Can a salon hair care brand sold in mass pull off launching a flagship salon in the heart of Tribeca? It can if the brand is Nexxus–now known as Nexxus New York Salon Care–which is steeped in salon heritage, and if Kevin Mancuso, the legendary stylist, is the salon’s Global Hair Creative Director.

This month the Nexxus New York Salon, located at 39 North Moore Street, begins accepting appointments. The 3,500 square foot space features herringbone floors, black leather chairs that dip to a full recline and a full-length, interactive smart mirror, wired to capture a customer’s image and prescribe a selection of Nexxus New York Salon Care items based on a brief hair texture Q&A.

The mirror, which has all the makings of a Nobel Prize winning science wonder, was the vision of Kevin, who has been collaborating with Nexxus since 2007. Early in his career, Kevin, who is best known as being one of the most successful editorial stylists in the industry, studied under Jheri Rhedding, the founder of Nexxus.

Kevin is currently putting the finishing touches on his styling team, is exploring colorists to bring into the fold, and is considering which form of keratin treatment he deems best to offer at the salon, which also offers an array of exclusive Nexxus New York Salon Care hair care treatments.

“This is her jewel,” said Kevin, surveying the all-white space, referring to Gina Boswell, Executive Vice President of Personal Care at Unilever, in relation to Nexxus New York Salon Care. Gina had worked on Nexxus while at Alberto-Culver, which Unilever acquired in 2011. The salon, along with a product revamp, was a labor of love for both Kevin and the Unilever executive team.

Staying true to how most great salons implement their own approach to cutting and styling, Nexxus New York Salon has developed the Nexxus Method of Cutting. Created by Kevin, the Method’s genesis is to treat hair as a 3D entity, with the intent of creating softness and unlocking unparalleled movement, where the weight of hair is redistributed depending on hair texture, density, length and face shape, and with cuts being individually customized.

“We are also developing a treatment technique and a color technique that works with movement. I want to bring in young stylists, people I can learn from, not just people I can teach. This is going to be a slow build, we are building a team so the salon wins,” said Kevin.

And of course, the salon uses Nexxus New York Salon Care products exclusively. With more than 10 patents across the entire range of nine collections (which includes 35 products, seven of which are new) at the heart of Nexxus formulas are several key technologies. Formulas include hydrolyzed wheat protein and newly added Protein Care Actives that penetrate the hair fiber to repair protein structure, making hair stronger from within. Also, elastin is a newer ingredient, a protein found in skin that helps to keep it flexible, tight and smooth. Through continued use of the product systems, high levels of 100% pure, concentrated elastin combined with Protein Care Actives, have the ability to take hair back to beyond a virgin state.

Nexxus utilizes silicone free shampoos to rebalance hair. Conditioners use a technology to provide lightweight conditioning ingredients to flatten the hair cuticle to allow for weightless movement. So, when hair is rinsed, any excess silicone is simply washed off.

Packaging is important too, with thoughtful design elements including clean exteriors and softly muted dual layer pack colors.

New Nexxus items entering food, drug and mass stores this quarter include a new shampoo and conditioner within the Emergencee range, which is meant for severely damaged hair. Formulas are concentrated with marine collagen and elastin to increase hair’s strength and manageability. Between the shampoo and condition steps is a treatment step, Emergencee Reconstructing Treatment, which uses a keratin formulation to stop damage. A completely new system to the Nexxus family is Oil Infinite, comprised of a shampoo, conditioner and Nourishing Oil to smooth and add shine to hair. Infused with babassu and marula ois, the line is intended for course, frizzy hair.

Then there’s the Therappe & Humectress range, which has been upgraded with newly added protein care actives. The line includes a Therappe Rebalancing Shampoo, Humectress Restoring Conditioner, Humectress Replenishing Masque and Humectress Encapsulate Caviar Serum, a concentrated conditioning oil that’s been encapsulated in pearls and suspended in a water-rich rebuilding serum to improve control and manageability.