Nina L. Kovner

About Nina L. Kovner

Brand Strategist | Advisor | Storyteller | Marketer From the shampoo room to the boardroom, my journey in the professional beauty industry has been all about creating awesome, aligned experiences and empowering others. With over three decades in the beauty industry, I\'ve transformed brands and mentored leaders and beauty pros to realize their dreams. In 2012, I founded Passion Squared, one of the first online education and coaching platforms for the beauty industry. We were way ahead of the curve with social and digital marketing education and were the first to educate salons and hairstylists on healthy boundaries. I\'ve had the honor of working with top industry brands, on their marketing and education strategies, including their social and digital footprints. My projects include creating foundational online courses for beauty professionals, such as \"Creating Your Awesome Brand\" and \"A School for Salon Owners.\" Through Passion Squared, I\'ve also launched the PEOPLE PASSION PURPOSE podcast and mentored some of the industry\'s top influencers and leaders. My commitment to our community is to help others find more clarity, confidence, context, alignment, and joy. Before Passion Squared, I was the Vice President of Marketing, Education, and Events at John Paul Mitchell Systems. There, I spearheaded global marketing and product development, significantly boosting revenue and reinventing the Paul Mitchell brand. I played a key role in creating and building the Tea Tree brand, which has become the leading scalp care brand in the U.S, along with developing other successful product lines, establishing key operational procedures, and leading and developing marketers, artistic directors, platform artists, and educators. My career began at John Paul Mitchell Systems in regional and marketing director roles, where I built and led marketing, education, and sales teams. I was integral in launching innovative products and services, including an in-salon scalp facial service experience that continues to be relevant to today’s \'skinificaiton of hair\' trend. Throughout my career, I\'ve been recognized with several accolades, including being the first cosmetologist inducted into the Career College Association Hall of Fame and being named the Midwest Hairstyling Awards Icon of The Year in 2023. Outside of work, I love spending time outdoors, feeding squirrels and birds, watching documentaries, journaling, and doing culinary experiments at home.

Experience

1. Mentor

   Passion Squared

   Aug 2011 — Present · Everywhere, US

   Brand development and strategy, online and offline marketing, leadership development, educator and influencer mentor, and experience design for salon owners, professional beauty brands, professional beauty distributors, beauty tech brands, and beauty pros.

Education

• UCLA Anderson School of Management

  Certificate

  2005 — 2005

• Potomac Academy of Hair Design

  Hairdresser

  1987 — 1987

Skills

• Beauty Industry
• Beauty
• New Business Development
• Small Business
• Marketing Strategy
• Marketing Management
• Social Media
• Social Networking
• Marketing
• Personal Development
• Brand Development