Showpony, Australia’s much loved hair extensions brand has been on a journey of impressive international expansion in recent years, and now is turning heads in their most exciting new market yet, hitting the UK in collaboration with Sweet Squared, writes Cameron Pine.
UK salon clients dreaming of cascading beach waves and luscious volume locks are now in luck, as from August 2021 UK salons can purchase Australia’s leading professional hair extensions brand, Showpony, from Sweet Squared. Sweet Squared specialises in distributing the best and most innovative professional brands in the hair and beauty space, and Showpony adds another dimension to this full service salon focused distributor.
Built on an extensive family history, including over 35 years of combined experience in premium hair extensions and wig manufacturing, Showpony is the number one trusted hair extensions brand in Australia, and the most environmentally friendly too, thanks to a brand and packaging relaunch in 2019.
2019 was a boom year for Showpony, seeing the expansion of this Australian company into Europe and a commitment to a more sustainable future with the launch of stunning new eco-friendly packaging that is a world first in the hair extensions category.
Founder and CEO Stephanie Mason says the launch into the UK market has been a long time coming and a dream of hers for many years.
“We look up to the amazing level of skill and talent of so many UK hairdressers, so we are extremely excited and proud to now be a part of their incredible work,” Stephanie said. “It’s clear to see that hair extensions are going through a massive growth phase, and we work closely with our salon partners to make hair extensions a success for their businesses too.” Showpony offers an innovative and elevated in salon service, with premium products and a six-step quality assurance program to ensure salon clients are receiving the best possible results each and every time. Showpony hair is made of 80 per cent Indian hair and 20 per cent European hair, with Indian hair chosen for its strength and European hair for the softness.
Working as a model from a young age, Stephanie was exposed to the creative world of wigs and accessories and developed a keen interest for the fashion and beauty industry. Her passion now is not only growing the business, but also the environment.
“Honestly it pains me to see how much plastic is being wasted on product packaging. My best friend is an environmental scientist and she played a big part in educating me on how we can lessen our impact on the planet,” Stephanie said. “If our passion is to ensure that hair extensions are a service available at every salon, we must also do our part in helping to support salons on how we impact the environment. I walk on the beach each day and you always see me with rubbish I’ve collected while walking – we must all do what we can to help.”
Stephanie’s brand is available for all people and all ages and, entering a new world of gender neutrality, Stephanie is excited for her range to have a universal system that hairdressers can understand all over the world.
Rewind back to when Stephanie first launched her brand more than 12 years ago and there were only a few synthetic clip-in and lower grade human hair products were being produced.
“Most of these products were made from cheap materials and were difficult to blend naturally,” Stephanie said. “Showpony is changing the way the industry views hair extensions by creating endless opportunities to help clients look and feel beautiful.”
With a premium range of products to suit a variety of hair types, Showpony encourages salons to think beyond just adding length, but to use extensions to add volume, fill in gaps and to add noncommittal colour in as little as 15 minutes.
“For us it’s about partners who share our values from product performance to the world in which we live,” Stephanie explained. “I am extremely conscious of climate change and how as a business we can be doing more to reduce our effect on the environment. My team and I have spent countless hours brainstorming how we can reduce our footprint both in the office and in our product offering.”
“We are also proud to offer all of our authorised Showpony salons full support across education, sales and marketing across the UK,” Stephanie added. “We really do make purchasing the right products for any client a breeze no matter what country they’re in.”
For more information visit www.sweetsquared.com
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