American International Industries Turns 35

You could say American International Industry’s (AII) CEO Zvi Ryzman owes his career to Richard Nixon.

As Ryzman tells it, in the early ‘70s he was in a close-out business with a friend when Nixon devalued the dollar. No longer able to import enough merchandise, they had to close down the business. The two were left with a bunch of Korean-made eyelashes, and after a coin toss, the eyelashes belonged to Ryzman. He began selling the eyelashes to beauty supply stores and later bought three other eyelash companies, including Ardell, one of All’s most popular brands today.

 

From those humble beginnings, AII was founded in 1971. Thirty-five years later, with more than 500 employees and more than 30 acquisitions, the company boasts some of your favorite brands on its growing roster of products, including Body Drench, EZ Flow, Gena, GiGi, ibd, and SuperNail. 2005 marked their acquisition of the China Glaze and Seche product lines.

Ryzman cites this phenomenal growth as his proudest accomplishment. “From just five or six small brands that I acquired, cultivated, and built up, I have created this collection of assorted, respected brands that offer head-to-toe resources for the beauty professional,” he says. And AII is likely to continue to expand. “I plan to continue acquiring niche companies that complement our existing brands,” says Ryzman.

AII Brands from A to Y

Andrea, Ardell, Body Drench, Bye Bye Blemish, China Glaze, clean + easy, Clubman Pinaud, Correctionist, DeLore, Duo, European Secrets, EZ Flow, 5 Second Nail, Fright Night, Gyspy Lash, Gena, GiGi, IBD, L'Orbette, Lustray, N'Rage, No-Tweeze/Micro Tweeze, One Touch, RAW, Seche, SuperNail, Surgi-Care, Sweet Mary Jane, Water Works, Winning Nails, Woltra, Youthair