Dual Purpose

Curly or straight, coarse or fine, long or short, hair can have opposing qualities, so why not a dual-themed party designed to showcase two dramatically different new product lines from a professional hair-care product manufacturer?

Last night about 65 beauty editors gathered at 620 Fifth's loft and garden for the Paul Mitchell Pro Tools and Tea Tree launch event. The doubleheader was designed to introduce the editors (and, it follows, their readers) to the company’s newly revamped Tea Tree line of shampoos and conditioners, as well as its new Pro Tools line of professional appliances. Intentionally or not, the two-pronged event also tied in nicely with the Pro Tools tagline, “It’s about time” by saving the beauty editors the step of having to attend two separate launch events.

“We know editors have so many events going on, so we thought we’d show [them] the new direction we’re taking the brand [all at once],” said Jenny Overdevest, director of public relations for John Paul Mitchell Systems. “We’re making our first foray into the professional tools arena, but we’ve also had a lot of changes in our Tea Tree brand. [It’s] about two sides of the business.”

At the entrance, guests were directed outside to the “Zensory lounge” on the venue’s lush green patio. There, event design and production company Event Energizers had constructed three wooden cabanas, called Zen, Zest, and Zing, to complement the Tea Tree collection: Lavender Mint, Lemon Sage, and Tea Tree. Each incorporated props according to the product ingredients (the Lemon Sage cabana was decorated with lemons and lemon-flavored hard candies) and stocked with a garden-party-appropriate drink, like fresh sage lemonade.

Overdevest wanted the garden part of the event to reflect the experiential aspect of the Tea Tree products; to that end, piped-in aromatherapy from Scentevents replicated the scent of each product line, and guests were treated to hand massages and pulse-point massages using the line’s soon-to-be-released body moisturizers, as well as scalp massages. “We’re trying to hit all the senses,” Event Energizers’ John Ierardi said.

After communing with nature, the guests returned inside to find a distinctly modern setup, featuring a white, red, and black color scheme, designed to promote the Pro Tools line of sleek, high-tech hairstyling appliances. A 10-foot-long bar with video screens displayed flatirons, diffusers, and hairdryers, and a 40- by 20-foot perpendicular illuminated runway with custom scrims and a truss structure served as the stage for a brief runway show in which four models demonstrated the tools’ versatility. (Their hairstyles were quickly altered behind sheer white scrims.)

Caterer Sonnier & Castle played up the duality of the event in its menu, serving hors d’oeuvres like salmon tartare with lime mint cream and cucumber red-onion relish on wooden trays in the garden, and mini cheeseburgers on lacquered trays indoors.

Correction: This story has been updated to correct the number of attendees at the event.