Tangle Teezer has been a mainstay of natural haircare since they launched the original detangling brush in 2007. After 30 years as a colorist at top salons, Founder and Inventor Shaun P wanted to create a detangling brush that wouldn’t tug or pull at curls, coils, and waves.
This innovation led to the creation of an entirely new hairbrush category that would inspire an entire collection of tools across different textures. We chatted with the brand’s Chief Marketing Officer, Fiona Marshall about the next generation of Tangle Teezer which includes a plant design of 85% sustainably-sourced castor beans.
Below, Marshall goes into detail about her journey, sustainability, and more.
We see more expansion in texture education for waves, curls, and coily hair. How has Tangle Teezer adapted to meet these developments?
At the beginning of last year, we formed an innovation advisory board that consists of global business leaders, trichologists, and scientists; this aims to support the growth of the brand through diverse insight, expertise, and perspectives so that we truly are catering to all hair types when developing our products.
Tangle Teezer has been around for over a decade. What inspired the brand to create a plant-based brush, and how is it different from your original line?
We wanted to launch a more sustainable hairbrush simply because it’s the right thing to do. This launch is just one of our steps in the journey to becoming a more sustainable brand. The Plant Brush and our regular brushes share the same unique teeth technology and body design, so we’re very proud to say our Plant Brush performs just as amazingly as our regular brushes. However, our Plant Brush differs from our original line because we use sustainably sourced castor beans to turn them into a high-performing, long-lasting brush.
85% of The Plant Brush is made from castor beans that grow in arid regions of India, giving local communities new job opportunities and reducing our dependence on fossil fuels as a source of raw materials. While the Plant Brush is built to last, we understand that nothing lasts forever, so we’ll also recycle any well-loved Plant Brushes, Tangle Teezer brushes, or any other plastic brush for you for free. We are also proud to say we have now made the switch to cardboard packaging, which makes it easier to recycle. And by 2025, we’ll have said goodbye to all our plastic packaging.
What is a common misconception about detangling hair?
That you can’t detangle wet hair; hair is at its most fragile when wet which is probably where this misconception comes from. When detangling wet hair, it’s extremely important to use an intelligent hairbrush that is gentle on the hair. Our hairbrushes feature a patented two-tier teeth technology. The long teeth flex over tangles, and the short teeth smooth the cuticle and add shine, so you don’t need to worry about any unnecessary damage caused by your hairbrush.
We’ve seen a lot of online discourse in the community about the correct way to detangle your hair. What are your expert recommendations?
ALWAYS detangle starting from the ends of your hair up to the root to minimize breakage, It sounds very straightforward forward, but you’d be surprised how many people don’t do this.
Should people use a separate tool to detangle and style their hair, or can one tool help them succeed?
Detangling plays such an important factor when it comes to the health of our hair, so we recommend using an intelligent, detangling-specific hairbrush. We have also designed our detangling hairbrushes not to be used with heat, as we know how damaging heat can be to the hair, so we feel this process deserves a brush that caters just for that.
Our Tangle Teezer Ultimate Vented Blow-Dry brush has bottled-shaped teeth to quickly draw out moisture and a vent that helps control airflow. You wouldn’t just use one brush for your whole makeup routine; it’s just as important to remember that different hairbrushes serve different purposes when it comes to hair care and styling.
We have many readers with children who dread detangling. How can we teach parents to make detangling easier for both parties?
Hair is a very emotional topic; often some of our first memories as children is our hair being brushed by our parents, so we really want to ensure this process is as positive as possible. Firstly, investing in the right tools is so important! Choosing the right hairbrush for your hair type is the first step to nailing your detangling routine. Our Naturally Curly hairbrush has firmer teeth designed specifically for 3c-4c hair types.
However, some of our textured hair consumers love using our Fine & Fragile Ultimate Detangler in addition to Naturally Curly, so it’s worth considering whether different areas of the hair have different concerns and, therefore, require different tools. Once you’ve done this, you’ll find the hair detangles much easier and your child will be more comfortable with this process. You can also part the hair in smaller sections to make it more manageable and always detangle from roots to ends. We would also recommend encouraging your child to take ownership of their own detangling routine by showing them how to do it themselves.
There can often be a bunch of build-up on a brush over time. What is the best way to clean your brush between usages?
We have found that the best way to clean our hairbrushes is to first remove any hair left in the brush with the tail end of a comb, then use an old toothbrush and some warm water and dish soap and gently brush the surface area to remove any dirt. Once clean, rinse and leave to dry.
What can we look forward to from Tangle Teezer in 2024?
We are so excited to be expanding our Plant Brush range to include a Plant Brush Fine & Fragile Ultimate Detangler and a Plant Brush Naturally Curly Ultimate Detangler (designed for 3c-4c hair types). We’re proud to say our Plant Brush range now caters to all hair types within just one year of its first launch. As well as a sustainable brand, we want to be known as an inclusive hair brand that caters to all hair types, as we know that different hair types require different tools, and hair is not one size fits all.
Have you tried their Tangle Teezer’s Plant Brush? Let us know in the comments!
