Star Power at Cosmétologie 2009

Uplifting the profession of cosmetology, the Philippine International Cosmetologists Association (PICA) together with Premier Events Plus Group, Inc. (PEPGroup) recently held the 1st Touch of Excellence Awards at The Arena in San Juan. This world-class competition will have its culminating awards night during the Cosmétologie 2009 at SMX Convention Center, Mall of Asia from February 26-28, 2009. Presenting the Finalists of the 1st Touch of Excellence Awards .....

MENS' CUT Category as judged by Christopher de Leon, Jomari Yllana

Celeste Tuviera, Chito Rono and Freddie Shapfer

LADIES' CUT Category as judged by Benedict Pabillore, Laurice Guillen,

Carlene Aguilar, Tessa Prieto-Valez and Freddie Schapfer

BRIDAL BLISS Category as judged by Ayen Laurel, Sari Yap,

Steven Doloso, Joanne Zapanta and Lorna Tolentino

Color Vibrance (Anime) Category as judged by Kenti Tam, Jolina

Magdangal, Alodia Gosiengfiao, Abbtgale Arenas and Joanne Zapata

RED CARPET LOOK Category as judged by Robbi Carmona,

Jose Javier Reyes, Tim Yap, Ceasar Gaupo and Melanie Marquez

BEHIND THE SCENES : The hard working team of PICA, passionate

about their association, passionate about their cause.

The competition was well-organized, well-participated, star-studded

and, above all, fair and well-executed. Kudos to the finalists!

Cosmétologie 2009 : Beauty. Wellness. Trends

Recently launched at The Embassy Club was the Cosmétologie 2009: Beauty Wellness and Trends. This trade show is going to be at the World Trade Center from February 26-28, 2009 and is destined to be the biggest and most important trade show on beauty and wellness. All interested exhibitors and participants are invited to call Premier Events (http://www.pepgroup.com/) for more information.

The invitation to the launch was greeted with much interest and it was

worth the trip as it had star power with the presence of Ms. Dawn

Zulueta as the emcee and Ms. KC Concepcion as the event's Muse.

The newly formed Philippine International Cosmetologists Association

or PICA was inducted with Fanny Serrano as its president. Sec. Syjuco

of TESDA also graced the occassion in support of the beauty industry.

PICA represents the largest number of beauty professionals and

salon owners from all over the country. PICA has partnered with

Premier Events in bringing Cosmétologie 2009 to the country.

A nice surprise during the launch was the Make Over To The Max!

Here, ordinary, everyday people were given make-overs. A BBQ

vendor, a scavenger, a maid, a cook were among 10 ordinary people

given the limelight as they walked before a packed crowd.

It is easy to make models beautiful, that is not the real challenge.

Taking the ordinary Juan and everyday Maria and transforming them

into masterpieces, that is the real challenge - a challenge completed!

At the end of the show, the official poster of the event was launched.

Be sure to calender this event - February 26-28, 2009 -

be beautiful inside and out!

Beijing Packaging Expo 2008

As part of our international promotions for our own shows, we had a booth at the recent Packaging Expo / China Brew / Liquitek Expo in Beijing China.

The expo was held at the newly built New Beijing Convention Center

which was humongous! As with most exhibition / convention center,

it was also so far from anything else, about an hour of highway ride.

As expected, they had a lot of exhibitors that took up huge spaces,

representing manufacturers from all over the world.

There were many machines and robotics at work which were particularly

interesting given the speed and precision as against manual labor.

Beijing's Landscape

Being in Beijing on a business trip, there was no time for any sightseeing which was a pity. However, i got to steal some shots mostly from taxis and buses. Thank goodness most of them turned out well despite the moving vehicles. (Too bad the Great Wall of China was nowhere near for me to see)

The mix of the old and the new architecture makes for a striking landscape. Beijing was also extremely clean - am so envious. L - One of the newer buildings being put up, an architectural wonder

R - The infamous Tianamen square with hundreds of visitors in line Even as they opened their doors to the Western world, they maintian a lot of their cultural heritage in many areas within the city. Just missed the olympics by a few days but the sight of the Bird's Nest even from afar was inspiring, just wish i could have gone inside. L - This Holiday Inn has such an interesting Flinstone-like exterior R - The one thing i did not want to pass up was a visit to IKEA, after all, Beijing's branch is the 2nd largest in the world

After many chances missed in past visits, finally, finally braved the long lines and got to taste the Swidish meatballs. What is interesting though is they were selling this mini lobsters that you don't find in other IKEA's around the world - just had to get a taste of the crustacean.

Philippine Asian M.I.C.E. Forum

The Philippine Association of Convention/Exhibition Organizers and Suppliers (PACEOS), recently held The Philippine Asian MICE Forum, a gathering of Meetings, Incentives, Conventions and Exhibitions industry experts and professionals for presentations and discussions on trends and directions of the regional and global market.

Apart from educating the industry players, the forum also served as an

effective avenue to bring industry issues to government awareness.

The 2-day event was held at the Sofitel Hotel, and was opened

to much pomp and pageantry complete with the virtuoso of the

violin, Mr. Jay Cayuca.