With the pandemic necessitating self-reliance, at-home hair removal treatments are becoming popular. From hair retard serums to pocket laser devices, entrepreneurs are making sure the salon comes home
Mental health professional Aviva Damania moved to using a facial hair removal device during the lockdown when cosmetic clinics offering laser treatment were shut. Pic/Atul Kamble
As a teen, Aviva Damania's preferred choice of hair removal was waxing. The Mumbai-based mental health professional later gravitated towards laser, the only method that promises hairless skin on a permanent basis, for which she had to visit a cosmetic dermatologist's clinic. "It was a rite of passage, because waxing was such a painful and gloopy process," says Damania, who holds an MSc in Adult Mental Health from the School of Health Sciences, at City, University of London.
When the Coronavirus-induced lockdown was imposed and clinics shut down, she stumbled upon Finishing Touch Flawless, a facial hair removal device that claims to erase hair instantly and painlessly. "The first time I put it on my face, it started buzzing and I wondered if it was going to hurt me, but it did not. The noise means that the device is working." For now, she's happy with her pocket device. "I'm not yet ready for a laser appointment because it's risky. The laser apparatus might have been used on so many others."
Influencer Natasha Irani opts for Skinnsi's at-home hair removal treatment, which involves using four-wavelength technology. Pic courtesy/beautyandthelook7
Social distancing measures necessitated by the pandemic have led to an uptick in at-home hair removal measures. While shaving, waxing, threading and depilatory creams have been around, there is a surge in newer technology. In fact, dental tech startup Toothsi, a subsidiary company of Ampa orthodontics, ventured into skincare in August last year. Toothsi was founded in 2018 in Mumbai by a group of orthodontic doctors, Arpi Shah, Pravin Shetty, Manjul Jain and Anirudh Kale. Dr Mehta says a couple of months into the pandemic is when they realised that the time to launch Skinnski might be ripe. "Our dental vertical started seeing an increase in demand, and since we were anyway providing cosmetic solutions for teeth alignment, we thought why not extend into skin and hair as well. And so, we teamed up with Dr Jill Chitalia, dermatologist, hair transplant surgeon and trichologist, to offer skincare solutions at the customer's home." They have presently rolled out at-home laser hair removal and derma facial, a medicated facial using hydra technology to cleanse the skin.
Dr Chitalia says there has been a significant evolution in laser technology. "Old technology like the IPL (intense pulsed light) would act only on thick hair and not fine growth. A decade ago, came the diode laser which claimed to work more effectively with less patient discomfort (with integrated cooling) while treating more skin and hair types than the IPL. Though fine hair was still outside its ambit." The latest four-wavelength laser, which launched last year is what the team at Skinnsi has tapped into. "It tackles all types of hair, and is currently the most painless technology in the market, because the temperature of the laser tip has a cooling of minus nine degrees celsius as opposed to zero to five degrees, used by the older laser devices." According to Dr Chitalia, laser acts on the roots of hair follicles, which is why it is permanent. Here, the team says customers can expect a hair reduction of almost 90 per cent over a period of time. One package of body hair removal comprises six to seven sessions.
The global hair removal products market is projected to reach USD 3.2 billion by 2025, according to a new report by Million Insights. The market is estimated to grow with a CAGR (compound annual growth rate) of 5.5 per cent. The report attributed the growth to increasing awareness about personal grooming and rising spending on individual hygiene.
Kunal Bansal is vice president and business head (Church & Dwight) Pittie Group, who are the exclusive distributors of Finishing Touch Flawless. He says they were anticipating a drop in sales since the Indian economy was slow in reopening, but that wasn't the case. "Fortunately, the sales sustained, because there was a fear of visiting salons and having treatments done close to the nose, eyes, and mouth. There was a need for a one-time investment in a device, which consumers could use anytime, anywhere rather than spend money each time they visit the salon. Overall, the pandemic has created the awareness of self-sustenance, self-reliance and personal grooming." The device, he says, uses German technology to instantly and painlessly erase hair, without the fear of it growing back thicker. "Its 18K gold-plated head ensures no irritation, no redness nor bumps on usage and can be used every day."
The gold serum by Depileve claims to help dissolve the keratin in the bulb so the hair doesn't grow
While waxing is no walk in the park, efforts are being made to introduce innovation in the field as well. Priya Bhandari, deputy brand manager (trainings) at Depileve India, says waxing methods have come a long way from the traditional tins and strips. "The new film wax doesn't come in a tin or roll-on, but in bead form. They look like little candies. You melt it in a pot, and apply it on the film and pull it out." The result is said to be much less painful and can the remove hair as short as 1 mm.
Interestingly, they have also come up with a substance called gold concentrate serum to retard hair growth. "A lot of women have thick facial hair; this serum helps dissolve the keratin in the bulb itself so the hair doesn't grow. You apply it immediately after hair removal by taking advantage of the pore dilation."
Dr Soma Sarkar and Dr Arpi Shah
Celebrity dermatologist Dr Soma Sarkar says it's important to be cautious while opting for trending techniques being advertised on social media. "I've been seeing these small laser hair removal machines. Ideally, this technology is supposed to be used at a doctor's office under supervision. Please do not attempt them at home because they require that a particular energy wavelength be used. You might end up burning your skin." She says the safest and cheapest at-home hair removal method is the manual shaving razor. "When you start using epilators or certain kinds of hair removal creams, the only problem is that you might not be able to shave the complete hair and it might break in between. Due to that, you may have uneven growth. Shaving works because the hair doesn't break, provided you shave in the same direction." She debunks the myth that once you shave, you will get thicker or denser hair. "The hair tends to grow together and hence you feel that it's dense. But, there is no better way for hair removal than shaving."
3.2 billion
Estimated value in USD of global hair removal products industry by 2025
Subscribe today by clicking the link and stay updated with the latest news!" Click here!
