Ted Gibson and Jason Backe Live at ABS Chicago
Some conversations remind you why you got into this industry in the first place. This is one of them.
Recorded live at ABS Chicago with co-host Geno Chapman, Corey sits down with Ted Gibson and Jason Backe for an hour covering three decades of hustle, heartbreak, reinvention, and beauty from the inside out.
The Roads That Led Here
Neither Ted nor Jason took a straight path in. Jason was a raver kid in Minneapolis who walked into beauty school and for the first time felt seen by a teacher. Ted was a Texas athlete who walked into a salon called Zan and Friends, saw a room full of stylish people in starched Wranglers, and decided that was the life. What followed was barber school, a cross-country move seeking fame, a detour to Atlanta to answer phones while switching his license, and a room with Confederate flags on the wall. He stayed anyway. The sacrifices nobody sees are always the foundation of the success they do.
What Fame Actually Costs
Saying yes to Angelina Jolie's hair for Tomb Raider changed everything. Vogue. Marie Claire. A PR firm that told them to drop the name Fame and call it Ted Gibson. A Fifth Avenue salon. A DC licensing deal tied to the Real Housewives. A move to LA where they gambled everything and learned more than they earned. Three years in Palm Springs that have brought more inspiration than anywhere else they've lived. Success is not linear. It never was.
The Client Relationship... and When It Ends
Ted's rule: treat every client like it's the first time you've seen her. She is a different person. Jason goes deeper, describing 20 years of New York clients who didn't care what it cost, and how COVID ended it overnight. He had to create a new category... client friends. Losing them felt like grief. It changed how he understood his work entirely.
Ted Gibson Beauty Wellness Science
After Ted's mom was diagnosed with dementia, they dove into brain health and found lion's mane mushroom. They felt it. They kept going. A scientist in Oregon with 30 years studying fungi and algae helped them build a superfood powder: lion's mane, chaga, reishi, tremella, and blue-green algae in a coconut milk base with vanilla and coffee. Tremella is shown to be 100 times more effective than hyaluronic acid at moisture retention. Mix it into anything. A book is coming.
Convergence: Beauty Wellness Science Summit
May 2-3 in Palm Springs. Professionals and consumers in the same room to collaborate, not compete. Mainstage education in cut, color, and dressing. Panel discussions including Guts, Brains and Beauty and Stars, Shrooms and Psychedelics. Breakout rooms. A cocktail party. The Beauty in Motion Evening Performance headlined by Ted and his artistic team. Day two is all professional education with business coaching from Steve Gomez. Blue Zones leads a purpose workshop for the Palm Springs community. Hotel reservations at the Marriott via the link in bio.
@tedgibson... @jasonbacke... @genochapman
Sponsored by Serious Business. January 16-18, 2027 in New Orleans. Tickets at seriousbuisness.net
