Let's hear it for the curls: Ingredients and formulations for textured hair

By Austyn King | Published: 28-Jul-2021

With 65% of the world rocking curly, coily or kinky hair, discover the latest formulation concepts for textured hair and the ingredients that power them

Inclusivity and diversity have been the beauty buzzwords of the last few years – and for many consumers, it's undoubtedly a change that is long overdue.

As, historically, the image of beautiful hair has been overwhelmingly straight-haired and Caucasian-centric, the needs of those with curly, textured, coily and afro hair have too often been overlooked, despite the fact that around 1 billion people – more than 65% of the world's population – have curly or textured hair, according to data from chemicals company Solvay.

Now, however, the tide is finally turning: with hair care products mentioning ‘textured’ on-pack jumping 55% between 2016 and 2020, according to Mintel, and curl-dedicated brands from Shedid & Parrish and Virtue to HairFlair and DevaCurl springing up, curly-haired consumers today represent one of the fastest growing markets in the industry. There's never been a better time to embrace the waves, so what formulations are available to give curls the care they deserve?

“African hair is typified by kinks and coils along the hair shaft, an elliptical cross- section and fewer cuticle layers than other hair types,” Deedi Modey, Marketing Manager Personal Care Sub-Sahara Africa at BASF, explains to Cosmetics Business.

Because of this, curly-haired consumers often struggle with

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