Dyson is betting on a new set of tools to expand its hair business.
Today, the brand announced two new attachments for its best-selling hair dryer, the Dyson Supersonic, which retails for $399.99 and debuted in 2016. The first new item in Dyson’s arsenal of hair tools is a gentle-air dryer designed to style fine hair and sensitive scalps, while also preventing color fade. The second, a wide-tooth comb for curly hair is meant to shape, lengthen and create volume for customers. Both retail for $39.00 and will only be sold through Dyson’s e-commerce platform at this time.
In 2018, Dyson reported $1.4 billion in profits, a 33% increase from 2017. While hair is a new category for the company — the category continues to grow in beauty: Within prestige, it is the fastest-growing segment and saw a 25% increase in sales in 2018, per market research firm NPD Group.
“It’s always been part of the plan to extend our reach into even more hair types,” said Robyn Coutts, advanced design engineer at Dyson. “We are continuously developing, and Supersonic is, at the moment, still the best product on the market. The attachments are going to improve the experience.”
The air dryer slightly diffuses the air and brings down the temperature for people with sensitive scalps. The wide-tooth comb, meanwhile, is innovation not currently on the market, said Coutts. “I think the pick and gentle dryer are going to change the conversation of hair styling in an innovative way,” said Jawara Wauchope, global styling ambassador for Dyson Hair.” It’s the answer to the problems we’ve been trying to solve with styling hair at home. We’re keeping the integrity of the hair while still keeping performance top of mind.”
Of the wide-tooth comb, specifically, Coutts said, “If you have to buy five or six wide-tooth combs, they are all very similar. There is not much change or difference in them, and they come from a handful of factories. There’s no development being put into them, whereas at Dyson we are doing our own research. We put so much money into hair science and understanding hair.”
Since late last year, Dyson continues to push beyond its core products of vacuums and lighting, and into beauty and wellness. In October 2018, it expanded its hair offering to include the Airwrap tool, which sells for $499.99 and was designed as a multitasking hair tool. And in April, the company launched its Lightweight wellness light, which retails for $600 to $900. It simulates natural light and helps improve sleep and general well-being.
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