Flawless By Gabrielle Union: Gabrielle Union, Larry Sims Relaunch Hair-Care Line

UNITED STATES — Actress Gabrielle Union and hairstylist Larry Sims relaunched Union’s former hair-care line, Flawless by Gabrielle Union.

In 2017, D.M. Fashion Book reported that Union teamed up with Macadamia Beauty LLC and launched Flawless by Gabrielle Union at Ulta Beauty (see it here).

Slated for launch on Aug. 3, Flawless by Gabrielle Union marks its reintroduction to the market with a debut 12 products.

Co-created with Sims, Union’s longtime hairstylist, the line is slated to launch first with Amazon, with plans to expand into Sally Beauty in October. The initial launch includes Hydrating Detangling Shampoo; 3 Minute Restoring Conditioner; Hydrating Co-Wash Cleansing Conditioner; Repairing Deep Conditioning Masque; Detangling Leave-In Conditioner; Restoring Exotic Oil Treatment; Scalp Soothing Tonic; Defining Curl Cream; Smoothing Blow Dry Cream; Shine Enhancing Heat Protection Spray, and Hydrating Curl Refreshing Spray. Prices range from $4 to $10. A second phase of hair mask launches is slated for 2021.

The duo anticipate the 3 Minute Restoring Conditioner to pique the most consumer interest. “It’s probably the star, if we have to choose,” Union said. “It gives the hair that silky feeling with none of the harmful ingredients.”

Union identifies the company as “majority Black-owned,” as she and Sims co-created the brand and retain control, in addition to garnering some outside funding. Industry sources estimate the line will bring in $5.6 million in retail sales during its first year.

Union credits personal experience as inspiration for the brand, noting that her own experiences with IVF left her dealing with premature balding. After collaborating with Sims — “I know she’s married to Dwyane [Wade], but I feel like I’m married to both her and her hair,” he said — on the best ways to stimulate hair growth and promote hair health, she incorporated ingredients she had success with, like biotin, creatine, rice oil complex and Brazilian bacuri butter.

“We had already done a lot of the legwork as far as choosing ingredients goes,” said Sims, who also highlighted the line’s absence of parabens, sulfates and silicones.

“A lot of women have had issues with premature balding, hormone-induced balding, hair loss, hair breakage, and I wanted to be able to address a lot of these issues but without price gouging,” Union added.

The relaunch was originally slated for March, but was postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic. Union noted that without access to salons, the timing wound up having a silver lining. “While we were in quarantine, many women were wanting to experiment with different hairstyles, whether that’s braids or waves, and really needed products that allowed them to experiment, at an affordable price point,” she said.

Photos Credit: Courtesy of Flawless by Gabrielle Union