Maly’s: Brand Identity

Challenges
At its core, Maly’s was a company with a disadvantage. Their tagline “Dedicated to the Salon Professional” conveyed the image of a subservient company, a mere middleman in the distribution of salon quality products. Maly’s needed to bring value to the equation in order to secure a stronger presence within the hair care industry.

Strategy
MSLK sought to redefine the stylist-distributor relationship into something more meaningful. This relationship would begin with a new tagline “Connecting the Salon Community.” Through this, Maly’s could finally leverage their existing education and business programs to define themselves as a trusted authority to hair stylists.

Design
Identifying Maly’s with a symbol allowed stylists to be a part of the brand without feeling “branded.” The symbol, composed of four interconnected lobes, represents the connection between Maly’s, manufacturers, sales representatives, and stylists.
MSLK found equity in the blue color that Maly’s already identified with, yet to leverage this, a softer, less corporate hue was introduced. The addition of brown added warmth and the handwritten tagline embodied the personal element that Maly’s had to offer.

Success
The new brand identity and positioning caught the attention of L’Oreal, the world’s largest beauty company, and led to the acquisition of Maly’s in 2007 for a substantial sum. The concept behind the new logo is currently being integrated into the new emerging brand.