As the parent company to seven hair care brands, Henkel wanted to consolidate their North American offices into one cohesive, technology-rich location dubbed the Beauty Care Hair Professional Headquarters. The new facility in Culver City, California would also house a world-class Academy of Hair multi-branded learning center, described by the company as a place “where Henkel employees…can educate and demonstrate product usage. The facility will feature a full-service test salon and color bar, as well as a digital trend lab designed to set the stage for photo/video shoots or live broadcasts of demonstrations or trainings.” 

Henkel tapped into Belvedere Maletti’s salon expertise for the design of the test salon.

“Knowing the extensive reach of Henkel hair care brands, it was an honor to be selected for this project,” said Jill Espinosa, designer at Belvedere Maletti. “It was imperative to match Henkel’s vision for this world-class facility, providing a visually appealing space yet still highly functional to meet their demands.”

The two color storage systems that were specified for the test salon presented a unique design opportunity for Espinosa. 

“The color storage systems were manufactured precisely to offer plenty of storage space,” Espinosa said. “The features include overhead sliding modules with adjustable divider rods that allow customization for storing major brands of professional hair color boxes.”

The New White ColorCore®2 Laminate from Formica Group was eventually chosen. The white high gloss, clean look was the aesthetic goal and it complimented well with other finishes and surfaces throughout the space.

“This material has proven its durability to withstand a high use environment,” Espinosa said. “Formica Group offers many different beautiful color selections and unique finish options. In this case, the New White ColorCore®2 Laminate was an ideal choice for this project.”

Fact File

Manager/Designer: Jill Espinosa at Belvedere Maletti (west territory)
Photographer: Ron Bernstein