Gama Professional

Gama Professional is an Italian manufacturer of professional hair and grooming tools, including hair dryers, straighteners, curling irons, clippers and beard trimmers. The company traces its origins to the industrial suburbs of Bologna, where it was founded by Mario Gardini, and it now sits within the GA.MA Group (legally GA.MA. SRL) [2]. Its tools are aimed at both salon professionals and home users seeking salon-style results, and the company reports distribution in over 50 countries.

The brand's own corporate page and German Wikipedia both date the founding to 1969 [2][5]; a single low-tier retailer source gives 1908, a date treated here as erroneous and not corroborated by any primary source [9]. The company remains active: in March 2026 it presented a new hair dryer, the iQ Sfera, at the Cosmoprof trade fair in Bologna [4].

According to the company, Gama Professional was established in 1969 in the industrial area outside Bologna by Mario Gardini, and built its early work on research and engineering of styling tools. The company says that this period produced what it describes as the world's first professional hair straightener — a claim it presents as a founding milestone rather than one verified by an outside source [2]. The present-day headquarters is in San Pietro in Casale, in the Metropolitan City of Bologna, Emilia-Romagna.

German Wikipedia records a sequence of technical developments through the 2000s. The company introduced a Quick Heat System reaching an operating temperature of around 200°C in 2001, ceramic-coated heating plates in 2003, and tourmaline coatings together with Far Infrared Heat (FIR) technology in 2006 [5]. A halogen hair dryer using FIR followed in 2007, and the company's Instant Heat Technology (IHT) was developed in 2009. The corporate page describes IHT as a patented resistance that reaches up to 240°C, presented as one of the company's signature engineering features.

Gama Professional operates as part of the GA.MA Group, whose president is Carlos Ceva [1]. The corporate identity is GA.MA. SRL, an Italian limited-liability company (S.r.l.). No acquisition history is recorded in the available sources.

The company frames its work around research, ergonomics and durability, summarising its approach with the phrase "cutting-edge technology serving beauty" and a stated aim of bringing "the professional salon experience to your home." Its tagline is "The way we take care of you." Gama Professional positions its tools at the professional tier, intended for salon use as well as consumers wanting comparable results at home.

Manufacturing is spread across four sites in Italy, Brazil, Argentina and China, according to the corporate page. The same page states that the company's AC and brushless motors are made in Italy and rated for more than 2,000 hours of professional use.

Among the company's most-reviewed products is the iQ Perfetto hair dryer (also sold as the iQ2 Perfetto), part of an iQ line built around compact, lightweight designs. Its 2026 successor, the iQ Sfera, was introduced at Cosmoprof with a spherical body roughly the size of a baseball, a digital motor the company cites at up to 92,000 RPM, and a Venturi airflow system [4]. A companion product shown alongside it, the UniQ Multistyler, uses interchangeable attachments so that one handle can perform several styling functions.

The corporate page lists a range of proprietary technologies beyond IHT, including ion technology, GA.MA Ozone-Ion Technology — which the company says combines negative ions with ozone for antibacterial and antifungal effects — and a Color Lock Effect intended to preserve treated hair colour. In a separate review, the trade publication WWD attributed an "Oxy Active Technology" emitting active oxygen with antibacterial properties to the iQ Perfetto [8].

The iQ Perfetto has drawn repeated coverage in beauty and trade press, generally framed around its low weight. In December 2023 WWD named it "Best Travel Hair Dryer" in an editor-tested round-up, describing it as "the world's lightest hair dryer, clocking in at just 10.3 ounces" and able to dry hair 30 percent faster than rivals [8]. NewBeauty reviewed the iQ2 Perfetto in 2022, calling it "the smartest dryer" it had tested and noting that the celebrity hairstylist Chris Appleton had named the iQ Perfetto one of his favourite hair-care products [7]. Hair educator Mirella Manelli has described the dryer as a premium competitor to Dyson rather than an entry-level option.

The company states that it operates an ECO facility at Gossolengo, in the province of Piacenza, fitted with photovoltaic systems intended to reduce its climate footprint, which it presents as part of a broader commitment to greener operations and local employment.

Gama Professional is an active brand. Its most recent visible activity is the March 2026 launch of the iQ Sfera at Cosmoprof 2026, supported by a regularly updated multi-language website and magazine, four global production sites, and a stated presence in more than 50 countries [4].