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Thanks to co-founders Michelle Breyer and Gretchen Heber, stylists who work on curly hair now have a Web site to turn to for discovering the latest techniques, products and news, as well as for networking with fellow pros: curlstylist.com. Breyer and Heber decided to create the site based on the success of their consumer site, naturallycurly.com, which launched in 1998.

Curlstylist.com caters to stylists who work on curls.
Curlstylist.com caters to stylists who work on curls.

"Stylists tell us regularly that they don't learn about curls in beauty school, despite the fact that more than half the population has curly hair," says Breyer, who serves as the company's president. "Since we've been working on curly content for almost 11 years—and many of our readers are stylists—we felt it was time to create a place just for them to provide education, inspiration and community."

The site delivers a multitude of curl-centric articles, videos and photos by platform artists and manufacturers like Bumble and bumble and Paul Mitchell on topics such as haircare basics, cutting, styling, coloring, retexturizing and business strategies. "The focus in each category is on real-world solutions to help stylists looking for information," Breyer says.

The site also has a discussion board called chairTalk, a calendar listing curl-related classes and workshops, and columns from curl experts like Ouidad and Christo. Stylists can find information about hundreds of products, with reviews from consumers and stylists. With a free membership, stylists can rate products, be featured in the Stylist Spotlight section and, coming soon, upload their own videos and photos.

Breyer notes that the timing is just right for a professional site devoted to curls. Says Breyer, "As more consumers are letting their waves, curls and kinks do their thing and more companies are focusing on curl products, stylists have been hungry for information and training." —L.A.