EDITOR’S DESKUnsurprising for someone who writes for a living, I was recently thinking about language and got onto a train of thought about commonly-used expressions. It occurred to me that when talking about new projects or the act of beginning something for the first time, the sayings often come back to water. ‘Sink or swim’, ‘dive right in’, ‘dip your toes’, and the list goes on. Water is of an epic nature; it’s massive and overwhelming, so I guess it is fitting to compare it to the idea of starting something big, like a new job in a new industry. Needless to say, in what has marked my first few months as the Editor of The Journal Magazine, there have been many opportunities to resort to water idioms to describe my personal experience.

Three weeks in, I was introduced to the craziness that is Hair Expo and it was official, I really had been ‘thrown in the deep end’. Three days of interviewing, learning hair lingo, industry introductions, going to shows and of course, hitting the parties and I felt like maybe, just maybe I had passed the test and been welcomed into the sorority that is the hair industry. This first taste of this new world was a massive feat, but it was also incredibly exciting and I have since come to realise that experiences like these are likely to be the norm in my role at The Journal… and I like it. At this pioneering publication, I have been welcomed by the warmest team I have ever worked with, and it’s a pretty great feeling to be working with people that make it their mission to innovate, originate and appreciate on a daily basis. Creativity and passion are contagious, and the M Division family is a testament to this.

This issue we saw our Creative Director, David Mannah jet off to The Big Apple for a little fun and a lot of work, and he has returned to the office with a tonne of beautiful images, original ideas and enough inspiration to fuel the team for the remainder of the year. You will find a number of stories collected from his experiences in the ‘city that never sleeps’, inside this issue.

This past month we have also witnessed some surprising events that have taken place in the trade media industry. The climate of the Australian hair world seems to be changing, but rest assured, we at The Journal remain strong. We are steadfast, resolute and more determined than ever to continue contributing to this industry that has invited us into its inner circle so keenly. We are more than aware of how you have all embraced us from our beginnings, and our intention is to give back to you and the entire industry as much as we can. If you are reading this letter, hopefully we have already secured your loyalty, and with what’s inside these pages and the pages to come, we are confident that we can preserve it.

Having come from a fashion background, it has been a breath of fresh air to enter the wonderful world of hair, albeit wide-eyed and bushy-tailed. With the 2015 AHFAs on the horizon, I have yet another adventure to look forward to and I can’t wait to see the works of art you will all create and submit in the coming months. With my second issue down and many more to go, I have well and truly settled in and have the groove in my desk chair to prove it! It’s going to be a great ride at The Journal; I hope you will join me.

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