So you want to start a haircare brand...

Jaymes Xaya wanted the same thing, and he did just that with Pump Powder. We talked with him about his success and learned how he did it. Here's 5 strategies from Jaymes' experience to build your own lucrative haircare brand.

1) Analyze existing brands

• We all have brands that we love, but do you ever stop to think why?
• Jaymes was infatuated with Elegance, so he started to ask himself the reasoning behind it
• Elegance was young, modern, and mysterious

Exercise: Pick out your favorite brand and write a list of characteristics that you find attractive about it. Use the characteristics you find most important to develop your own brand.

Listen

2) Differentiate your product

• Jaymes knew he couldn't make another gel or pomade and have it blow up
• The market for these products is saturated, and Jaymes didn't have the personal platform to make a simple product blow up (i.e. STMNT grooming)
• He needed a differentiator and he found that by adding a novel applicator for a texture powder

Exercise: Examine the products you use. Ask yourself what you don't like about the product. Are these dislikes something that could be fixed to make a better version?

Listen

3) Educate your consumer

• No matter how intuitive you may think your product is, you still need to teach your customers how to use it
• Create videos and graphics that help the consumer get the most out of your product

Exercise: Give your product to a potential customer and watch how they use it. You will find a pattern in these behaviors that will inform you on how to educate the consumer properly.

4) Build the hype

• Find ways to get your customers to post your product
• The more others see it, the more they will want it. We call this a "fear of missing out"
• Jaymes runs a weekly giveaway for small bottle of Pump Powder. How do customers enter? By posting videos and photos of them using the products. Jaymes is paying a small cost for TONS of content

Exercise: Consider what is valuable to your customers. What will entice them enough to take an action that you want them to and is of low cost to you?

Listen

5) Find ways to get in front of customers

• How can you get your product in front of customers that will make them want to buy?
• Jaymes runs education courses to teach students how to do certain haircuts. In each instance, he uses his product to style the haircut
• Potential customers attribute the look of the haircut with the product. "If I want to achieve this look, I need this product"

Exercise: Ask yourself where your customers spend their time. Once you have the answers, figure out how you can meet them at those places. Further, consider what is the best way of getting your product into hands when you meet them.