Over the last few years, the hair extensions market has quickly grown to be one area of the hair industry to watch. According to a recent report from Persistence Market Research, the global industry is expected to grow at an annual rate of 6.8 percent over the next six years and reach a value of US$4.5 billion by the end of 2030. Thanks in a large part to social media, demand for extensions is growing exponentially with no signs of slowing down.
Among the many extension brands that are influencing the market, HALO Couture continues to be a major player. Launched in 2009 by late founder Tina A. Owens, the extensions brand completely revolutionized the world of hair extensions with the introduction of their iconic The Original HALO. Since then, HALO Couture has made an impressive name for itself in the industry with its solid salon network and diverse range of high-quality extensions. Under the visionary leadership of President Josh Owens, HALO Couture has been able to increase both its visibility and engagement with customers worldwide, securing its position as an industry leader.
While attending America’s Beauty Show last month, The Tease had the opportunity to speak with Owens to get a deeper look at the beloved extensions brand and how it continues to remain at the forefront of the industry. Here, he discusses HALO Couture’s most popular products, how the brand plans to capitalize on all the organic interest currently surrounding the extensions market, and his long-term goals. Keep scrolling for his incredible insights.
The Tease: Can you give us a brief introduction to the HALO Couture brand and all of its offerings?
Josh Owens: We started HALO Couture in 2009. My aunt [Tina Owens] was the one who created The Original HALO, so we are the originators of the Halo extension. It’s been important to us to be a partner with hairdressers, so trade shows have been very big for us and that’s where we get our market out there.
Our mainstay product is our Halo product. We have our original one as well as our layered one, which has built in layers, and we have them in seven different links. That’s kind of where we grew, and then we’ve grown some product categories off of that. But it’s really those DIY products. What a lot of consumers don’t realize is that they still want that assistance from stylists to help color match them, to cut it to blend, and to make it work. So even if it’s a DIY product after the fact, we believe going through that stylist gives them that salon experience that will set them up to have it going forward.
What do you think separates HALO Couture from other extension brands on the market?
Owens: One thing that’s been great about us is we give people that gateway into extensions. So a lot of times, we find that people first start wearing extensions usually around a special occasion, like a wedding, prom, a big party, or something like that. And, oftentimes, they don’t really know what kind of commitment they want. So the Halo provides that perfect opportunity for them to come in and test a product to see how it looks. What we find a lot of the time is that as people start utilizing the extensions, they realize that they want them everyday. And that’s when they kind of convert over to professionally installed extensions that they don’t have to take in and out every day. So we’re kind of that getaway into the product line and giving people the opportunity to try extensions without the commitment of permanent styled extensions.
Can you briefly share a few of HALO Couture’s most popular products right now?
Owens: Right now, the Halo is our biggest product, and 16 and 18-inch lengths are the most popular. But contrary to what people might think, we have found that our 12 and 14-inch lengths—the shorter lengths— are also very popular. And it’s because a lot of people don’t want this big transformation. They want to solve a problem and they want a little bit of self-confidence back, if they feel like their hair is thinning or as they start to get older and have kids. And so the 12 and 14-inch lengths have become quite popular because they give that little bit of “extra” for people.
Ever since Covid hit, our toppers, which is what we call our “The Fall” pieces, have also become really popular because they are one of the only products that give you coverage on top of the head. Permanent extensions can’t really go up there. So for people that are thinning up top, our toppers have become really popular. It’s a customized piece and the transformations are amazing. They really give people that confidence boost.
What are your ambitions for HALO Couture in 2024?
Owens: Trade shows have always been our mainstay. We’ve been doing them for many years. So we’re always around, but it’s about that connection point. What we really want to solve is getting the end consumer matched with stylists, and also how we can take care of both markets in order to bring more consumers to hair extensions and help them make those relationships with stylists. Because the stylist is going to give them those growing steps when they just want the DIY extensions to try it for themselves. And then when they are ready to make that jump to a permanent extension, stylists are critical. So our ambition is always to try to make that closer and bring that end consumer into the stylist to get the services done.
Can you speak to any current or planned initiatives to help HALO Couture reach and education salon professionals on extensions?
Owens: We’re really leaning in on our marketing to reach consumers. We’re trying different things on our website and with our social channels to bring more consumers in. Amazon is a big area where people are starting to shop and consumers are becoming more savvy. We have a very big stylist base, so our focus is really how we can impact the consumer base to help our stylists out in the market.
In your opinion, what are some of the biggest trends influencing the extensions market, and how are your plans to respond to them?
Owens: I think one of the biggest trends is just the adoption of hair extensions—more and more people are willing to wear them. When I first got into this industry years ago, people didn’t want you to know they’re wearing extensions. Even with celebrities, people would want products for them, but you could never partner with them because they didn’t want to tell people that they’re wearing extensions. It was like a faux pas to have extensions in. So that’s really shifted and changed. Now, extensions are a talked about thing. When people go to their stylists, they are more open to having those conversations about extensions.
I think the biggest change is that the end consumers feel comfortable searching for this product and want to use the product themselves. Five to ten years ago, it was like you put them in and you don’t want people to know that you have it. Now, wearing extensions is a much more acceptable practice for people. I think that’s really the change, and so how do we change with that? Like I said, just reach those markets more as people go through and become more comfortable with extensions, because they really are a self-confidence boost.
I definitely agree with what you are saying about extensions being more normalized now. Speaking to stylists, many have said that social media has had a lot to do with that change.
Owens: Social media has made extensions more commonplace. And that’s why I think where the change is going to happen more is with smaller transformations. Everyone is always wowed by big transformations, but the majority of people don’t want a big transformation. They want to solve a problem. So that’s the challenging part. How do you make stuff go viral on social media that’s not a drastic transformation? Because the majority of people are looking for that—they just want to solve a small problem. They don’t want people to come see them one day and think that something’s completely different the next day. They just want to be complimented and told that they look really good. In the world that we live in that wants all of these dramatic things for virality, the challenge will be in speaking to the majority of people who just want a simple solution or fix. I think brands that can lean into that will expand as more people come into the market because that’s what people are really looking for.
A recent report from Research and Markets showed that social media is driving global demand for hair extensions. With HALO Couture, how do you hope to capitalize on the organic interest and demand that’s currently surrounding hair extensions?
Owens: I think that’s everyone’s goal: how do you capitalize on it in the right way? Because, let’s face it—you can go viral for multiple reasons. With us, it’s the resharing of organic content. So we repost a lot of our stylists’ work that has actual people in their chairs getting the transformations and seeing some of their looks. I think some of the dramatic ones are harder to show because people are more self-conscious about themself being out there on social media. But there’s tons of stuff and we’re always testing things. TikTok is a big one and the challenge with us is that we’re salon professionals only, so consumers can’t buy direct. We go through the salon channel, so we’re trying to merge those two markets with social media.
With sustainability becoming a more prominent issue in the hair industry. What is HALO Couture doing to be more responsible in terms of its operations and product offerings?
Owens: HALO Couture is owned by Beauty Industry Group and they own 11 different extension brands. Sustainability and ethical sourcing are probably some of our most important factors. All of our manufacturing is third-party audited. We make sure from the source all the way through that it’s managed. And then every time we have the opportunity to change packaging or to look at different things, it’s always about sustainability. How can we be better? How can we make those sustainable choices? So our marketing team is very big into that. We take any opportunity we can, as we make changes, to make sure that we’re doing what we can to help.
Lastly, what do you see for the future of HALO Couture, as far as long-term goals?
Owens: It’s really about bridging the gaps. Like I said, I feel like we’re that gateway into the extension market. We were that option for a lot of people to try things out. So we’re looking at how we can keep pushing the boundaries in those areas.
One of our most recent launches is a clip-in line. It’s different from most clip-in extensions because the hair goes all the way to the top and there are different, smaller ones, so they can be more customizable. So we’re looking at how we can be innovative in the areas that are out there. Because clip-ins and halos are some of the most widely used extensions. How we can make them better, more affordable, and easier for people to get into the market are our goals for the next year.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
To learn more about HALO Couture, be sure to visit halocouture.com/ or follow @halocoutureextensions on Instagram.
