Health, Beauty & Wellness Awards 2021

www.lux-review.com Page 73 LUX 2021 Health Beauty and Wellness Awards The Indian hair industry is big business and certain hair types are highly prized for their natural condition and colour. We speak to the Founder of successful hair extension company, Juttu Extensions, in the wake of its receipt of the prestigious accolade of Best Human Hair Extensions Brand 2021. Juttu Extensions® by Tirumala Human Hair Impex LLP By a Hair’s Breadth… Mar21169 Juttu Extensions® is the retail brand of Tirumala Human Hair Impex LLP which sells a wide variety of hair extensions made from raw, unprocessed South Indian human hair. The hair is sourced from various temples in the south of India, one of them being Tirumala Temple, which is the largest ethical bank of human hair in the world. The name of the company is also a homage to this temple. Added to this, the word ‘Juttu’ means ‘hair’ in Telugu - a regional language spoken in the south of India. Telugu is the language spoken where the Tirumala temple is located and is also the native language of the company founders, the mother and son duo, Mrs Geeta and Mrs Sri S Prathipati. Having been in the Indian human hair trade since the late 1990s, it was in 2015 that Sri partnered with his long-term manufacturing associates to form Tirumala Human Hair Impex LLP. In 2018, he further conceptualised the B2C model and launched Juttu Extensions. The retail wing has been selling directly to customers via its e-commerce website since its launch in late 2019. “Our mission is to sell high quality hair extensions at affordable prices,” explains Sri. “We have never compromised on quality, nor will we ever do so.” The quality of the 100% Virgin Remy Indian hair is considered ‘gold standard’ within the industry, especially given the fact that the hair comes from South India too. Sri tells us why this is so crucial. “It is a well-known fact that most South Indian women apply coconut oil to their hair, which makes the hair healthy and the strand thick. Also, Indian hair can be universally used.” However, he goes on to explains that the terms ‘100% Virgin Remy Indian Hair’ and ‘Raw/Unprocessed’ are highly misused and often, hair is labelled as this quality when it isn’t actually of this standard. “This false labelling has caused a lot of issues for those who are in the trade of human hair and many clients I have interacted and on-boarded in the last few years had said that they have bought ‘Raw Indian hair’ and were not happy with the quality,” he states. “I usually have a detailed conversation with any new client to educate them on the different qualities of hair that are available in the market and how the hair they bought may not be what they thought it was.” Genuine 100% Virgin Remy hair will not have been exposed to any harsh chemicals or colours and the maximum product that the donor will ever have used is shampoo and conditioner. The cuticles are aligned in the same direction naturally, the strand is thick and hair is healthy. 100% Virgin Remy hair is much-sought after and in short supply, hence the higher price point. Other hair product on the market that claim to be of this quality have often seen chemicals used, they may have been given by multiple donors, been fed through a machine to make the cuticles aligned a certain way, or are made with completely dead/non-remy hair that are collected from the floor or from brushes or combs. This type of hair, Sri tells us, is usually only good for a couple of washes at most and will often begin to smell bad. “Though technically the origin of the hair is Indian, this can never come under the classification of Raw/Unprocessed quality, but has been sold in the market as such. “Juttu Extensions® sells what we claim to be selling and that is pure unadulterated raw unprocessed or 100% virgin Remy Indian human hair. This is our humble attempt to restore the glory of Indian hair.” Consequently, Juttu Extensions® has a repeat customer rate of more than 60%, with many people purchasing the high-quality lustrous hair for either personal use or b2b purposes. As expected, the Covid-19 pandemic created an unprecedented situation for the company. “We have had our fair share of hurdles due the on-going pandemic, with the main problem being with the stock of virgin/raw hair due to the temples being closed and the prices of raw materials that are available have shot up,” he explains. “Even now there is shortage of hair continues as the temples are shut, however we are managing with the stocks we have procured prior to the second wave.” Sri was initially sceptical about how Juttu Extensions® would fare, especially as it launched just a few months before the pandemic, and several orders that were placed had to be cancelled and refunded due to the onset of lockdown. However, he is happy with the validation and acceptance of the retail brand by clients and is looking forward to a brighter future and, as the world begins to open up once again, business is beginning to pick up. “We are in the process of upgrading our online store to a new platform with a better design and user experience, as well as introducing more variants of products. We are also moving towards sustainable reusable cloth bags as opposed to fancy single-use plastic boxes. This is our small contribution towards reducing plastic pollution and landfills.” Contact: Sri S Prathipati Company: Juttu Extensions® by Tirumala Human Hair Impex LLP Web Address: https://tirumalahair.com