How do U feel about hair companies jumping on the natural hair products bandwagon?

[jjjjjbrown1974]

......and now it's all trivialized...

kinda like when everyone liked metallica after the single "one"/their "and justice for all album". no more thrash metal fan exclusivity... at least, that's what i liken it too...

[Karibana]

I don't have a problem with companies cashing it. We've complained for a long time that there were no products available for natural hair so why should we complain if they do pay attention. I don't think that natural is that special, it is simply how it grows out of our head.

Makeup companies ignored us for years until MAC, Fashion Fair and Iman came along, and that finally got the drugstore brands to first create special collections for us, then they simply extended the range of colours available in their regular brands to cover our end of the spectrum. It is what's happening with natural hair IMO. L'Oréal already owns SoftSheen-Carson, wait until Procter and Gamble realizes there's a buck to be made in the natural hair business.

[Mikalia42]

I just find it annoying how anything labeled as 'natural' costs more. I don't like how the products that are most beneficial to the hair are more expensive. I don't use most of that stuff, but if I was someone considering going natural and saw how expensive everything was, and how complicated natural hair has been made out to be, I might be put off.

An important thing to keep in mind is that "natural" products cost more because the ingredients cost more. Which is why Shea Moisture products--all of them--cost no less than $10, and why a 16oz jar of Kinky Curly is practically $30. A product whose creators go out of their way to make sure are organic and specially formulated for natural hair is not going to be cheap. It's like getting a tattoo: you get what you pay for. If you just want something "that works", then there's a myriad of wallet friendly products on the market. But if you want something that performs and does something specific for you, then you're going to find yourself shelling out. Ultimately, it all boils down to what you as an individual want and your hair needs.

[Claire76]

An important thing to keep in mind is that "natural" products cost more because the ingredients cost more. Which is why Shea Moisture products--all of them--cost no less than $10, and why a 16oz jar of Kinky Curly is practically $30. A product whose creators go out of their way to make sure are organic and specially formulated for natural hair is not going to be cheap. It's like getting a tattoo: you get what you pay for. If you just want something "that works", then there's a myriad of wallet friendly products on the market. But if you want something that performs and does something specific for you, then you're going to find yourself shelling out. Ultimately, it all boils down to what you as an individual want and your hair needs.

Amen. It's like food.

Also, if we're laying down pet peeves--I don't know about other provinces Canada, but where I live, "black" hair care products have ALWAYS cost more than those marketed to other hair types. When I was younger and my family visited the States, I noticed that everyone's haircare products cost about the same. But once we went back home...

[Scribetastic]

To the OP, it's logical and companies both want and need to make money. Now that natural hair is becoming another way that we wear our hair we just can't be ignored and they're going to cash in on this shift in the market. Since I don't buy products for the most part, I've ignored them when I've seen them on the shelves. I have no idea about how much they cost, what they promise or their ingredients. I just don't have time for that.

Like @MommieDearest, it comes too late for me. I have a couple of products that I use but my staples are protein conditioner that I use every few weeks, cheap conditioner for co-washing and castor oil to twist my hair. That's it, that's all. I'm a hair product company's nightmare as I'm simply someone who can do just fine without them.

Again, it's completely predictable that companies are now creating or repackaging products geared towards natural hair.

[akamsnikki]

I just find it annoying how anything labeled as 'natural' costs more. I don't like how the products that are most beneficial to the hair are more expensive. I don't use most of that stuff, but if I was someone considering going natural and saw how expensive everything was, and how complicated natural hair has been made out to be, I might be put off.

This is my issue too. Why though?

[bhop13]

I don't have a problem with companies cashing it. We've complained for a long time that there were no products available for natural hair so why should we complain if they do pay attention. I don't think that natural is that special, it is simply how it grows out of our head.

ITA with this.

An important thing to keep in mind is that "natural" products cost more because the ingredients cost more. Which is why Shea Moisture products--all of them--cost no less than $10, and why a 16oz jar of Kinky Curly is practically $30. A product whose creators go out of their way to make sure are organic and specially formulated for natural hair is not going to be cheap. It's like getting a tattoo: you get what you pay for. If you just want something "that works", then there's a myriad of wallet friendly products on the market. But if you want something that performs and does something specific for you, then you're going to find yourself shelling out. Ultimately, it all boils down to what you as an individual want and your hair needs.

I remember buying Shea moisture before they went into mainstream stores. I don't think the stuff was $10 and it was a different formula. I don't like the stuff that's out now. We're paying for quality. It's the same way with food. You get what you pay for.

[gilroygal]

Agree with many of the other posters...in the same way, products that are fragrance-free often cost more. As someone who searched far and wide for an oil and glycerin free product that would also be fragrance free AND have ZERO plant extracts, imagine my surprise when I ended up paying $9.00 per bottel for said products. THEY HAVE FEWER INGREDIENTS and what's in them is pretty much what is in MOST hair care products minus, glycerin, oils, plant extracts, propylene glycol, etc etc. Each product PROBABLY has about 4-5 SYNTHETIC ingredients. Guess what? They KNOW that there are NUMEROUS people out there who are chemically sensitive and therefore they can charge more, because it is marketed towards people who fit a certain niche, if you will. The same thing goes for "natural" products. There is this stereotype out there (as I mentioned in my earlier post) that people who wear their hair "natural" use "natural" products.

I agree with Karibana that there is nothing "special" about natural hair. It is just hair to me NOW, but it took a while to get there. I always felt (in the beginning) like I was a part of some exclusive club or something, LOL.

[Bumble bee]

Well, like everybody else I feel that these companies are just after the cash so they don't really care about natural hair. I have never used products labelled exclusively for natural hair 'cause am a student and I can't afford them. I prefer using natural mostly homemade stuff on my hair. The bottom line is, don't go buying stuff you can't afford 'cause it says 'natural' and please ladies always check the ingredients list.

[Claire76]

This is my issue too. Why though?

If you go back up in the thread you'll see that Mikalia42 did a great job of explaining why. Items that have naturally-sourced ingredients cost more across the board. I mentioned food as something to use for comparison. Just look at the price of processed foods versus average or mainstream foods compared to those that are labelled "organic" or found in specialty stores such as Whole Foods.

Items are priced according to what they're made with.