Urban Call Briefs Denise B. Gardner Denise B. Gardner is president of Insights & Opportunities, a marketing and strategic planning firm. She is a co-founder of Namaste Laboratories, the largest minority-owned beauty manufacturer in the United States, and the former vice president of Soft Sheen Products*, where Advertising Age named her a Top 100 Marketer. Gardner sits on the board of The Art Institute of Chicago and the Board of Governors of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. She also co-chairs its Leadership Advisory Committee, is vice president of the Chicago Chapter of The Links, Inc. and is a member of the Board of Visitors of Northwestern University’s Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences. She is a former board member of the Chicago Humanities Festival and chair of its Diversity Committee. In 2011, Gardner was named one of The Chicago Defender Women of Excellence. She holds a BSJ in Advertising and an MBA from Northwestern University. She is also a member of the Executive Committee of the Chicago Community Trust and chairs its African American Legacy Advisory Board. *History of Soft Sheen Products: A Wholly Owned Subsidiary of L’Oreal, S.A. Founded: 1964 Employees: 400 Sales: $94.5 million Key Dates: •1964: Gary and Bettiann Gardner begin Soft Sheen in the basement of their home. •1979: Soft Sheen introduces Care Free Curl, causing revenues to increase dramatically. •1985: Gary Gardner becomes president and CEO of Soft Sheen. •1996: Gary Gardner resigns, and is replaced by his sister, Terri Gardner. Denise Gardener resigns as Vice President Marketing. •1998: Soft Sheen is acquired by L’Oreal S.A. Company History: Soft Sheen Products, Inc. is the top U.S. producer of ethnic hair care products. Its 200-plus products include shampoos, conditioners, relaxers, perms and gels. They are marketed under various brand names, including Alternatives, Baby Love, Care Free Curl, Frizz Free, as well as Sportin’ Waves, Wave Nouveau and Optimum Care. The company sells its products to salons, beauty supply houses, and such retailers as drug stores and department stores. In fact, retailers account for approximately 75 percent of its sales, and salons for 20 percent. Soft Sheen markets its products in several countries, including Africa, Brazil, and the Caribbean, as well as in the United States.
42
OTC Beauty Magazine
April 2015
Roslyn C. Chapman Roslyn C. Chapman, president and CEO of The Chapman Edge, is a well-respected marketing and sales professional with a proven track record in packaged goods sales, marketing and business development. The Chapman Edge, founded in 2000, is a sales management company that specializes in selling and marketing personal care items to national retail chain accounts and wholesalers (Prison System Only). The company has worked on multicultural projects and for many years been selected as the ethnic needs category go confidant by several retailers. The Chapman Edge has evolved into not only a solid sales representative organization for health and beauty, but through her contacts across all classes of trade has expanded sales focus to include other general merchandise categories both core and closeout. It has also become necessary to study and become familiar with retailer logistics and manufacturer operations to assure full distribution channel customer service to all clients. She has traveled internationally to study retailer practices. In addition to her entrepreneurial accomplishments, Chapman served as Director of National Sales with Alberto Culver where she was employed for 15 years. The tenure with Alberto Culver was a fertile training ground that generously prepared Chapman to become a successful business manager and marketer. Prior to working with Alberto Culver, Chapman worked with Johnson Products for 6 years. As a college intern she worked with JC Penney in their corporate buying office. Chapman is a featured columnist and consults with several trade and consumer publications: Sophisticates Black Hair, MMR and Chain Drug Review. Chapman, born in Richmond Virginia still enjoys visiting her family home in Shacklefords, Va. where she has strong family ties. She is an alumnus of Hampton University. In the city she currently calls home—Chicago, Ill.—she is a volunteer with the Museum of Science and Industry and active with Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, and a past member of the James Jordan Boys and Girl club board. In Chicago and nationwide she enjoys having a supportive friend, mentor and adopted family network. Pilar Sanders Pilar Sanders is an actor, mother, entrepreneur, fitness enthusiast and TV personality. One of her favorite childhood memories is delivering Christmas gifts for a charity in her native town of Elmira, N.Y. with her family. “There were 100’s of people and we would pack bags with toys and deliver them on Christmas Eve and on Christmas morning. The night air, the