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The last Olympic games held in London left more than new global records, they also made multicolored or themed nails fashionable. For months these have invaded the social networks.
This phenomenon, which at first was called " patriotic nails" and made figures such as American swimmer Missy Franklin more famous, now has a Colombian brand of nail polish: Masglo. Its goal is to continue to innovate with new colors and create a 100% natural formula that will increase its sales in the international market for cosmetics.
This Colombian company stands out for brining the latest manicure trends to the Latino public. Its success is based on the quality of its polishes and the free training it offers all of its nail techs on the latest painting and decorating techniques, because they have been the brand' s ambassadors in Colombia and abroad.
In fact, Masglo knows the popularity of the " patriotic nails" started in England thanks to the quality of the 18 professionals who serviced the female athlete stars in the Olympic Village over the 17 days of competition.
For Miguel Pla Garcia, CEO of Cerescos Ltda., Masglo' s parent company, during the Olympics " nails became an integral part of fashion. Now, any friend who paints her nails different colors or in different ways sends me a picture and posts it on Facebook. Even my daughter does it. That did not happen before, and for us, it has been a chance to innovate and train our professionals and clients, not only in Colombia, but the United States, where the added value of our product is also the creativity the nail tech applies to nails."
He also added: " Colombian women are recognized all over the world as the best nail techs they are focused, detailed, and knowledgeable about nails and all the painting techniques. If a women in the U.S. uses Masglo, it is because she has a Colombian nail tech."
This strategy has improved its exports to the United States. From the start of the FTA, sales went from 25 thousand dollars in 2011, to 60 thousand in 2012, with a forecast of 120 thousand by the end of the year.
" The FTA lowered our raw material cost and we became more competitive price-wise. Moreover, there is undoubtedly a lot of competition between Colombian products that have caught the attention of consumers who know the quality of Colombian cosmetics," said Pla.
According to information from DANE and the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Tourism, a total of 44 American cities in 23 states bought Colombian products for the first time from May 2012 to February of 2013. One such city is Culver City, California, where its citizens can currently find Colombian beauty products.
A Long-term Goal
For Masglo, the American market is a real challenge, because " there you have to come big, and I do not think that anyone can conquer that cosmetics market unless they are the leader in their own country. That is why it is important for Colombian companies to be strong in order to compete. After all, we are talking about close to 100 million American women who could use Masglo. We want to enter that huge market," explained Pla.
For PROCOLOMBIA president Maria Claudia Lacouture, " our country is one of the main cosmetics and toiletries provider in Latin America. The industry has seen sustainable growth over the last eight years in production, sales and exports. Colombian make-up, skin treatments, creams, soaps and shampoos have a lot of prestige abroad for their quality and natural ingredients."
Pla stated that in their participation in the American and European market, " we have had PROCOLOMBIA' s support. Today, we have a successful operation in Spain thanks to the study they carried out for us, and we attend the fairs they hold in the United States. PROCOLOMBIA has really given us a hand and we can count on them."
For now, Masglo' s international projects are focused on maintaining the distribution of nail polishes and exclusive products for nail salons for many different potential clients in the United States. Also, it is centered on providing personalized consulting some consultants are women who travel to continue working in American beauty salons without having to abandon the brand they have known for so many years.
