Why I Started Hairbond
From a Lancaster salon to a British styling brand trusted by barbers, footballers and customers around the world.
I started Hairbond because I knew what product could do.
Before Hairbond, I was running The Cutting Room in Lancaster. I was also leading salon sales locally for brands like ghd and Fudge.
I saw it every day.
A great haircut changed how someone looked.
The right product changed how long that feeling lasted.
I recommended products to everyone. Not because I wanted to push something. Because I believed in what they did.
At The Cutting Room, we were selling 50 to 100 products a week. For an independent salon, that was serious. It taught me something I never forgot.
If a product works, people come back.
Then 2008 hit.
The recession arrived hard. My bank pulled my overdraft. Just like that, the safety net was gone.
I remember looking at the numbers and knowing the truth.
I could keep grafting and stay exposed.
Or I could build something stronger.
Not another busy week.
Not another decent month.
A brand.
My own brand.
I brought in a Lancaster University student to help with market research. We looked at names, positioning and what the market was missing.
Then the name came.
Hairbond.
James Bond.
Bond Street.
The bond people have with their hair.
Simple. Descriptive. Sharp.
It felt right.
A mate helped with the logo. I built the first website. Then I went searching for packaging.
I tested jars. Caps. Finishes. Materials.
In the end, I chose the most expensive option.
Probably stupid.
Definitely necessary.
I wanted Hairbond to feel premium before anyone opened the jar. If we were going to compete with the best, we had to look like we belonged there.
Then came the first batch.
I found a chemist willing to make a small run. A few thousand units.
It took nearly everything I had.
I remember staring at those first orders, knowing I had bet my savings on something that only existed because I refused to stay small.
Then it dragged.
Weeks became months. Stress became normal. When the batch was finally done, the manufacturer made it clear that an order like mine was not worth the hassle.
They sent a legal letter and insulted me on the way out.
I was furious.
But it did me a favour.
I found another manufacturer.
Smaller.
Better.
Honest.
The complete opposite.
Eighteen years later, we still use them.
They grew.
We grew.
That is Hairbond in one line.
Get hit. Keep moving.
Then the brand started to travel.
A James Dean hair tutorial hit millions of views online. Orders came in. Hairbond climbed into the top ten best-selling professional styling brands on Amazon UK.
Wholesalers started calling.
Barbers started using it.
Customers started coming back.
Then came another punch.
A packaging supplier who had invested in the business later launched a competing brand and started approaching my customers.
I threatened legal action and got my position back.
There was no big celebration.
Just more work.
I had around 50,000 jars to move.
So I moved them.
We sold across Britain, Europe and beyond. We signed major wholesale deals. We exhibited across America. We worked with people from cricket, football, film and music.
Jimmy Anderson used Hairbond.
Simon Mignolet used Hairbond.
Stylists used it behind the scenes on major film sets.
Distorter found its way into the world of Birdman.
Hairbond was used around productions connected to John Wick and some of the biggest names in Hollywood.
A brand that started in Lancaster was now turning up in rooms I used to watch from the outside.
But I never wanted Hairbond to become loud for the sake of it.
I did not want fake hype.
I did not want empty advertising.
I wanted people to find us because someone they trusted recommended us.
That was the promise.
Showcase the product.
Respect the craft.
Build it properly.
We created an ambassador community. We held events across the UK. We met barbers, stylists and customers who genuinely cared.
That was the best part.
The people.
The loyalty.
The belief.
But it was never easy.
One US distributor stored Hairbond in a shipping container in Texas. The heat damaged the product. Jars dried out. Customers were lost.
It was not our fault.
But it was our name on the jar.
So I replaced thousands of them.
It cost money.
It hurt.
But reputation matters more than margin.
Then football found Hairbond.
Players began using it because it worked.
Jack Grealish said he used it.
Jordan Pickford used it.
Jamie Vardy used it.
Harry Winks used it.
And plenty more did too.
Hairbond became one of the most recognised hair styling brands in football without chasing football.
No gimmick.
No fake story.
Just product, barbers and word of mouth.
Now, eighteen years later, Hairbond enters its next chapter.
Same name.
Same standards.
Same refusal to cut corners.
But this time we are sharper.
New products are coming.
The brand is being rebuilt.
The website is stronger.
The partner platform is growing.
The ambition is back.
Hairbond was never built by a boardroom.
It was built in salons.
In barbershops.
In changing rooms.
In bathrooms before nights out.
In the hands of people who care how they look.
That is why it lasted.
Not because we shouted the loudest.
Because we kept showing up.
Eighteen years ago, I built Hairbond because I believed quality would always outlast hype.
I still believe that today.
If you have supported Hairbond from the start, thank you.
If you are new to the brand, welcome.
The next chapter starts here.
Use Hairbond at Hairbond.com.
Partner with us at partners.hairbond.com.
This rebuild is not a smooth comeback. It is being done slowly, around health issues, with support, difficult days, and a lot of help.
Hairbond gives me purpose, but it does not mean the challenges have gone.
The story isn’t over. Hairbond is entering its next chapter, and I’m proud to still be part of it.
Scott
Founder, Hairbond