History Timeline V1

As a young teenager, Leo Passage assists in his father’s barbershop in Belgium. Leo moves to Holland to apprentice in a salon owned by a friend of his father’s—the president of the Dutch Hairdressing Federation and becomes inspired by beautiful hair and the world of competition.

“I had no intention of becoming a hairdresser or a barber; I wanted to be an explorer. But my father was a barber and I was expected to assist him. I hated it and ran away often. As a last resort, he sent me to work for a friend of his who owned a ladies salon.” — Leo Passage

Leo wins more than 100 European competition awards, including the Championship of Holland in 1957 and receives an invitation to join the Dutch Olympic Hairdressing Team.

“As I say to my students many times, I lost the first eight competitions. So, you don’t give up. Losing isn’t bad. You learn to see and appreciate what makes a difference. Seek the best mentors and surround yourself with people who have a positive attitude and always believe in yourself.” — Leo Passage

Leo opens a beauty school in Chicago, Illinois, offering classes to professionals and students. He started with five students on the 2^nd floor and grew it into an international network worldwide.

“I use the terminology of design and analysis that was proven already in many other areas. It makes logical sense. Break it down and put everything back together. I was able to share that with my peers in competition and it made sense.” — Leo Passage

Leo is inspired by teachings of the Bauhaus, the most celebrated Arts & Crafts school in the 20th century, and establishes a design philosophy for the media of hair and launches Scientific Approach. Northwestern University and the Art Institute of Chicago verify Leo’s vocabulary system to be sure the correct design terminology is used in his education.

“So my peers say, put your thoughts on paper, and put your Pivot Point concept down in a book. We called it Entrée to Hair Design. That’s where it all started.” — Leo Passage

Grace Doran and Buddy Francis partner with Leo, bringing their highly respected names in the industry to help build the Member School network as schools ask if they can teach Pivot Point’s unique design system, and its “See and Think as a Designer” message. Schools that adopt the Scientific Approach to Hair Designs become approved Pivot Point schools and can display the new logo.

“Seek and appreciate the best mentors in your life. Surround yourself with people who have a positive attitude and always believe in you. Dedicate yourself to lifelong learning and make your career a hobby so you have fun doing it.” — Leo Passage

“So already we knew that our concept was right, and that we could bring hairdressing education into something everyone around the world would benefit from.” — Leo Passage

Collaboration with custom hair manufacturers leads to designing high-quality mannequins to achieve life-like learning experiences for students and professionals. Hair manufacturer, Mr. Pang, (Pang Kam Chiu) is very influential in the hair and beauty industry and extends the global reach of Pivot Point education into Asia.

“Most of the major manufacturers in our industry use Pivot Point hair because it showcases their products very well. What’s unique about Pivot Point products is that they are 100% human hair. We want our mannequins to act like they would on a real live client day to day. Our hair is implanted the same way it would on a human head. It comes in a variety of lengths, a variety of colors, a variety of densities depending on what it is you are trying to use it for.” — Robert Passage

Pivot Point team of International Artists receive permission from U.S. government to participate in a history-making exchange with Chinese vocational educators and tour mainland China.

When Leo Passage and a crew from Pivot Point schools around the world were the first to visit mainland China right after President Richard Nixon, a break-through in education, professional exchange, and international communications during the historic spring tour opened new frontiers in the entire beauty industry.

“Bringing beauty to China was a revolutionary moment in time that may never come again. But you need not go so far to give the gift of your own brand of magic–because it’s always within you.” — Carlos Valenzuela

A revolutionary approach to Hair Sculpture sets a new standard of haircutting education. This modular system defines a universal language and logical concepts to explain the “why” behind the “how.” The Scientific Approach to Hair Sculpture sets a new standard of haircutting education as the haircut, or “hair sculpture,” becomes the number-one salon service. A universal design language and logical concepts explain “why “techniques produce predictable results as well as “how” to perform them. Four basic length arrangements called forms, and their combinations, are identified and color-coded for consistent reference in all future libraries. A Northwestern University mathematics professor is consulted to help develop accurate  terminology that can  be translated into many languages. This course becomes one of Pivot Point’s most highly translated courses reaching over 10 languages in its first 10 years. Its timeless concepts are taught all over the world today.

“I usually connect our design education to music. How do you learn music? One note at a time. Learn your notes, and create music compositions. Designing hair is similar, learn  your components and you can compose hair designs, no matter how trends change.” —Leo Passage

Pivot Point pioneeers video education on interactive laser disc and adds barcodes to student coursebooks and teacher support materials to quickly access specific frames, video segments, and slow motion playback.

“So we’re talking continuous education, lifelong learning for all of us. Our education and how we deliver it continues to evolve.” — Leo Passage

The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children becomes the corporate charity of choice, spearheaded by Corrine Passage, and schools participate in annual nationwide Cut-A-Thons to support the mission.

“Pivot Point first became involved with the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children in 1997, when my late sister Corrine created the Pivot Point Cares for Kids™ program. Over the years, we’ve raised more than $1,000,000 to support the work of this organization. Our stance on protecting children is unwavering—we believe every child deserves a safe childhood; we won’t have children harmed on beauty’s watch.” — Robert Passage

Winner of six America’s Best Beauty Industry Efforts for Salons including Best Salon Industry Education Program; Best Print and Electronic Education, Best Direct to Salon Communication, and Best Salon Industry Education.

“It is important to be inspired by beauty in nature, the arts and the world around us… being inspired by beauty can enrich everyone’s life, both personally and professionally.” — LeoPassage

Snap Cap is released, reducing carbon footprint with an environmentally friendly alternative to mannequins, eliminating waste and saving space. Snap Caps are designed with hollow headforms, eliminating the foam fill inside a traditional mannequin to become more sustainable. One headform… endless possibilities.

“Never compromise integrity, ethics, or doing what is right.” — Leo Passage

Artist Access, Pivot Point’s first online learning system is designed to be used in the classroom, and at home, students and educators can now access all learning materials anytime, anywhere.

“Our goal is to stay at the forefront of educational strategies, hair trends, fashions and techniques on a global basis, and deliver these through the latest technologies and media, such as e-Learning.” — Leo Passage

Pivot Point seeks social accountability and takes the initiative of acquiring SA8000 certification on all of its manufactured hair products to ensure that the facilities guard against forced labor, provides workers with safe working environments, respects the rights of workers to join unions, and practices zero tolerance for discrimination. The #LookfortheTag campaign emerges to bring recognition to Pivot Point mannequins with this certificate.

“The SA8000 certification affords our partners the confidence that our educational hair goods are produced in sanctioned conditions. My father, Leo Passage, who founded Pivot Point, often said, ‘People are at the core of our business.’ Our moral compass must continually guide decision-making, including our commitment to lead with integrity.” — Robert Passage

“I believe that the best way to change the world happens long before you think about donating to charity. It happens when you make your decision as a purchaser.” — Leila Janah

Ground-breaking integrated social learning environment, built specifically for learners and educators in the beauty industry. The introduction of LAB combines best-in-class educational content, creativity, and a collaborative ecosystem. LAB is specificaly designed for multiple learning styles, capturing the progress of learners within a social learning platform. Communities of learners are encouraged to collaborate and share accomplishments. Activities, games, assignment completion and tests award points and provide feedback for improvement – blurring the lines between learning and fun.

“Students prefer to actively discover information, rather than have it told to them. They enjoy collaborating with peers for recognition and expect to do it all via digital devices.” — Sabine Held-Perez

The Passage family establishes a $1 million endowment fund with Beauty Changes Lives in remembrance of founder Leo Passage. The fund supports competition entries, scholarships, and lifelong learning so that students and professionals alike can continue their journeys in education.

“When I saw what P&G did to honor Vidal Sassoon [P&G donated $1 million+ for advanced education], and what [CND founder] Jan Arnold did to honor the Vietnamese nail movement, my mother and I knew it would be a great way to honor my father’s legacy through endowment to Beauty Changes Lives in his name. My father believed wholeheartedly in providing hair, beauty and wellness professionals a thorough and complete education in their craft, as well as how to be successful.” — Robert Passage

The modularized library for Cosmetology, Barbering, and Esthetics, is written with a focus on teaching students to be resilient, make comebacks after setbacks, and to understand the passion and commitment it takes to be a successful professional.

“Technical skills are only one part of the overall service. The details leading up to the service and after the service should not be overlooked.” — Vasiliki Stavrakis

Expanded range of curl patterns, from wavy to coily, is introduced so that learners can be confident working on all hair textures and build a diverse skillset for a successful career.

“At Pivot Point, we stand for justice, equality, and fair and respectful treatment of all people.  Doing what’s right and making a difference are central to our core values.  Accordingly, we will do everything we can to foster social change. From our earliest days, Pivot Point has striven to keep our eyes, ears and hearts open to the needs and wants of communities of color around the world. We recognize the contributions people of color have made to the beauty industry and believe our industry is better because of them. ” — Robert Passage

Slip-On Invention [TBD]

OMC Hairworld & Worldskills Approved [TBD]