7 Things You Didn't Know About Sally Hansen
By Deanna Pai. Photos: Hannah Choi/Allure.
There's not a person on this planet who hasn't heard of Sally Hansen. Have you ever walked into a drugstore and not found a vast collection of nail and body products on the shelves? Exactly. And, chances are, you even own a few colors (or 20). Sally Hansen is one of those brands that's been around for ages (okay, fine, since 1957), which means it's had years of research and customer feedback to perfect the products. That's why it's no surprise that many of their formulas, like Miracle Gel and 18K Gold Cuticle Eraser, are Allure Best of Beauty Award winners. Here, what you might not have realized about the OG nail brand.
1. Sally Hansen was a real person.
Sally Hansen was a businesswoman in New York City, and she worked alongside her chemist husband to develop nail formulas in the late 1950s (and beyond). "She was really a pioneer and an entrepreneur ahead of her time," says Jeremy Lowenstein, vice president of global marketing at Sally Hansen. "The first product she created was Hard as Nails, the nail stengthener, which remains one of our top-selling products." Keep an eye out for more about Sally Hansen-the-woman, since the brand will be re-introducing her to customers later in the year.
2. The hidden gem in the line isn't actually a nail product.
Sally Hansen Airbrush Legs Leg Makeup is one of those miracle products that loyal diehards have managed to keep a secret. "We sell almost two cans every minute," says Chandra Coleman, vice president of color cosmetics and mass fragrances US at COTY (Sally Hansen's parent company). "It’s basically a makeover for your legs." It hides veins and imperfections — and, bonus, is both water- and transfer-resistant. According to the brand, once someone buys a can of it, they begin buying five cans a year.
3. The brand takes your feedback and requests seriously.
Do you ever feel like you're yelling into a vacuum when you reach out to huge beauty brands about their products? (Same.) That's not the case for Sally Hansen, which mans its social media pages and seriously considers customers' requests. "We are a very consumer-minded, consumer-centric brand," says Lowenstein. And that input has led directly to new formulas. "Women said, 'We love the look and the durability of UV-cured gel, but it’s not realistic because of the time at the salon and the cost of the salon and the steps it takes'," explains Lowenstein. "We took those nuggets from women and said, okay, how do we make that happen?" That's how Miracle Gel was born. Listening pays off: Since its inception in 2014, over 32 million bottles of Sally Hansen have been sold. That's roughly 10 percent of the United States population.
4. The brand's intense about their shades.
If you're looking for a specific shade of purple, Sally Hansen probably has it. "We launch anywhere from 100 to 200 new shades a year," says Lowenstein, who calls the color development process "an art and a science". That's where Madeline Poole comes in. The manicurist and Sally Hansen Global Color Ambassador works on editorial shoots and behind the scenes at Fashion Week, so she directly helps set the upcoming nail trends. "When we do collections, she works hand-in-hand with my product development and marketing team, doing mood boards, and then we have research and development teams color-match them," says Lowenstein. Her most recent project was tweaking the 38 shades of the brand's latest formula, Color Therapy.
5. A good brush is the secret to a good DIY manicure.
There are two types of people in this world: Those who have standing manicure appointments at the salon, and those who'd rather turn on Netflix and do it themselves. Sally Hansen is a godsend for the latter, and the brand knows it, purposely finding ways to make DIY manicures easier. "What people find unique about the Complete Salon Manicure range is the brush itself, which has 800 bristles and kind of hugs the nail," says Coleman. "That makes it easier for the consumer to apply." Their team is constantly trying to figure out how to improve both application and color. The reward of this work is quantifiable: Over 5000 bottles of Complete Salon Manicure in Raisin the Bar (a muted, dusty red) are sold each week.
6. One of the biggest risks for the brands? Nail appliqués.
What's nail color if not a 24/7 accessory? That was the thinking behind one of Sally Hansen's riskiest moves: a line of fashion-forward nail polish strips called Salon Effects. "We called it the moon launch," says Lowenstein. "Again, it goes back to consumers, and consumers said they were matching their nails to what they were wearing. What could we do to simplify nail art as well as fashion?" Sally Hansen wanted the adhesive polish (seriously, it's actual nail polish printed on appliqués) to be easy to both apply and remove — as simple as switching out a purse. In 2011, the brand launched 24 appliqués. The line was a hit. (Proof: Not only was it an Allure Best of Beauty Breakthrough in its first year, but it also won another Best of Beauty Award for nail art in 2013.)
7. The number-one color isn't what you'd think.
Considering the popularity of Sally Hansen's Miracle Gel and Complete Salon Manicure lines, you might think the most popular shade would be from either — and maybe a mass-appealing nude to boot. Not so much. "Miracle Gel is our top-seller, but, interestingly, the top-selling Sally Hansen color is our Insta-Dri Nail Color in Espresso," says Coleman. The deep, dusky pink shade has held the top spot for the past five years and doesn't seem to be going away anytime soon.
This story originally appeared on Allure.
More from Allure:
10 Celebrity Hairstyles That Make You Look 10 Years Younger
Find the Best Haircut for Your Face Shape
The 9 Prettiest Date-Night Makeup Looks
7 Weird Tricks Stars Use for Looking Great in Photos
