Recap of ‘The Haircare Gap’ - CCUK Webinar - 21st January 2026
- Feb 4
- 4 min read
With well over 300 RSVPs, this was an outstanding topic of interest within the beauty Industry and CCUK members and subscribers. The webinar explored the "Hair Care Gap" between skincare and hair care innovation, with presentations from Helene Hine (Croda Beauty), Catherine Leray (THG Labs), Peter Luebcke (Valogen Biosciences) and Paul Cornwell (TRI Princeton), discussing the challenges and opportunities in the hair care industry.
Catherine highlighted the limited scientific validation in hair care compared to skincare, while Paul emphasised the timeless consumer needs in hair care and the importance of product testing. Helene gave a comprehensive market overview and introduced a new hair care ingredient, Kerabio 31. Peter talked about the opportunities and issues being a start-up supplier of new biomaterials for haircare.
The speakers discussed various testing methods for hair and scalp care, including sensory testing, clinical trials, instrumental analysis, and emerging technologies. They also touched on the shift towards more biological approaches in hair care, the role of lipids in hair health, and the challenges of meeting consumer expectations. The webinar concluded with a discussion on local vs international sourcing of ingredients, the continued challenge of meeting hair care consumer needs and the potential for future webinars in this series.
We are planning to extend this topic to further webinars in 2026 and are interested to find out which topics are of most interest. Please use the link or QR code to access a short feedback form and to suggest future topics.
Recording and slides. We had a glitch with the Zoom recording so we have added the slides, audio transcript and the zoom recording below:
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Summary of talks
Agenda
1. Welcome and Introduction
Rachael Davison-White, Barentz UK, hosting on behalf of CCUK
2. Established Ingredient Manufacturer Perspective
Speaker: Helene Hine, Croda Beauty
Helene provided an overview of the haircare market, noting it ranks second globally after skincare with a 21% market share and $92 billion in revenue. The market is forecast to grow at 6.9% from 2024 to 2029, reaching $129 billion. Key growth segments include healthy hair and scalp care, treatments, premium and high-end markets, colour care, curl care, natural products, and hair styling.
Consumer needs are driving growth, with an emphasis on performance, affordability, sustainability, inclusivity, and wellness. Helene discussed technical barriers in haircare, such as hair's inability to regenerate, its less complex biology compared to skin, and the challenges of rinse-off products. Consumer rituals and the higher risks of performance failure in the hands of the consumer are significant barriers to innovation. Professional endorsement and education are crucial for haircare innovation, with examples like K18 leveraging TikTok for brand growth.The bond-building market is highlighted as a significant trend, with a $5.8 billion category and growing interest in mass-market products. She concluded with a brief introduction to Kerabio31, a peptide bond builder.
3. Startup Ingredients Manufacturer Perspective
Speaker: Peter Luebcke; Valogen Biosciences
Peter introduced his company's work on developing a natural, high-protein ingredient called PhytoPep from rapeseed waste streams.The process involves enzymatically breaking down proteins into peptides, with potential applications in personal care, nutrition, and medical nutrition. Initial results show good beauty bioactivity in in vitro studies, with potential for scalp health and hair efficacy claims.The ingredient's low cost and high efficacy make it a promising alternative to synthetic peptides.
4. Formulation and Brand Perspective
Speaker: Dr. Catherine Leray – THG Labs
Catherine presented on the state of hair care innovation, noting that while hair care has fewer clinically validated active ingredients compared to skincare, consumers are increasingly interested in scientific validation. She highlighted that rinse-off hair care is constrained by physics, with only 30-60 seconds of contact time, leading to mostly immediate surface-level benefits. However, leave-in formats and scalp treatments offer more opportunities for innovation, with prestige sales of hair serums growing by 40% in Europe and a forecasted 35% value growth in the hair care market over the next 5 years.
Catherine emphasised the complexity of formulating leave-in products while meeting consumer expectations for both rapid scalp benefits and visible hair results. She also discussed the growing trend of ‘skinification’ in hair care, with ingredients like amino acids and hyaluronic acid being borrowed from skincare. The presentation concluded with a discussion on the challenges and opportunities in making ambitious claims for hair care products, particularly in areas like hair growth and environmental protection.
5. Testing and Claims Perspective
Speaker: Paul Cornwell, TRI Princeton
Paul Cornwell, representing TRI Princeton, discussed the institute's role in hair and scalp care testing, emphasising their focus on product evaluation and instrumental measurement techniques. He highlighted the timeless nature of consumer needs in hair care, such as healthy, abundant, and youthful-looking hair, and noted the challenge of meeting these needs due to the limitations of rinse-off products.
Paul also introduced various types of hair and scalp testing, including sensory and performance testing, clinical testing, instrumental testing, microscopic analysis, and active deposition delivery testing. He concluded by mentioning recent research at TRI on bond builders, lipids in hair, and translating consumer perception to instrumental measures, and encouraged attendees to participate in the upcoming International Conference on Applied Hair Science in June.
6. Wrap-Up and Q&A
Host: Rachael Davison-White
The panel discussed the transition from chemical to biological approaches in hair care, with Gill noting that hair fibres still have enzyme activity, suggesting biochemistry as a middle ground. Peter explained that while local sourcing is desirable for cost efficiency, it is not a strong selling point in the UK market, as compared to Germany. The webinar concluded with a call for feedback and topic suggestions for future webinars (scan the QR code to give feedback) with upcoming events listed on the CCUK website.
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