labsnz

𝗔𝗿𝗶𝗮 𝗖𝘂𝗻𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴𝗵𝗮𝗺 is joining us on the LABSNZ 2027 stage with a conversation that sits outside the usual beauty industry topics, and honestly, that’s exactly why we wanted it there.

𝙋𝙧𝙤𝙛𝙚𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙤𝙣𝙖𝙡 𝙍𝙚𝙘𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮.

Because beauty professionals are trained to perform the service.

We’re not always trained for everything that walks into the room with the client.

The anxiety.
The self-criticism.
The emotional dumping.
The difficult conversations.
The tension you absorb while still being expected to stay calm, professional and produce beautiful work.

And sometimes, the appointment ends but what happened in it stays with you.

Alongside 13 years in the beauty industry, Aria works as a programme facilitator with the Department of Corrections and previously spent several years with Women’s Refuge, giving her a very different lens on human behaviour, communication and what it means to hold space for people.

At LABSNZ 2027, she’s bringing that knowledge into the treatment room.

You’ll leave with practical tools to better understand difficult client interactions, manage emotionally charged moments, recognise what you’re carrying and recover professionally without taking every appointment home with you.

Not becoming cold.
Not caring less.

Just learning how to care without it costing you quite so much.

This is one of those conversations we think a lot of people in our industry didn’t realise they needed.

Until now.

GLOW

LABSNZ 2027.
Your move. 🎟️

30 April - 1 May 2027
🌊 Napier Conference Centre
🎟 Your tickets are ready when you are
🔗 Link in bio
🌏 www.labsnz.com

You might come to LABSNZ expecting to learn something new.

But the real value might be what makes you think differently.

It might be hearing someone explain something in a way that finally clicks.

It might be realising there’s another way to run your business.

It might be sitting next to someone who sees the industry completely differently to you.

A conversation you didn’t expect to have.

A question you hadn’t even thought to ask yet.

And that’s the point.

You don’t need to agree with everything you hear.

You don’t need every session to apply to you in the same way.

You just need to leave with something you didn’t have when you walked in.

A new idea.
A better question.
A different perspective.
Something practical.
Or maybe even a completely changed mind.

That’s where the value is.

Not in hearing more of the same.

It's being in a room that gives you more to think about.

LABSNZ 2027.
Your move. 🎟️

30 April - 1 May 2027
🌊 Napier Conference Centre
🎟 Your tickets are ready when you are
🔗 Link in bio
🌏 www.labsnz.com

Some of the hardest parts of this industry have absolutely nothing to do with the service itself.

And yet somehow, we’re just expected to know how to handle them.

One of our LABSNZ 2027 speakers is bringing a conversation to the stage that we don’t think gets talked about nearly enough.

Not technique.
Not trends.
Not another way to make more money.

Something different.

And we have a feeling a lot of you are going to hear this one and think…

“Sh*t. I needed that.”

Reveal coming soon. 👀

We know a big name can sell tickets.

We know a huge following can get attention.

And we know it would probably be easier to build a line-up around the same people and the same conversations everyone already knows.

But that’s never been how we choose our LABSNZ speakers.

We start with the industry.

What are artists dealing with right now?

What conversations aren’t getting enough airtime?

What knowledge could genuinely change the way someone works, thinks, communicates or runs their business?

And sometimes, what do we think our attendees need to hear before they even know they need to hear it?

Then we look for the person who can bring that conversation to the stage with real knowledge, experience and something useful for our attendees to take away with them.

Because LABSNZ was never meant to be a collection of impressive names on a poster.

It’s about what happens when you put the right conversations in front of the right people.

The moments that challenge you.

The ones that make you rethink something you’ve always done.

And the ones where you walk out thinking:

“I didn’t know I needed to hear that… but I did.”

That’s what we’re building.

Not just a line-up.

A stronger, more informed, more connected industry.

So tell us…

What’s a conversation you think our industry needs to be having more of?

LABSNZ 2027.
Your move. 🎟️

30 April - 1 May 2027
🌊 Napier Conference Centre
🎟 Your tickets are ready when you are
🔗 Link in bio
🌏 www.labsnz.com

𝗦𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗲𝗻 𝗔𝗱𝗶𝗿 is joining us on the LABSNZ 2027 stage with a conversation we think this industry needs more of.

𝘙𝘦𝘮𝘰𝘷𝘢𝘭: 𝘊𝘩𝘰𝘰𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘙𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘈𝘱𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘢𝘤𝘩 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘌𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘊𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘵.

Because removal isn’t one modality fits all.

Laser has its place.
Liquid-based removal has its place.
Sometimes a staged or combined approach may make more sense.
And sometimes the right decision is knowing when to refer.

The problem is, it can be really easy to recommend the method you know best simply because it’s the method you know best.

Or the machine you own.
Or the system you’ve been trained in.

But the client sitting in front of you doesn’t care what equipment is in your treatment room.

They need the approach that makes sense for their pigment, skin, history, previous removal attempts, expectations and circumstances.

Shareen will be unpacking the different removal modalities, where their strengths and limitations sit, and the factors that should actually influence which pathway you choose.

You’ll leave with a broader understanding of removal and a better framework for deciding when laser makes sense, when another modality may be more appropriate and when your usual go-to might not be the answer.

Less:
“What removal method do I offer?”

More:
“What does this client actually need?”

Because the treatment plan should start with the person in front of you.

Austin Beauty School of Laser & Esthetics

LABSNZ 2027.
Your move. 🎟️

30 April - 1 May 2027
🌊 Napier Conference Centre
🎟 Your tickets are ready when you are
🔗 Link in bio
🌏 www.labsnz.com

Three conferences. Three awards stages. And LABSNZ faces taking home awards at every single one. 🥹

Aotearoa Lash Conference.
Lash Conference
International Lash Masters Conference.

We’ve been watching members of our community step onto stages, put themselves forward, be recognised for their work and bring home some pretty bloody special achievements.

And we just had to stop for a second and celebrate them.

Formerly Beauty & Brows by Natalie | Natalie Crosby |
ZOE • SUBLEVO - LASH & BROW SPECIALIST
Tarlaye Platt | Curly Wurly Lashes N Beauty
Lydia Rose | Lash Artist & Educator | Havelock North
Sunshine Coast Korean Lash Lift | Brow Services | PMU

These wins belong completely to them. Their work, their skill, their courage to put themselves forward and everything that happened behind the scenes to get there.

We just feel incredibly lucky that these are also people who have walked through the doors of LABSNZ and become part of this community.

Congratulations to every single one of you.

Look at our community go. 💜

𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐒 𝐎𝐍𝐄 𝐃𝐄𝐒𝐄𝐑𝐕𝐄𝐒 𝐈𝐓𝐒 𝐎𝐖𝐍 𝐒𝐏𝐎𝐓𝐋𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓.

Because when we talk about excellence in our industry, so much of the focus lands on what we can see.

The result.
The technique.
The transformation.

But some of the most important work happens in everything surrounding it.

How you listen.
How you consult.
How you make someone feel safe.
How you adapt when a client needs something different.
How you handle the difficult conversations.
How you care for them after they leave.
And sometimes, knowing when the right decision is not to perform the treatment at all.

⭐ The Vanguard Award for 𝗘𝘅𝗰𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝗖𝗹𝗶𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗖𝗮𝗿𝗲 recognises the professionals who understand that a beautiful result is only one part of doing this job exceptionally well.

This isn't about luxury salons, expensive extras or creating the most Instagrammable client experience.

It's about the quality of the care you provide and the difference that care makes to the person sitting in front of you.

Because your client might forget the coffee you served them.
They probably won't forget whether they felt heard, respected, safe and genuinely cared for.

Vanguard Award for Excellence in Client Care.
One we think deserves to be talked about. 💜

LABSNZ 2027.
Your move. 🎟️

30 April - 1 May 2027
🌊 Napier Conference Centre
🎟 Your tickets are ready when you are
🔗 Link in bio
🌏 www.labsnz.com

We’ve told you why Vanguard exists.
Now, this is what we’re actually recognising.

The six Vanguard Awards have been created to acknowledge very different kinds of contribution within our industry.

⭐ Community Impact recognises what someone gives beyond their own business.

⭐ Education Excellence looks at the quality, responsibility and impact of education, not how many courses someone sells.

⭐ Innovation recognises ideas that solve genuine problems and create meaningful progress.

⭐ Rising Artist is about the foundations an emerging professional is building, not how quickly they’ve become visible.

⭐ Mentorship recognises the people genuinely investing in the growth of others, whether they’ve ever called themselves a mentor or not.

⭐ Outstanding Contribution recognises something bigger again: sustained work that has left the wider industry stronger.

Every category will have its own criteria.
Every application will be assessed by our judging panel.

There will be no public voting and no advantage for having the biggest following, receiving the most nominations or being the best-known name in the room.

Because these awards were never created to recognise popularity.

They were created to recognise impact.

And sometimes the people making the biggest difference are the ones we haven't been acknowledging enough.

LABSNZ Vanguard Awards 2027.
Nominations coming soon.

LABSNZ 2027.
Your move. 🎟️

30 April - 1 May 2027
🌊 Napier Conference Centre
🎟 Your tickets are ready when you are
🔗 Link in bio
🌏 www.labsnz.com