Aveda is hoping to make some waves — and curls and coils — with the reintroduction of its Be Curly Advanced collection, which has been reformulated. To bring the collection back to life, the 46-year-old brand has tapped its first celebrity ambassador, Antonia “Toni” Gentry.
Gentry is the 26-year-old star of the Netflix show “Ginny and Georgia.” She has 3.7 million followers on Instagram and 4.6 million on TikTok. She is biracial — her mother is a Black woman from Jamaica and her father is white.
In 2021, Aveda tapped model Arizona Muse as its first global advocate for sustainability, but Gentry is its first true celebrity face. “We wanted a partner who [would have] an authentic connection with textured hair guests,” said David Hutchinson, Aveda’s svp of global marketing. The brand was also looking for someone willing to share their own hair journey, which, for women of color can be fraught. In a 2021 interview with Marie Claire, Genry spoke about experiencing bullying about her hair throughout her life.
“When we met with Antonia, we fell in love with the powerful, authentic story she had to tell about her own curl journey,” Hutchinson said. “She is … so relatable, so engaging and very honest with her community and embodies our Aveda values.”
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The renovated Be Curly Advanced collection includes seven products that were formulated under the leadership of BIPOC women to ensure a focus on their actual needs and concerns.
“[For example] we had 4C formulators [working] on our coil definer and trying the product themselves. We also had our stylist evaluating the product and giving us tips for using it on many different [curl] types,” Harris said. “The [process] was very game-changing for this industry.”
The collection’s reformulation has been in the works for the past four years.
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“It started with looking at the inherent difference in textured hair — it’s naturally weaker, drier and less shiny than straight hair,” said Asha Harris, Aveda’s executive director of marketing. “So, we had to address these many differences.” The resulting products focus on concerns including hydration, protection and strength. And, since textured hair typically necessitates the use of larger amounts of products, especially conditioner, the brand made Be Curly Advanced collection products larger than most Aveda products. The collection, priced $36-$65, includes shampoo, conditioner, a masque, a primer, a co-wash, a curl enhancer and a coil definer.
Be Curly was originally introduced in 2001 with one product, the Curl Enhancer — more products were soon added. The collection will be phased out as Be Curly Advanced replaces it. The relaunch is intended to make the collection “relevant for all curl and coil types,” according to a brand representative.
“Before, the primary focus was waves and curls. It’s now waves, curls and coils,” they said.
According to a white paper published by the British Beauty Council, in 2023, the textured hair-care market was worth $10 billion. In recent years, it’s experienced consistent annual growth of around 5%.
For Gentry’s part, she said signing on for the partnership took some convincing because she so rarely works with anyone who truly knows how to care for curly hair. The Be Curly Advanced products were still being tested when Aveda approached her, and the company asked her to test them, as well. “Obviously, at the end of the day, I needed the products to work — I needed to actually like them,” she said. “And I really do. … At this point, I’ve used them for a very long time now.”
In fact, she said, the collection has shortened the time she spends getting ready. “I fell in love with the way my hair responded to the products. They’ve changed the way that I do my hair, and they’ve changed my schedule — they’ve impacted me in a very positive way.”
The brand campaign will live across social media platforms, with a focus on TikTok. Gentry will kick off the campaign on her own TikTok page with a post speaking to what her curly hair means to her and prompting other creators to stitch her content. Throughout April and May, Gentry will also share assets showing her hair’s transformation and behind-the-scenes content from the campaign shoot. From there, the brand will launch a social campaign that plays on the “get ready with me” video format — “get curly with me” videos will be posted by Gentry and other influencer partners.
According to Aveda, it’s the top-selling naturally derived hair-care brand globally and one of the top prestige hair-care brands in each of its sales regions, which include EMEA, the U.K., APAC, North America and China. In parent company Estée Lauder’s 2023 fiscal report, it was noted that “hair care net sales rose 6%, primarily reflecting growth from both The Ordinary, due to the recent launch of the brand’s hair care products, and Aveda.” An Aveda spokesperson declined to comment on the company’s revenue.
