Women of Beauty: Paula Malloy

Director of Marketing and New Product Development

jcp salon

jcpenney

Board member, ISBN

First job in beauty: Hairstylist in 1982.

Licensed: New England Hair Academy in 1982.

Three highlights of your career:

I’ve done so many wonderful things through the years—it’s not easy to narrow them down to three, but here goes! 

1.  Working for Sebastian Founder Geri Cusenza and with the Sebastian Artistic Team in the 1990s.  It was truly a “golden era” at the company and in the beauty industry.  It was a time of incredible artistry, innovation and entrepreneurial spirit and it was thrilling to be part of it all.  I helped develop groundbreaking products like Cellophanes, Potion 9 and Texturizer, and the amazing hairstyles that went with them.  We all believed at the time that we were a company of hairdressers working to help other hairdressers have more creative, successful lives and it was the best feeling in the world.

2.  It was an honor to serve as the first female president of the International SalonSpa Business Network (ISBN).  This organization is committed to helping salon chains grow, whether it’s a large chain like jcpenney or a smaller group with two or three locations.  Everyone comes together to network and to exchange ideas, knowledge and insights.  I had the opportunity to meet and become friends with many truly accomplished individuals within the chain salon segment—including SportClips’ Gordon Logan, Paul Brown of the Paul Brown Salons in Hawaii and Chuck Penzone from the Penzone group in Ohio.  I was also proud to lead the ISBN in partnering with the Professional Beauty Association to work on government relations in Washington, D.C.  Many people don’t realize that there are more hairdressers than there are union members in the AFL-CIO.  We have the potential to be such a powerful force and I think we need to continue to explore that power.

3.  I have had so many wonderful experiences and opportunities at jcpenney.  It’s a blessing to work for a company with so many other hairdressers, and with a team that is completely dedicated to helping hairdressers earn a better living.  Every day brings something different—I work with our vendors and with many of the other jcpenney departments, I direct photo shoots, I oversee the INOurSalon magazine that we co-publish with Modern Salon media for our 17,000 stylists.  I attend industry functions on behalf of jcpenney stylists.  The variety really appeals to me as a hairdresser!  I truly have one of the best jobs in the industry.