“I need to be the Tesla of sustainable luxury haircare” Frédéric Fekkai
When Fekkai reveals at subsequent month’ s Virtual Travel Retail Expo, the firm won’t solely be showcasing its famend haircare merchandise however a notable heritage and a deep-rooted philosophy very a lot in tune with our occasions.
“When I purchased again the firm in 2018, I did it with the mission of giving shoppers the most sustainable merchandise with the cleanest formulation,” says Founder Frédéric Fekkai as he appears again on the starting of his namesake model’s formidable sustainability journey. “Sustainability is a shifting goal and we wish all our merchandise to not simply have a minimal influence on the planet, however for them to have a constructive one.”
Fekkai, in partnership with personal funding firm Cornell, purchased again his firm after promoting it to Procter & Gamble in 2008. Armed with a renewed imaginative and prescient, Fekkai, a pioneer in the salon haircare house, got down to turn into ‘the Tesla of sustainable luxury haircare’.
“When I first began this enterprise in the mid-nineties, I got down to produce the first-ever luxury haircare model. Back then, individuals thought I used to be loopy as a result of haircare was at all times a commodity and never a luxury product. Today, individuals are difficult our goal to be fully sustainable, however we are proving that we are. We need to be a pioneer in sustainability, we need to make it sexy.”
In this illuminating interview, Frederic Fekkai talks about his total imaginative and prescient for journey retail, balancing revenue and goal, and the function his eponymous model will play in increasing the relatively-new haircare class in the channel. He additionally outlines the tangible methods by which his enterprise is making a constructive influence on the planet and his mission of changing into the cleanest, most sustainable and only salon haircare model in journey retail and past.
Fekkai has vowed to create the cleanest, most sustainable salon efficiency model in the world
Let’s begin with Fekkai’s presence at the Virtual Travel Retail Expo? How will you be utilizing the occasion?
We are a heritage salon model, one of the first in the business. Today, we’ve got developed a incredible assortment of merchandise forming totally different franchises from Full Blown Volume, Technician Color, Brilliant Gloss, Super Strength, CBD Scalp Calming, Baby Blonde and Shea Butter.
Most of these strains might be out there in mini-formats and travel-friendly sizes for journey retail. We have simply launched an incredible line that focuses on Apple Cider Detox, which takes inspiration from a model I launched a few years in the past that was centred round apple cider vinegar, and we’ve got extra haircare styling merchandise that are popping out too.
Fekkai is famend for its sturdy skilled hair and salon enterprise. How do you intend to translate that success into journey retail?
The journey retail buyer could be very subtle and are very conversant in manufacturers. This subtle buyer is at all times in search of exclusivity and types that aren’t available in every single place. They need to be the first to find one thing new. In our case, they may uncover a model that has the world authority in salon efficiency, with well-respected status as stylist to the stars.
Our journey retail providing will comprise a wide selection of minis at 8.5 ounces that permits travellers to have an important choice of merchandise that are efficient and fantastic for the surroundings. We imagine our vary might be nice for gifting too, because it permits travellers to provide their family members a product that isn’t out there of their nation.
A pioneer in the luxury haircare house, Fekkai seeks to interrupt new floor in journey retail with its journey pleasant line of focused merchandise
Tell us extra about your mission to ‘create the cleanest, most sustainable hair care that delivers salon efficiency to each buyer?’ How has this ethos knowledgeable what you are promoting strategy over the years and the way does it color your journey retail technique?
When I purchased again the firm in 2018, I did it with the mission of giving shoppers the most sustainable merchandise with the cleanest formulation. Today, there isn’t one sustainable regulation throughout the business, however we’ve got very excessive requirements and attempt to be the finest we will be. Sustainability is a shifting goal and we wish all our merchandise to not simply have a minimal influence on the planet, however for them to have a constructive one.
In phrases of packaging, we discovered an incredible accomplice in Canada. He is 70 years previous and has been producing sustainable packaging since the finish of WW2. What I really like about him is that he doesn’t simply discuss the discuss however walks the stroll. His manufacturing facility in Niagara Falls even runs on renewable hydro-electric energy. We additionally discovered a accomplice who buys food-grade plastic for recycling. Thanks to those companions, all our plastics are made with 95% recycled materials.
In phrases of formulation, we ensure to make use of solely non-toxic substances. We leverage nature and science to develop merchandise that are secure, pure and high-performing. It’s a lovely journey for us and it’s solely getting higher. I discover that there aren’t loads of manufacturers which have what we’ve got, they are speaking about being sustainable by 2030, and since we are small and agile, we are very near reaching 100% sustainability.
In phrases of your dedication to sustainability, how do you steadiness revenue and goal?
This problem is a component of the journey. Producing a bottle with 95% recycled plastics is costlier, sourcing eco-friendly and sustainable substances is costlier, however that is half of me and my companies’ life-style. This is how we reside in my own residence. I don’t go to a market and purchase fruit and veggies that aren’t natural. Why ought to we simply care about the well being of our our bodies and never additionally the well being of what we put on our our bodies too?
When I first began this enterprise in the mid-90s, I got down to produce the first-ever luxury haircare model. Back then, individuals thought I used to be loopy as a result of haircare was at all times a commodity and never a luxury product. Today, individuals are difficult our goal to be fully sustainable, however we are proving that we are. We need to be a pioneer in sustainability, we need to make it sexy. I feel sustainability is the new stylish.
Fekkai’s merchandise are vegan, cruelty-free, paraben-free, sulfate-free and produced with a minimal carbon footprint
In your opinion, what makes Fekkai a winner in the journey retail channel and what level of distinction does it create for the retailer in a crowded market?
On the shelf, what units us aside is our merchandise’ hanging design and colors. Most manufacturers have one signature color and stick with it, however it’s like spoon-feeding your model to the buyer.
Beyond that, if clients look additional into what goes right into a Fekkai product, they may see an unimaginable record of pure and sustainable substances and that’s what we stand for. We are cruelty-free, paraben-fee, gluten-free, sulfate-free. Our whole dedication to sustainability resonates with the journey retail shoppers of at this time and that actually provides us a bonus.
Haircare as a class continues to be comparatively fledgling in the channel. What function can Fekkai play in rising the sector?
Hair caremay be a brand new class in journey retail, however Fekkai is a pioneer in luxury salon haircare. We are giving clients the alternative to purchase our merchandise in journey retail that have been beforehand solely out there in salons. We additionally supply such all kinds of collections that serve totally different functions for the travelling client. For instance, our anti-frizz vary is ideal for tropical locations whereas our super-strength line is ideal for weathering colder temperatures.
There are different purposes as properly. Before COVID-19, I used to be exploring the concept of launching salon experiences in airport lounges and responsibility free shops. We wished to open a couple of salons right here and there and gauge urge for food, however clearly the pandemic has put a pause on that. When all the things goes again to regular, I feel that may very well be an exquisite development avenue for us.
What are your main targets by geography, channel or retailer kind?
Since we are primarily based in New York, the US market is essential for us. We have already got such sturdy model consciousness in the US, so it might be superb to increase on that in journey retail too. Fekkai has at all times been a fascinating model in Asia Pacific and the Middle East, so we are concentrating on these areas. We have such a variety of merchandise that may principally cater to totally different populations in numerous areas of the world and we need to have fun that.
The excellent news is that journey is slowly recovering. Now is the time to introduce the model, and we are going to do far more to achieve publicity in the channel, which features a world social media marketing campaign. I’m a agency believer that you just don’t throw all the things at the buyer, however launch issues little by little. We will introduce one franchise after one other, we’ll begin with a couple of and spotlight how we are consistently innovating like a revolving window of merchandise.
What message do you’ve gotten for Expo attendees discovering Fekkai for the first time?
I need to invite them to find who we are. We are the first luxury haircare model to defy the gravity of efficiency by being sustainable, clear and extremely efficient. When the first electrical vehicles have been launched, they’d only a few purchasers. Today, Tesla, Audi and Porsche all have electrical vehicles. In my view, we are the Tesla of sustainable luxury haircare.
Fekkai is a Gold Partner of the Virtual Travel Retail Expo (11-15 October). It can be exhibiting at the TFWA Exhibition in Cannes (24-28 October) in sales space U2 at the Ambassadors Village.
https://www.moodiedavittreport.com/we-are-the-tesla-of-sustainable-luxury-haircare-frederic-fekkai-on-making-sustainability-sexy/
