Emmanuel's Tour With René Furterer

As one of their leading retailers in the U.S., René Furterer invited Emmanuel to visit their facilities in France. It was a whirlwind tour in late September from Paris to Toulouse, visiting key places in the world of René Furterer.

Day 1: Arriving, Food, Booze and Rest

"Actually, the rest came first," Emmanuel says. "They picked us up at the airport, took us to the hotel, and I went straight to bed for a few hours. Once everyone was ready, we went to visit the René Furterer Institute."

This is where our own Charles worked before coming to San Francisco. In addition to standard hair and color services, they offer the full range of treatments created by René Furterer to benefit the hair and scalp. Recently renovated, the setting is that of a spa, with private cabins for guests to enjoy their services in.

The guests and members of the RF team standing of the René Furterer Institute in Paris.

An interesting side note: In France, René Furterer products are only available at the Institut or from a pharmacist. While you don't need a prescription, it isn't like going to a Walgreen's here. A French pharmacist is medically trained, and consults with you before recommending products.

These obligatory pictures of the Eiffel Tower are brought to you only because this is where everyone met to launch into a dinner cruise on the Seine. This was followed by drinks at Buddhabar (except for old man Emmanuel who opted for the extra hours of sleep. "Plus I've been to the Buddhabar a thousand times before. I don't need to go again.").




Day 2: Mondial Coiffure Beauté, René Furterer Gala and Dinner
Mondial Coiffure Beauté is an international beauty trade show. In the past it has been one of the biggest ones in the world."This year was actually a little weird," Emmanuel reports. "Major players like L'Oréal were not in attendance. So the event felt empty compared to times I've gone in the past. René Furterer did have a truly beautiful installation, though. It featured artwork and photography highlighting the development of an ethical Shea Butter supply branch in Toussiana [located in Burkina Faso, near Ghana and Cote D'Ivoire]."

Shea Butter is a key ingredient in RF's Karite line of products. RF has partnered with SOTOKACC (Société Toussiana Karité Comestibles & Cosmétiques), a local Shea producing organization founded by Nathalie Ouattara. This relationshiop with SOTOKACC is fair trade at its most intimate.  René Furterer guarantees high quality Shea butter, produced pure, solvent-free and additive-free; the women of the organizatoin gain a supportive and accountable long term relationship with a business which extends their reach.

René Furterer's Mondial exhibition included paintings and bios for some of the local Toussiana women, photography by Titouan Lamazou, and an exhibition of African-inspired hair styles by RF Art Director Philippe Tapprest. Shots of the exhibition are below. There are also a few samplings from the Alexandre de Paris exhibition.

Mondial Coiffure Beaute

After the Mondial Expo another rest period, and then the René Furterer Gala and Dinner held to introduce the new Artistic Director Marisol Suarez. Marisol showcased hairstyles that extended the themes of the Mondial exhibition.

We'll have to show more from Marisol's portfolio in another post, as she has done some pretty amazing work!

Day 3: Toulouse, René Furterer Facilities
The group left Paris, went to Toulouse. The day was spent touring René Furterer facilities. These included the Cauquillous, shown below. The Cauquillous is named for it's shell-like architecture. "The only complex we didn't get to see, " Emmanuel says, "was the Oncopole de Toulouse, a cancer research center operated by Pierre Fabre, RF's parent company. We got to see it from the air, and heard a lot about it, but there wasn't time to visit."

Cauquillous and Toulouse

Day 4: Botanical Conservatory of Pierre Fabre
Pierre Fabre devotes much of its property, and 20% of its proceeds, to research. The same knowledge directed towards areas such as cancer treatment is also put towards creating effective, botanically-sourced René Furterer products. Their botanical conservatory houses plants from all over the globe. They serve as a presentation of all the plants and flowers which are used in René Furterer products and  studied for their healing qualities.

After lunching at Mr. Pierre Fabre's beautifully appointed home, the group visited the Vitrine Pierre Fabre, a product display museum showing René Furterer history from inception to present.

Day 5: Return home
"A great trip!" Emmanuel says. "Not really a vacation, since I didn't sleep a lot, but we were well-fed and they took good care of us. The René Furterer team were gracious hosts. It was interesting to spend time with owners from other salons across the States. Very refreshing, actually."

Guest List

WEST COAST
Emmanuel Noel of Atelier Emmanuel, San Francisco, CA
Dawn Michelle Ellinwood of Ubunto San Diego, CA
Sophie Carrie Noel of The Cutting Edge Ontario, CA
Iida Lahidji of Salon 1757, Kensington, CA
Cara Hellings of Robert Leonard Salon & Spa, Seattle, WA
Rebecca Lynn Stordahl of Robert Leonard Salon & Spa, Seattle, WA

EAST COAST
Badrie Negaran Shahbodaghloo of Tanaz Bethesda, Md
Heath Ryan Trefethen of Studio One Westbrook, ME
John Jerry Vella of Izzazu Salon Wexford, PA
Young Hee of Young Hee Salon New York, NY
Salvatore Minardi of Salvatore Minardi Salon Madison, NJ
Tracey Pearson of Soda Salon Atlanta, GA
Rhonda Jean Bailey of Studio 135 Bargersville, IN