The two key axes of development in the salon hair care market are new product launches and partnerships/mergers and acquisitions—and we have our finger on the pulse of these through our brand-new, always-on Professional Hair Care Intelligence Center. Below, we summarize some recent salon news.
The Acquisition Spree Continues
Bansk Group has announced the acquisition of a majority stake in amika:, one of the fastest-growing and trendiest professional hair care brands. This colorful brand has been on our radar for a long time, thanks to its impressive growth and innovative product pipeline. The brand registered a 40% CAGR in just four years, from 2016 to 2021, according to our Salon Hair Care Global Series report. Important acquisitions often come with changes in leadership. In the case of amika:, its newly appointed CEO, Reuben Carranza, is a true industry veteran with an impressive track record of experience across fast-growing organizations such as R+Co and Olaplex, as well as industry giants such as Wella and P&G.
Wella’s recent acquisition of prestige hair care brand Briogeo confirms the importance of the care category in the industry. Moreover, L’Oréal’s Kérastase, the leading brand in the category, recorded strong growth of 40% in 2021 in key markets, such as the United States, France, and Germany, as reported in our Salon Hair Care Global Series report. Wella is among the top ten players in the category, with a limited presence due to its major focus on color, which holds the lion’s share of its sales. While Briogeo does not compete in salons, its acquisition will boost the marketer’s presence on both physical and virtual shelves of some prestigious retailers such as Sephora, where other professional brands also sell products.
Hair Treatments Take the Spotlight
This category continues to enjoy the highest number of new product launches, particularly in leading product functions, such as:
- Color care: The most interesting launch is Kevin Murphy’s Everlasting.Colour, a new multifunctional color care line featuring a bond builder product that claims to care for the scalp’s microbiome.
- Repair and condition: Olaplex’s No.9 and its direct competitor K18 leave-in molecular mask, whose success is explained in our recent blog, made the headlines on social media with the highest number of mentions.
- Curl Care: Ouidad, one of the few salon hair care brands that are fully focused on curly hair, introduced Moisture Lock Leave-in Conditioner. This product provides moisturization to help form the curls.
- Scalp care: New product activity in 2022 is limited to single product launches, as opposed to full collections or product line introductions seen in 2021. A recent addition to the segment is OUAI’s Scalp Serum, which comes in a kit with a dietary supplement.
Our Professional Hair Care Intelligence Center is your one-stop, always-on resource for authoritative and on-trend data and insights on the professional hair care industry. Powered by our unrivaled industry expertise and elevated by digital technology, it provides highly curated, externally sourced content on the salon industry in one place. To see it in action, please request a demo here.
