Saving face (body & hair), Binondo-style
When you’ve been running three brand names for over 30 years, and continue to expand and experience year-on-year growth, you know you must be doing something right. The Marie France Group of Companies has racked up such an enviable history. The first Marie France opened in 1985, the Facial Care Centre is celebrating its 35th year and Svenson has already passed that 35-year milestone. Whether we like to admit it or not, personal vanity is big business, and when one is offering expertise, experience, the latest technology and specialize in noninvasive solutions, it would seem one is loved, and here to stay. That certainly has been the story, so far, for the Marie France Group.
In fact, when I got the invite to attend the opening of its ETY Building, Binondo location, I had to think twice because as far as I knew, it already has a Binondo branch. And sure enough, the ninth and 10th floor of the spanking new ETY Building on Quintin Paredes is the bigger, brighter versions of Marie France, Facial Care and Svenson — that all existed a few streets away. In fact, so as not to disrupt or disorient its steady stream of clientele and patrons, both locations were open for a number of days. That’s the kind of value it places on properly phasing in its new location.
For the “kuya” Svenson, it has been the hair loss authority for more than 35 years. Whether the issue be hair loss prevention, hair restoration and now, hair transplant, the brand’s trichologists (hair and scalp specialists) will help guide you to find possible treatments — and this, regardless of gender.
In the case of Facial Care, the firming, contouring, tightening and rejuvenating protocols are the most popular among the treatments offered. Skin detox is also a ready favorite while some come in for the more serious condition of acne or skin pigmentation. The “baby” among the three, Marie France, has shaping and body-sculpting programs that address almost any body problem one may encounter. I’ve personally used the TriPollar Radio Frequency machine, which couples deep heating tummy fat tissue reduction with the promotion of collagen production (which helps firm up skin tone).
This new location for the Marie France Group is on Quintin Paredes St., one of the main arteries by which one enters Chinatown. On the day of the inauguration and ribbon-cutting, during the hours I was there, I witnessed a steady stream of visitors come by to inquire about the services and book their appointments. Whether it was for that initial body analysis, or to meet with a trichologist, or to “save face,” it seemed there was no shortage of new, eager customers.
Congratulations to George Siy and Renato Reyes, who were there that day to welcome us to their new Binondo home.
The science of fiction
Two novels here, D.O.D.O. and Will Save the Galaxy For Food are shining examples of the range of what we can call sci-fi: D.O.D.O., a dense thriller about governmentsanctioned time travel; and Will Save, a fun, fantasy adventure. Harrison’s is a NY tale that thrillingly dissects public persona and infidelity.
The Rise and Fall of D.O.D.O. by Neal Stephenson and Nicole Galland (available on Amazon.com) With this a collaboration of Stephenson and Galland, there is much to digest both from a science-fiction standpoint, and from an adventure/thriller perspective. It all starts with the discovery that real “magic” disappeared in 1851, supplanted by technology and the Industrial Age. But what if with the aid of witches, we could bring this magic back? D.O.D.O., the Department of Diachronic Operations, works covertly under the auspices of the Trapezoid (think Pentagon), and seeks to harness this potential using both science and “witch power.” Initially used for simple time travel, it inevitably takes on psy-ops considerations. And when D.O.D.O. expands and consolidates, plus the witches revolt, the plot wonderfully thickens!
You Belong to Me by Colin Harrison (available at Fully Booked) Harrison is back with a new Manhattan pageturner, working the milieu he knows like the back of his hand. At the heart of the novel is Paul, a 50-something immigration lawyer who is an avid cartography enthusiast, collecting rare maps that have to do with Manhattan and New York. Across the hall from his upscale apartment are young couple Ahmed, a whiz financier of Iranian descent, and Jennifer, the all-American, blue-eyed and blonde wife. Complications arise when Bill, an exsoldier, suddenly appears at a Christie’s auction, and to Paul’s surprise, Jenny leaves with Bill. What follows is a contemporary tale of ambition, greed, illicit love and the masks we don as we eke out a life in NYC. Fast-paced, muscular writing that keeps us on the edge of our seats.
Will Save the Galaxy For Food by Yahtzee Croshaw (available on Amazon.com) A light-hearted romp that comes advertised as a “satirical sci-fi adventure,” this novel comes up with the goods. The lead character is star pilot who’s down on his luck. Think of a simpleminded Han Solo who now has to get by, as quantum teleportation has made hotshot space heroes redundant. Hired by the secretary/nanny of an underworld crime boss to impersonate Jacques McKeown, author of very popular (and nostalgic) space adventure novels, our protagonist gets enmeshed in a series of misadventures that include kidnapping (the son of said thug), encountering deadly creatures from the Black (what they call the nether regions of space), and having a fortune in uncollected book royalties (McKeown’s). Hilarious and entertaining!