September 27, 2024 | 9:59am

MANILA, Philippines — Miss Universe might have opened up to mothers and petites, but Denise Aquino is not interested to join.

For her, it is enough that her business venture, Tokyo Posh, has helped “normal girls” fulfill their dream of becoming Miss Universe, as well as help starlets transition to become A-list stars – through her business’ main product: hair extensions.

Now, from celebrities and beauty influencers, the secret and magic that hair extensions bring are made more accessible to anyone as Tokyo Posh recently opened its first Hair Extensions Bar in Look At Me, SM Aura Premier, Taguig City.

“We’re making hard-to-do hairstyles easy for the regular person,” brand owner Denise Aquino told Philstar.com in an interview.

Unlike other Tokyo Posh studios that offer more elaborate hairstyles with special treatments and wild colors, the new bar has been envisioned as “buy and go” – with ready-made hairstyles and hair extensions you can put on your own or with help from a stylist, then you can already go about in your business – as easy as having an over-the-counter makeup makeover, said Aquino.

“That’s why we’re excited to open in Look At Me, because we get to align with makeup brands,” she affirmed.

“In terms of technology, the way that our hair extensions are made is one piece. So that’s the one that I got from Japan. You know how the Japanese people say they are so busy; they can’t do anything that they cannot do on the train? You see like in Japan, you see everyone doing their makeup on the train, they can also put hair extensions on the train.”

Likewise, her brand’s extensions are easy to put on one’s own because the extensions are made of a single strand.

“So it’s something that you can do on your own in less than a minute if you become an expert; five minutes if you’re a newbie…” Aquino assured customers.

She designed every style, which she guaranteed cannot be found anywhere else. The hair extensions in the bar are made in Japan, mainly of Japanese synthetic fibers.

Different hairstyles, such as the best-selling Blair (a curly long hairstyle) and Hailey (mid-length undone waves), range from P2,000 to P3,000 for synthetic fibers, while those made of human hair range at P7,000 to P40,000, depending on the length and thickness. 

According to Aquino, the Blair was originally named after her, but she felt awkward because she used to man the store herself and felt it was vain to use her name.

Extensions made of human hair are reusable for five times, and can be maintained by washing it with shampoo and through a regular haircare routine. For synthetic clip-ons, these can be reused many times through proper maintenance – like washing it once in a while and brushing it into shape, said Aquino.

Now open for franchise, the bar is planned to open next in SM Mall of Asia, SM North Edsa and SM Megamall.

“Don’t be scared to try extensions because it’s life-changing,” Aquino attested, “It’s so amazing! It will change your life like it changed mine.”