Maddyness is collaborating with YSYS, which connects diverse people with opportunities in business and tech. We’ve spoken to three alumni from its FoundersDoor incubator programme about how they started their businesses, and the challenges and triumphs they’ve experienced along the way. Last but not least is Paris, CEO of That Good Hair.
Tell us what That Good Hair does and how it came about in your own words. Did you have expertise and experience in the field you chose?
That Good Hair came about as an idea in 2017. I was just starting university and I was in love with DIY hair care products. I have a fragrance allergy and struggled to find hair products that didn’t contain fragrance.
I wished that I could find a hair care brand that would just let me choose the ingredients in my hair products and that is how That Good Hair was born. I took a 2-year course to learn about ingredients and how to make effective natural hair products and began planning for my business.
Do we pay enough attention to the health of our hair?
Good Hair is healthy hair.
We need to care about our hair like we care about our bodies, by being mindful about what we put inside of it and on to it.
The foods you eat can have a massive impact on our hair. Making sure your hair gets the vitamins and fatty acids it needs is very underrated. While healthy hair isn’t the typical focus, by focusing on achieving healthy hair, everything else positive e.g. hair growth, is a natural side effect of good health.
What is lacking in the haircare industry at the moment, and how do you provide a solution?
The haircare industry is lacking freedom and transparency; people don’t know what they are putting in their hair, without reading the complex ingredients label. If there is something they aren’t sure about or don’t like, they have no control over the product, no one to ask and no one to change it.
We wanted to give the control to the customer by letting them choose their ingredients and understand the scientific process behind their favourite hair products.
What kind of info could someone get from a bespoke hair analysis by you?
With our bespoke hair analysis process, we are trying to help our customers firstly build a sustainable hair routine. This will let them care for their hair effectively, no matter what healthy hair products they use.
If you’re using relaxer, bleach and hair straighteners on a daily basis, you're not necessarily going to have the healthiest hair you could have. Building a sustainable routine will make it easier to manage and maintain your hair and see results.
Secondly, customers will learn about the ingredients they could be using and why. It can be a bit intimidating to know what ingredients to choose so we want to make it as easy as possible for people to learn and feel confident.
Do you think the beauty industry is becoming more centred on products that are bespoke/customisable?
I think that personalisation is becoming a big trend and that people want to be treated as an individual rather than as one of many – but I think there is still a long way to go for beauty brands.
Customisable beauty is about more than having your name in the bottle. It’s about being able to make choices and understanding how and why things work.
I think that transparency is really missing from the beauty industry.
Tell us about your experience on the FoundersDoor programme and how YSYS has helped you.
Being at FoundersDoor, I learnt a lot about finding my audience and not listening to others e.g. friends and family that don’t fit into my audience.
The programme helped to build my confidence with my business before it had launched. I was able to make some bold choices – like running events and testing to see if people would be willing to actually spend their money on my product.
After leaving the programme, I had validated my idea and learnt a lot about the legal and operations side of my business so it really helped put me on the path to success.
What have been the major challenges you’ve faced and successes you’ve had while running That Good Hair?
The major challenges I experienced while running That Good Hair would definitely be the pandemic. I officially launched online in May 2020 during the initial UK lockdown, which had thrown my original launch day plans in the bin.
However, pivoting to being a completely online brand has helped me to learn a lot more about my customers, digital marketing and building a community which is what I would say is my biggest success. I love what I do and I am so glad I get to share my passion for haircare with the world.
