
  • How and when are workers exposed?
  • What work is performed in the unsafe or unhealthful area?
  • What type of equipment is used? Is it in good condition?
  • What materials and/or chemicals are used?
  • Have employees been informed or trained regarding hazardous conditions?
  • What process and/or operation is involved?
  • What kinds of work are done nearby?
  • How often and for how long do employees work at the task that leads to their exposure?
  • How long (to your knowledge) has the condition existed?
  • Have any attempts been made to correct the problem?
  • On what shifts does the hazard exist?
  • Has anyone been injured or made ill as a result of this problem?
  • Have there been any “near-miss” incidents?

Whats the big deal everyone?

Everyone is in a fluster about many states in the U.S. looking over the option of deregulation of the cosmetology license. How many times have we heard this, and how many times have we gained no interest within the profession. Interest is being gained by the PBA (Professional Bullshit Organization) and also from beauty school mills within the beauty industry.

Why? It’s all about money, money, money. Not a standard of professionalism. Here is the criteria of a hairdresser in europe. And this criteria of a european hairdresser has been this way for many , many years.

Europe has some of the best cosmetology schools in the world.  Hairdressers are at the top of the scale!
A minimum of 4 years of education only focused on hair and coloring! That includes that you also becomes a color specialist.  Compared to so-called beauty schools in th U.S. a 7 month course that qualifies you as a hairdresser after a 1,000-hour program which have you out and working in the field in as little as 7 ½ months. With no focus on only hair. But a slice into different fields as shown!

Haircutting and styling, Hair coloring and lightning, nail care, skin care, hair and scalp disorders, chemistry as applied to cosmetology, anatomy and physiology, health and safety?, professional requirements, makeup. With all of this education are you really a hairdresser, haircolorist, makeup artist, facialist, nail tech? No you are not. It takes time to learn all of these trades. But in America if you have a license you are titled as such. A hairdresser in europe who has 5 years of education and time in service in their field can run rings around an America hairdresser.

But they don’t need a license. They don’t need some one coming in there salon inspecting, they are grown ups, they can do it on their own. But like in any other profession you have the good and the bad. Getting rid of  a cosmetology license will only make the cream of the crop rise even further, and will also make beauty schools more accountable for their teaching. If you want to make a good living and have no conscious of how you treat people open up a beauty school. And do the work of the Devil.  Our industry has been plagued by beauty schools, organizations, and pulpit teaching preachers about how bad the new cosmetology student is. All they want is want and want,  the industry proclaims! Well read some emails I have received about how human beings are treated in the beginning phases of my profession.

WHAT DOES A BEAUTY LICENSE PROVIDE?

 

” I just recently dropped out of the Colorado Springs Paul Mitchell School because they honestly don’t know what they’re doing. The learning leaders pick favorites and treat everybody like dirt. They gossip about students and other staff members. They don’t teach us anything once we leave core.
Financial aid is a big joke!! They steal your money.  Why is it that when money is dispersed to a student, that money goes into the financial aid leader’s personal bank account and then she cuts you a check, if you’re lucky, from there? I have so much missing money, its ridiculous.. I have about $800 in my account right now that’s mine, but they wont give it to me|. There’s always a different excuse as to why I can’t have it.
I could go on and on but there’s too much;. The school is dirty and unsanitary. No one cleans after themselves and the learning leaders constantly leave food lying around. This school is a huge joke and I can’t wait until it is investigated and shut down. What a wonderful industry you have”.

My advice to you is, “when it’s a consistent practice among multiple schools under the same organization at different locations it’s become a problem, their problems are just a tip of the iceberg of the endless list of atrocities”.

” I enrolled my daughter to this school thinking it would be professional and would treat my daughter with respect and kindness.Instead she earned 1100 hours at the school and was bit by a brown recluse spider and got a staph infection. They would not take a leave of absence or medically withdraw her from the program and instead withdrew her and said she owed them 11,000. Why do you think I sent her to school but to earn a career! Instead they are ripping us off and any other college would appeal the financial aid with draw medically and financial aid would take this”. Paul Mitchell School – The CAO Institute/Paul Mitchell partner/Alhambra, Ca

“I went to Paul Mitchell Chicago, for approximately 6 months.I had to take some time off for personal reasons and took a leave for about a month and also had missed a few days here and there. That being said, when I decided to quit the school for many reasons. I was told that I must pay the full $20,000 since my ‘scheduled’ hours exceeded 75% of completion. However, my loans went in increments of $5,000 every 25% of completion; leaving me with $5,000 to pay out-of-pocket. I attended this school back in September 2009 and when I left the school in April 2010 I received one letter from the school stating I owed them $5,118.50 on 11/1/2010. I have received another letter from their lawyer stating I am now sent to a creditor threatening to ruin my credit and I owe them $5,513.14. How they got this number I have no idea since they didn’t explain the totals. I am writing all this information because I cannot believe how a business could come after a young adult for more money when I’m already paying back my student loans of $15,000 for absolutely NOTHING. This was a horrible institute, horrible ‘teaching’ staff and horrible experience all together”. It is my biggest regret in life and now these greedy people are going to ruin the rest of my life because they want more money from me that I do not have”.

Has anybody been in this situation? It’s such a wonderful industry!!!!!!!

Love You All

Joseph Kellner

Scum of my Beauty Industry!

 

Professional hair care companies as well as professional hair dressers try to spread fear amongst hair consumers by warning them about hair care products. Fear is a powerful emotion which can motivate in a variety of ways. Why do professional hairdressers hate hair product diversion? Quite simply if hair consumers buy from CVS, Walgreens or Amazon.com, they’re not buying from their salon professionals. From the beginning of time, professional hair product companies would promise professional hairdressers that they would only sell to them so that there would be no competition for any other marketplaces.

As a result, when a professional product line such as Aveda winds up in Amazon.com, professional hairdressers rise up in arms to try and stop the sale of the professional products by anyone but professional hair stylists and salons. The basic bottom line is that professional hairdressers just want to protect their sales territories.
Ask yourself how professional hair products make it to CVS or other large grocery chains? Contrary to what the professional hair companies might want you to believe, they aren’t delivered in SUVs by individual professional hairdressers who are selling out the back door of their salon. No! If a CVS sized retail outlet is buying professional products, and they are, it’s because the professional hair care company is either secretly selling directly to CVS or is looking the other way when it happens. Bottom line. Professional hair product manufacturers talk out of both sides of their mouths. The professional hair care companies have brainwashed hair consumers. In fact, in the Summer of 2008 “Good Morning America” had a segment that was focused on what has become known as Professional Hair Product Diversion. The segment spread the same fear based untruths that are often spread to hair consumers.

According to the professional hair care industry professional hair care products are only to be delivered and sold through professional salons, distributors or hairdressers. Anyone else selling professional hair care products such as Amazon.com or CVS or Target is officially selling “diverted products.” Yet why would large corporations like that take the risk to divert?
To try and minimize diversion, the professional companies will put out the fear based rumors that hair consumers who buy their professional hair care products from Amazon.com, Target or CVS are buying potentially contaminated products. Seriously, do you think that a major company like CVS and Target would risk consumer lawsuits over contaminated products? Think about that one.

The other rumors are that diverted products may be counterfeit. While I’m sure this is much more of a possibility, it is very unlikely. Yes, there have been some isolated cases but they are very rare. While major hair product manufacturers like Aveda might say they fight product diversion, if they had a hint that their products were being counterfeited they would swarm down on the store in question and seize the products in question. Why? Neither the manufacter or the retailer, like CVS, wants any legal problems from counterfeited products.

Besides falling under monitoring by the FDA, hair care products are chock full of preservatives to extend the shelf life of the products. Most hair care products have a shelf life of 3-4 years. Those very preservatives protect against the growth of any type of fungus or bacteria. If not, the products would be bulging at the seems and have a frightful odor. Just like rancid food products.

The hair care industry also hints at fungal and bacterial infestation. Is this a real danger? Again, unlikely. It is simply a scare tactic to keep hair consumers away from professional products sold over the counter.
It should be noted that many of the professional hair products found on the shelves of CVS are the latest packaging and the latest ingredients. How do I know? I have stopped to look at them in great detail. I have even taken labels from professional products purchased through professional outlets and have compared them. And yes I have interviewed buyers of companys.
Cost factors is the other diversion bugaboo. Is it true that diverted products cost more in non-authorized companies than authorized professional beauty outlets? In some cases yes but in other cases maybe not.
1. Competition in the professional hair product arena continues to explode. If a professional hair product company can sell trailor truckloads of their products to a CVS or Target and look the other way, why not? I’m not saying ALL professional companies do it, but I’m saying it happens. Probably more than you think.

Guess what, professional hairdressers know the truth. Most of them do anyway. I talked to so many hairdressers over the years who all call Hair Product Diversion the industry’s “dirty little secret.”

2. Good Business Plans. Hair consumers are cutting back on any hair related luxuries. Why would professional hair care companies promote the myth of professional diversion when it could cost them a strong growing sales base and a competitive edge with their competitors? Have they thought about that? I wonder.

3. Professional Hair Product Diversion Does Not Exist In The Rest Of The World. Hair product diversion only exists as an issue in the United States. In Europe and the rest of the world there is no Professional Hair Product Diversion issues. Hair consumers buy products from their professional hairdressers and salons but because they trust their hairdresser with the proper product recommendation and because of timing. The same should be true in the United States. Why isn’t it?

4. Professional Hair Publications Give Lip Service To Diversion Topics. Why? If a professional hair magazine or online newsletter is receiving advertising from a major professional hair care production company like an Aveda, they are definitely going to drink and share the Kool-aide. Money talks and advertising talks even louder.

Ultimately all hair consumers must think for themselves and not just believe what the hair product companies want us to believe. Before drinking the Kool-Aide of product diversion think about the realities of the situation.

Is the product in question fully stocked on the shelves? Is the entire line of products options available from shampoo to styling products? Are the products restocked on a regular basis? Do the products like brand new? They probably are.

Best Regards
Joseph Kellner