Less is More

Less is More is an Austrian natural hair and skincare brand based in Vienna, built around certified-organic ingredients and a professional, salon-first distribution model. It was founded by Dr. Doris Brandhuber, a chemist and perfumer, and Hannes Trummer, a Vienna hairstylist, and grew out of Trummer's salon practice into a full plant-based range sold to salons and conscious consumers across Europe and beyond.

The brand dates its development to 2007 [2], though one independent editorial source records the year as 2006 [12]; the difference appears to stem from Trummer's 2005 salon opening, which preceded the brand itself. The name reflects the company's stated guiding idea — a "reduction to the essentials" — applied to formulation, packaging and product range alike. The brand remains active, with a current product line, multilingual e-commerce and an ongoing journal.

Less is More was created by two founders with complementary backgrounds. Dr. Doris Brandhuber grew up near Austria's Salzkammergut region and studied chemistry with a focus on biomimetics — the study of how natural structures and functions can be emulated in design. According to the company, she declined a research fellowship at Yale to develop the brand instead, having concluded that only her own line could meet her ambition of "healthy and honest" hair cosmetics.

Hannes Trummer opened a hair salon in Vienna in 2005 and was influenced by the Feldenkrais Method, a movement-awareness practice. The company says his concept of reducing things to their essentials emerged from that background and shaped the brand's name and approach. Together the two combined laboratory chemistry, aromatherapy and salon experience into the product development process.

The brand's positioning centres on the idea that paring formulas back to what is essential can reconcile effective haircare with lower environmental impact. The company frames its work around four stated values: organic, functional, social and beautiful — covering certification, efficacy, transparency and sensory experience respectively. Its tagline is "The essential matters."

Less is More presents itself primarily as a professional brand for salons. On its partner page, the company describes itself as "the only professional haircare brand in the world that exclusively contains certified organic products" [6] — a self-stated claim rather than an independently verified one. Products are distributed through salons, studios and shops via a partner network and a dedicated B2B portal, alongside direct online sales.

The range spans haircare, facecare, bodycare and fragrance, and the company also runs perfume-creation workshops. Formulations draw on organic cold-pressed plant oils, essential oils, aloe vera juice, honey and beeswax, shea butter and minerals such as Altaussee rock salt, with skincare actives including hyaluronic acid and astaxanthin. The brand states that its products are silicone-free, microplastic-free and rapidly biodegradable.

A separate line, PURE, is positioned for sensitive scalps: fragrance-free, prebiotic and described by the company as fully vegan, using ingredients such as inulin and colloidal oatmeal to support the scalp's microbiome. The line includes a plastic-free shampoo bar.

Among the brand's named developments is the Pure Bond Complex, an overnight treatment marketed as a "Bio Bond Builder" for chemically and heat-damaged hair, which the company says works through a four-part action of strengthening keratin, reconnecting hair bonds, sealing the cuticle and restoring the hair's lipid layer [4]. The associated efficacy statements — reduced visible damage, stronger and smoother hair, fewer split ends — are brand-stated claims. Editorial coverage has highlighted products including the Aloe Mint volumizing shampoo, the Tangerine Curl leave-in balm and the Mallowsmooth conditioner.

Sustainability is central to how Less is More describes itself, and several of its claims carry third-party certification. The brand's products are certified organic under COSMOS, and the company also references Austria Bio Garantie standards. In 2017 it became a certified B Corporation, which it notes was among the first in Austria [2]; the UK retailer Content Beauty & Wellbeing independently lists the same B Corp status [11]. The company uses packaging made from recycled PET and has published commentary criticising "greenwashing" in organic cosmetics, arguing that genuine organic products should carry recognised certification rather than marketing claims alone.

In 2009 the brand's Aloe Mint Volume Shampoo received a Die Presse Beauty Innovation Award in the natural category [13]. Wider searches associate the brand with a Beyond Beauty Paris challenger award and an ELLE Sweden award for the Mallowsmooth conditioner, though these were not directly confirmed in the available sources. The brand has also appeared in regional press, including features in INSTYLE Australia and Weight Watchers Magazine Australia in 2017, the latter highlighting its Honeywax made with Austrian forest honey and beeswax.

Less is More remains an active, Vienna-headquartered company. Its website maintains a current product range, multilingual support in English, German and French, and a regularly updated journal covering seasonal haircare and skincare topics. Its products have a documented multi-region presence, with long-running distribution in the United Kingdom through Content Beauty & Wellbeing since 2010 [11], in Australia via a dedicated distributor, and elsewhere in Europe through its salon partner network.