Toupée and Tallow Talks in SoCal; the Robb Report Grooming Awards are Nigh

Well, it’s the first time my newsletter didn’t go out “on time”; I’ve been so in the habit of being many time zones ahead of the US, but from California the weekend gets ahead of me and bam, the deadline is passed. (It’s a self-imposed deadline, but still.)

This has been one of those whirlwind go-go-go-go-go weeks, between seeing family, friends, brands, PRs, celeb groomers, the toupée expert, and even attending the Natural Expo West Convention in Anaheim for an afternoon. Truthfully, this is how it always goes as an expat visiting “home” (and as an expat journalist in a core media city). I am exhausted, and I know André is too. But it’s the fulfilling kind of exhaustion—this trip has been so meaningful for Blue Print, and I’ll share the highlights below as the bulk of this week’s letter.

Today we’re spending the entire day at Dr. Bronner’s HQ in Vista, and tomorrow it’s onwards to São Paulo. We’re finally home April 1 after ~95 days, and it’s off to the races producing faster-paced and deeper-dive content.

Robb Report 2025 Grooming Awards: Call for Entries

Publicists / brands: It’s nearly time for the Robb Report Grooming Awards; I’ll be on the selection team this year, so if you haven’t heard from my editor yet, you may still hear from me when I am sat still late this week.

If you are looking for the submissions link, just reply to this email and I’ll get it to you this week also. Promise I will reply ASAP—we are flying far and wide so I may be delayed/lagged but you have until March 21 to submit (for launches between May 2024 to April 2025).

Here is a peek at last year’s awards. 

Speaking of Robb Report: I quite loved Caroline Reilly’s spotlight on legendary men’s groomer Mira Chai Hyde from last week. We need more spotlights on these celeb groomers!!

Last Chance: Win a Grooming Trove from KYIR Hair + TRNR Skin

It’s the second and final week to sign up for the latest giveaway, which encompasses skin and hair. Three winners will get this trio of skincare essentials from TRNR Skin, co-founded by friend of Blue Print and trusted source, board-certified dermatologist Dr. Ryan Turner. (Includes TRNR’s exfoliating foaming cleanser; niacinamide 5% restorative serum; and probiotic moisturizer; value $137.)

They will also win this KYIR hair serum duo; the spray restores dry, parched strands while the scalp serum promotes volume and fuller looking hair overall. The latter is thanks to two of my favorite ingredients for hair density: ashwagandha and saw palmetto. (Value $142.)

So together, you get a great foundational skin regimen and hair-boosting duo, valued at $279. You just have to answer a simple question (and be subscribed). You’ve got until Saturday, March 15 to enter. Must be 18+ in the US contiguous 48/DC. Full T&Cs here.

ENTER THE GIVEAWAY

The SoCal Grooming Brand Greatest Hits Tour

Here are some of my highlights with brands / industry pros this week in SoCal. Apologies to those I couldn’t meet with on this visit!

A Small-Brand Mind Meld:

One particularly inspiring evening brought us together with Matthew Sanchez, the nose and founder of Matteo Parfums as well as Daniel Kiyoi, co-founder of Nocturnal Skincare. Two guys with totally opposite products but both bulletproof PoVs on their brand, SKUs, and scale.

What a pleasure to sync our thoughts with theirs as business owners—especially as we feel so brand-new with Blue Print in its first public months (despite years of planning). It affirmed that we are exactly where we need to be, and will get to where we intend to go with it. Nocturnal had one of my favorite products of last year (and easily the most beautiful) with their Polar Night Renewal Serum, while Matthew teased some new scents that had us floored. (He’s quickly on the rise in the perfume world, and is one of a dozen new members of The Fragrance Foundation.)

Hair Highlights: 

There was a brainstorm with world-famous barber Staygold and the LA STMNT team on big upcoming collabs; a La Jolla beachside coffee chat with Brightside, whose texturizing hair paste was also one of my favorite launches of last year and the brand is on a big come-up with retailers. We stopped through Costa Mesa for a dusting-off with barber and Dear Charlie co-founder Alec Devin who also mixes his brand’s hair products + artfully layers their fragrances in house. Separate lunches with the Baxter of California team and Balmain grooming were like old friends reuniting. (Can’t wait for a Baxter product relaunch that’s coming soon, too…)

Notes From Fragrance Hangs

A past-due meetup with fragrance genius Steven Gontarski at Scent Bar proved that he is (somehow) even more captivating in person than on Lucky Scent’s socials and his own brand-new YouTube channel. In visiting both Scent Bar LA locales, I encountered dozens of new scents that tell me I should get to Milan or NYC for those trade shows soon—I’ll do my first in London in May, more on that at the conclusion of this letter. The meetup with Steven even yielded an introduction to a Lisbon-based perfumer, Miguel Matos; an April meeting between us is in the works when I get home.

A lunch with Leila Zagwolsky, co-founder of LUXSB (formerly Luxury Scent Box) in the OC felt like a major benchmark for our relationship and her brand; the business has experienced such remarkable growth since that first outreach many years back, and she helps customers court the top brands. (Leila is one of my best sources for encountering new scents, independent of PRs, so I owe her a lot.)

Speaking of brands that have come a long way since that first outreach…We had beachy brews with Liam Eriksson, co-founder of Guy Fox, and filmed a chat for their YouTube channel as well. We snuck a sniff of their next launch (another gem, per uzh), and finally took home a bottle of their latest scent, the piney-palo-santo-y Palmer. I have long looked forward to this meetup, knowing it would be a “great hang”—Liam didn’t disappoint.

Talking Toupées with the Queen Herself

I consider myself an expert in the men’s hair loss conversation, but there is one bald spot I have: Toupées, or hair systems / hair pieces… whatever you wanna call them. When I saw that The Toupée Queen (Emily Cheney) lived in San Diego, I knew I had to land a meeting with her. She’s an A+ social follow (IG / TikTok / YouTube), and we ran out of time waaaay before I ran out of questions for her. More to come, trust—and yes, I’m leaving you with just as many questions as I had for her.

A Quickie Cameo at Natural Expo West

We had to take advantage of our proximity to the Natural Expo West convention in Anaheim to meet up with some of my favorite men’s / unisex brands there, from a past-due bro-out and ball-cream restock with the Happy Nuts team, plus the warmest of welcomes from a duo of deo masterclasses: Hume Supernatural with their ever-expanding assortment of sticks, balms, and now oils (their Amber Woods Dry Body Oil is an instant favorite for us), as well as Humble Brand, whose new Rock Rose & Cedar Deodorant (launched with Jason Momoa!!) is so delicious.

Other meaningful meetings were with Badger, Oars + Alps, Davids Toothpaste, Every Man Jack, DUDE Wipes (gotta capitalize the ‘DUDE’), Dr. Squatch, Aztec Clay, and of course, the Dr. Bronner’s. (Again, currently touring their HQ! More on that next week.)

A personal highlight: I got to meet a Survivor fav of mine, Alec Merlino from S37 David vs Goliath (Mike White’s season; he was also on S1 of The White Lotus). Alec is one of Hume’s talent shareholders. I made sure to showcase my least flattering facial angle for the proof of meeting:

Also, Alec has his own tallow brand in the works, Surfing Cow; I won’t share more yet in case his plans are embargoed, but you can follow the production process at that link.

Look, by design, I’m not quick to jump on the tallow train (or any train as it emerges from the trend-ches); but I have heard enough folks say things along the lines of “tallow cured my eczema”, so as a supposed journalist, I feel some obligation (and certainly a curiosity) to give it a chance. So I was happy to grab some samples of his upcoming launch. Watch this space?

Save the Date: Barnes Fragrance Fair in London

One more thing, Blue Princes: If you’re London / UK based, come see me at the Barnes Fragrance Fair on May 17. I’ll be in conversation with the soothing-est voice in perfumery, Haydn Williams (he of Man in the Mirror podcast fame), as well as critic Dariush Alavi, Fenwick’s Head of Beauty Vesa Kalho, and fragrance digital creator TJ Talks Scents.

Fin.