D2C indie brand Chāmpo: ‘It feels like quite an exciting time for the hair care market’

20-Oct-2020 - Last updated on 20-Oct-2020 at 15:30 GMT

Chāmpo has a range of shampoos and conditioners targeting specific hair care needs like hydration, volume and balance (Image: Chāmpo Haircare)

The founder of direct-to-consumer (D2C) hair care startup Chāmpo says it’s an exciting time to innovate in a category that has traditionally lacked creativity, as consumers seek out high performance, modern and visually aesthetic brands.

Founded in 2019, the British beauty brand offered a range of hair care products made with active botanicals based on Ayurvedic principles, inspired by its founder’s Indian heritage. The range included hydrating, volumizing and balancing shampoos and conditioners and a ‘weightless’ hair oil – all currently available online from its branded website. Chāmpo also recently signed a four-month residency at the Naked Store in New York to satisfy growing demand in the US.

Consumers want high-performance, modern and luxurious hair care

“We’re bringing innovation to a segment in the beauty market which has traditionally lacked creativity,” said Kuldeep Knox, founder of Chāmpo Haircare.

“It feels like quite an exciting time for the hair care market, and consumers are actively looking for higher performance products that have a more modern and luxurious visual aesthetic that are sensibly priced,” Knox told CosmeticsDesign-Europe.

Kuldeep Knox, founder of Chāmpo Haircare

Chāmpo’s D2C model enabled the brand to adhere to this last point and keep costs down for consumers, she said. “No third-party costs mean we are able to offer the highest quality products and charge a sensible and accessible price.”

Knox said the brand would continue to develop new products with all of this in mind, kickstarting with building out its styling offering to offer follow-on products from its hair oil that should be available by early 2021. She said additional new product development efforts would be geared towards adding treatments to its volumizing selection and developing products that tapped into important and growing trends in haircare, like natural and green.

COVID-19 challenges in an indie beauty world?

Asked if Chāmpo had come up against any business challenges during the ongoing COVID-19 crisis, Knox said the brand had actually fared considerably well.

“Our business grew nearly 200% in the first two months of the COVID lockdown [in the UK], so we had to work closely with our suppliers to try and minimise any stock shortages. All of our products are made here in the UK which has really helped us to overcome manufacturing challenges during this time, and also allowed us to successfully launch our weightless hair oil during the early summer.”