With its Diffuse Sweat headband set to launch in the U.S. this month, 12-year-old British fitness brand Gymshark brought insights from its diverse team and their experiences into product development. The product launched in the U.K. and the E.U. on February 15, followed by the U.S. on February 19.
“Like all Gymshark products, and particularly within our women’s category, we aim to give the community one less thing to think about when heading to the gym,” said Rochelle Mills, Gymshark’s senior designer. Mills initiated the project based on her own frustrations with fitting her hair schedule around her workouts.
The wig market is a big opportunity for fashion and beauty brands globally. According to research company Future Market Insights, the global hair wig and extensions market size is poised to cross $7.3 million in 2024 and reach $15.2 million by 2034.
“Myself and my colleague, Aaliyah Dickens, our global brand culture manager, are Black women, and we had some enlightening conversations about our hair being a barrier when going to the gym,” said Mills. “We sometimes avoid workouts due to new braids or worry about sweat affecting our wig glue.”
Mills said that the brand welcomed the opportunity to address this challenge for women with textured hair. “We shared our thoughts with the Gymshark accessories design team and saw an opportunity to address these barriers with a tailored product for textured hair,” said Mills.
As part of the product’s development, Gymshark also organized a focus group last year that brought together Black U.K. influencers to discuss the challenges of exercising with textured hair. Group members said they tailor their workout schedules around their hair-care routines, sometimes avoiding physical activity for a week to preserve styles like new braids or wigs.
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The Diffuse Sweat headband’s design was developed in-house using Gymshark’s proprietary seamless knit technology. It features a double-layer design for multiple wearing options, from pulling the hair back to providing sweat-wicking coverage across the forehead. The headband was engineered to stay secure, no matter the intensity of the workout. It’s selling for £20, or $25 in the U.S., and is exclusively available on Gymshark’s e-commerce site in each region. The U.S. launch was timed to coincide with Black History Month.
Whitney Adebayo, Gymshark’s first “Love Island” ambassador and founder of wig business CC Hair, is the ambassador for the headband. “Wigs are expensive,” she said. “When you install a wig, you want to bide your time with it and have as much time with it on as possible. The [headband’s] technology and the science inside is able to absorb the sweat without disrupting the lace.”
According to Adebayo, the wig category has long been overlooked by fashion and fitness brands. “It’s hard for [Black women] to choose between care and maintenance,” said Adebayo. “This is probably the first product that’s taken into consideration the problems that we have, like being torn between working out and keeping your hair neat.”
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Gymshark has a history of championing inclusivity in its product assortment. For example, in February 2023, it launched sports hijab head coverings. “Our goal is to ensure our community feels comfortable stepping into the gym, and we strive to address any battles they might face before even reaching the door,” Mills said.
In 2023, Gymshark was valued at £1.2 billion, according to Forbes, and it has two stores in London. North America drives about half of the brand’s revenue. In its fiscal 2022, the company saw its revenue rise to £484 million, or $608 million, marking a 20% increase year-over-year.
