ShopBeautyNOW.com Store to Launch Winter 2012 to Serve Professional Beauty Community

NEW YORK, Dec. 15, 2011  /PRNewswire/ -- Questex Media Group LLC announced a strategic partnership with OurBond Inc. to create an online e-commerce store to serve the $30 billion professional beauty market. In the coming weeks, the Questex International Beauty Show brand will launch www.ShopBeautyNOW.com to enable beauty, spa and wellness professionals the enhanced capability of ordering products online from leading suppliers year-round in addition to sampling and buying at the live events.

ShopBeautyNOW.com will host virtual Storefronts and be the ultimate year-long connection and e-commerce opportunity for IBS exhibitors and the community they serve. "In the professional beauty community, although 77% already order products online and 73% will likely purchase products online in the next 12 months, there is no online venue exclusively focused on this market that combines tools to buy as well as deep content related to the practice of beauty, spa and wellness professions," said Tony D'Avino, EVP of the Questex Beauty, Spa & Wellness division.

"For many years, we've had a successful event model and have helped our exhibitors connect to the vibrant salon and spa markets they serve," remarked Kerry C Gumas, president and CEO, Questex Media Group. "The professional beauty market represents approximately $30 billion in commerce opportunity. Given that extensive commerce has always taken place on our exhibit floors, the logical expansion was to marry the remarkable trends of e-commerce with that of the IBS and related American Salon magazine brands utilizing the best technology available from a strong technology partner like Our Bond Inc. It's an opportunity to provide our exhibitors a model to reach their professional beauty customers anytime, anywhere."

ShopBeautyNOW is being built by technology experts, OurBond Inc. OurBond's leadership team brings a wealth of technology, media, marketing, management, and financial expertise leveraging the Internet. Their sites are built on agile platforms that adapt at the speed of the Internet.

"We are thrilled to partner with Questex to launch www.ShopBeautyNOW.com, the leading edge e-commerce site for the beauty industry. Through our state-of-the-art platform, professionals will be able to rely on a dedicated site for a community of market leaders to support their business and educational requirements," remarked Frank Sanchez, CEO of OurBond, Inc.

Who can apply for a Storefront on the site?

Professional beauty product and education suppliers, as well as service providers.

Who are the buyers?

A passionate community of salon professionals and owners.

What's for sale at ShopBeautyNOW?

Products and services relevant to the needs of professional stylists, colorists, makeup artists, nail technicians, salon owners/managers, estheticians and massage therapists.

About OurBond

OurBond, Inc. is a technology and business solutions company for integrated communities to business partners. OurBond's communities combine eCommerce with expert content and social applications that offer unique value for like-minded people in verticals where they have a passion. OurBond provides an all-in, online and off-line solution for physical communities looking to establish a virtual, around-the-clock presence.

About Questex Media Group's Beauty, Spa and Wellness division

The Questex Beauty, Spa and Wellness division drives demand for professional beauty companies as the largest multi-media organization in the world dedicated to these related industries. It includes a dynamic collection of trade shows, conferences and appointment-based events, eMedia and eBusiness solutions as well as industry-leading publications to help beauty, spa and wellness practitioners provide superior service to their customers and help their companies drive revenue and productivity.

Questex Beauty, Spa and Wellness group operates throughout the United States and EMEA through a variety of market-leading properties and services including the International Beauty Shows (New York and Las Vegas), the International Esthetics, Cosmetics & Spa Conferences (New York, Las Vegas and Florida), SPATEC, SpaExec and HaircolorUSA.

The event portfolio is for professionals only and reaches a wide cross-section of participants including salon and spa owners and managers, hair stylists, hair colorists, estheticians, makeup artists, nail technicians, dermatologists, massage therapists and beauty and spa product manufacturers and distributors. Top industry news delivery services in print, online and mobile worldwide via American Salon Magazine, American Spa Magazine, Green Book and their sister blogs, websites and tools round out the media side of the business.

About Questex Media Group LLC
Questex Media Group is a leading business-to-business media company. Questex produces industry-leading conferences, tradeshows and business events for specific markets as well as eMedia, publishing, eLearning and other eBusiness products that facilitate year-round lead generation, buying, selling and business networking in those markets. The company's wide range of products as well as audience, content, marketing and information services help millions of executives and professionals from the world's leading companies buy and sell more effectively and accelerate their growth year round. The company serves the High Technology sector including industries such as I.T., Telecommunications, Sensors, Life Sciences and Healthcare as well as the Hospitality, Travel & Leisure sector including industries such as Hotel, Travel, Restaurant, Nightclub & Bar, Spa, Beauty and Entertainment. The company is headquartered in Newton, MA. with offices worldwide.

SOURCE Questex Media Group LLC