The Leading Salons of the World™

The Leading Salons of the World™ (LSW) is an exclusive Global Circle of Beauty Talents.

Over the past 3 years, LSW has become the authority for discerning people around the world to rely on to have their Beauty needs met. In all our Members and Partners, we look for Excellence across the board, passion for their work, and genuine desire to give the “gift of Beauty”.

• 200 Salons in 55 cities passed the demanding LSW accreditation process and are now forming the exclusive global Circle of the LSW Salons. Anywhere in the world, you are assured to experience the same premium quality service in a select environment, with a personal that speaks English if you desire to.
• In parallel, we have identified and built exclusive relationships with the best Beauty/Wellness/Fitness/Fashion/Design/Stylist Influencers in the world. Each one contributes through their own body of knowledge, and trademarked approach to the advancement of their field, and brings a whole world of exciting possibilities to our search for real Beauty. We partner with each of them to offer you Tailored Services exclusively available through our platform.
• Our guests are, just like you, discerning clients and travelers-in-style, demanding by nature and by necessity, jetsetters, businesswomen and businessmen. As they travel the globe, they rely on us as their Beauty Tailor to inspire them, and curate the finest products and services suited to their personal needs, image and personality. We make sure they stay at their best wherever they are, whenever they most need it to.

Our Mission

LSW raise the bar in the Beauty Business so that more people realize the “power of real Beauty”, and rightly empowered are able to make the right choices for themselves and optimize their natural Beauty assets. We help high achieving Salons and Beauty professionals to get the attention they deserve, and succeed in their endeavors. Our guests, all discerning clients and travelers-in-style, demanding by nature and by necessity, jetsetters, businesswomen and businessmen, rely on us and our trusted Experts and Services to cater to their precious asset as their Beauty Tailor.

LSW Beliefs

1. Beauty is not a shallow preoccupation. Nor is it for certain people only. Beauty is a very important asset that is in everyone’s best interest to leverage. Men and women alike, CEO leading the boardroom, or simply in our daily life... Our personal image, the way we come across, that first impression we form in the other’s mind is our personal “brand”. There is, want it or not, ready or not, always a value attached to your appearance. We believe it is smart to make it work for you!
2. In a society that is so competitive. It is even more important to manage your Beauty capital in the most effective way. There is a value attached to Youth if you keep it together, as well as to maturity as long as you know how to keep it youthful and relevant.
3. Beauty is luckily complex. Beauty is not Beauty is not Beauty. There is no one ideal representation of Beauty, no one size fits all either, no dogma of style. Each of us is unique, multi-dimensional, and aspire to different things for ourselves. There is inherent Beauty in that reality. We seek Talents who respect that very basic ethical element in their work.
4. Empowerment comes from finding the most appealing outer expression of your most valuable inner being. At that point, we communicate all we are, and meet our own potential. We look and feel at our best, and that precious state projects invaluable confidence. Confidence that comes from real Beauty.
5. At LSW, what we call Beauty is a combination of “style”, “youthfulness” and “charisma”.

Our Values

Integrity: LSW is an independent entity with high selective standards of accreditation in the Beauty Industry. (Standards are the same worldwide to ensure consistency of expectations). Members commit to withhold these standards over time. Unsatisfactory unannounced visits (mystery guest), conducted all through the year, can result in the exclusion from the LSW Circle.

Reach for Excellence: We look for the magic trium-vira: impeccable Savoir-Faire, thoughtful guest Experience, and genuine Passion for giving the gift of Beauty.

Passion: We believe you can only be great at what you genuinely believe in and passionately love. We seek these qualities in all our Members and Partners.

Curiosity: Curiosity leads change. We embrace change since it is inevitable. We appreciate and support people who have in them the unquenchable thirst for discovery, the open mind to look at things with a welcoming interest, and the personality to stand up for themselves and choose what is good for them.

The business

We are accelerators of Ideas and Business builders. Please contact us if you believe you meet our criteria and should belong to our Circle, or if you have an amazing product that we can help succeed faster.

The Partners: 2 women with 2 hats and multiple arms, true NYC Entrepreneurs.

Maren Sostmann

• Originally from Germany, Maren has been living in nyc since 2003. Notorious Jetsetter, she realized while traveling, that there was no one trustworthy service that she could rely on to get her Beauty needs met at the level of excellence she desired. The Leading Salons of the World was born.
• Like all smart things, it all seems obvious now... Well, she did it.
• Architect by education and training, COO of the Werner Sobek ny’s office, her architectural Design company MSK caters to a high-end clientele who seeks her expertise on their personal and professional projects.
• If you want to catch Maren … follow her fiancé and get ready to hop on a plane.
• She has a passion for Design and enjoys French white wine!

Veronique Gautier

• Born in France, educated at La Sorbonne in Paris, Veronique moved to nyc in 1998, looking to expand her business horizons. She definitely did and traveled the world… literally!
• She is at home wherever there are ideas flying and a business to grow, and has a knack for making the 2 work together. When she met Maren, she loved the challenge to dive into Beauty, and become a fundamental actor in the Industry. Hence the Beauty Tailor.
• Aside from the Leading Salons, Veronique runs a Brand Consultancy with a very specific approach to Brand building and an equal passion: The BranD.N.A.Lab. She believes that leveraging each brand’s Distinctive Natural Asset (D.N.A.) is the key to creating ownable sustainable brand value.
• She loves her son, and also…wine! (in that order)

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