BRUNS Products

BRUNS Products is a Swedish hair and body care company based in the Skåne region of southern Sweden. It was founded by hairdressers Cecilia Nilsson and Johanna Lindskoug, who built the brand around natural ingredients, in-house small-batch manufacturing and a sustainability focus drawn from their salon background. The company makes shampoos, conditioners, hair masks and a growing body care line, all produced in its own factory.

The brand dates its founding to 2012, with regular operations from 2015 [2]; product packaging carries the line "Naturligt sen 2014" (natural since 2014). A UK editorial feature in Scan Magazine instead gives 2017, most likely a later commercial scale-up rather than the company's start [7]. BRUNS remains active, with current product launches, an ongoing blog and live social channels.

Cecilia Nilsson and Johanna Lindskoug met in 2006 at a hairdressing industry training course in Stockholm, where they began discussing the products used in their trade [9]. According to the founders, two concerns shaped what came next: colleagues falling ill from the chemicals in professional haircare products, and the waste of flushing those chemicals into the water system. Unable to find high-quality organic alternatives, they set out to make their own.

The brand grew out of the founders' own salon in Lund. The BRUNS name derives from Brunius, a historic name for the town of Lund, and the original salon was among the first in Sweden to be certified as a green salon by the NGO Green Salon Scandinavia [8]. Products began as handmade, salon-exclusive items before being sold more widely. The company later moved its production to Landskrona [9], while the founders continued to run salons in Lund and Malmö [8] — both Lund and Landskrona lie within Skåne, and sources differ on which to treat as the headquarters.

BRUNS describes its philosophy as built on "quality and care in every detail," with the aim of changing conventional hair care through natural ingredients and sustainability. Its mission is summarised on the company's About page as "naturliga skönhetsprodukter som ger resultat" — natural beauty products that deliver results. The brand markets itself with the tagline "Natural Hair Care Created by Hairstylists."

Formulations are positioned as free from sulfates, parabens and silicones [2], with the company citing concern for water systems as its reason for avoiding silicones. Production is handled in-house in small batches, which the company frames as a way to keep full control over quality. The range is presented as unisex and suitable for all hair types, and the brand has compared its products to wine, on the grounds that the ingredients "benefit from maturing."

The catalogue is organised as a numbered range and spans shampoos, conditioners (sold as "balsam"), hair masks, styling products and an expanding body care line that includes hand wash, body lotion and deodorant. Signature items include the Nº01 Harmonious Coconut shampoo and the Nº22 Warm Bergamot hair mask. Hero ingredients across the line include coconut oil, shea butter, avocado oil and jojoba oil, alongside hydrolysed silk and keratin proteins; a hair-growth series adds mung bean extract and red clover sprouts. Most products are vegan, with the company noting two exceptions — Hair Soufflé Nº14 and Hard Wax Nº30 — that contain beeswax and silk proteins [9].

The hair mask is the line's standout. Scan Magazine described it as "the all-time best-seller and multiple award-winner" [7]. Other lines include a Silver Series shampoo for grey hair and the plant-based Växaserien (Growth Series). The company packages its products in 100% recycled post-consumer plastic, chosen over glass for transport reasons, and says it is pursuing certification against the UN 2030 sustainable development goals [8].

A separate professional product is BRUNS COLOR+, a permanent hair dye the company describes as non-oxidative: rather than relying on oxidation, it uses an acidic formula said to bind pigment to the hair shaft, and the company states it produces no hazardous waste. BRUNS COLOR+ is certified by Grön Salong (Green Salon) [6]. The system cannot lighten hair.

The founders and the brand have been recognised mainly within Sweden's eco-salon and small-business circles. They received recognition from Lund municipality in 2014, and in 2019 were named "Årets Företagare i Lund" (Entrepreneur of the Year in Lund) for BRUNS Products and BRUNS Frisörer [10]. In 2021 the brand won Best Hairdresser at the Swedish Eco Salon Awards [8]. Scan Magazine has gone further, describing BRUNS as one of the "most award-winning haircare brand[s] in Europe" [7].

BRUNS Products remains active. The company continues to launch new lines — including an expanded body care series and a BRUNS × Sägen collaboration — and publishes regularly to its blog [5]. It operates a direct-to-consumer shop with shipping to 17 or more countries and is also stocked by retailers across the Nordics and beyond, including Ruohonjuuri in Finland. The business is run as a family-based operation with a team of around 30 people.