Sexy Hair

Sexy Hair is a professional haircare brand founded in Los Angeles by the hairdresser Michael O'Rourke. The company traces its origin to 1998, when O'Rourke, an award-winning stylist, decided to make his own products because the ones his salon used were, in his view, not good enough [4]. Since 2014 the brand has been owned by the German consumer-goods group Henkel, which markets it as one of its North American professional hair-care lines [3].

The brand built its identity around a deliberately provocative name and a bold red bottle. According to the company, the original packaging carried the word "SEXY" written large, an approach it describes as shocking enough to be banned from store windows in some US states [1]. Sexy Hair frames the idea of "sexy" as self-expression rather than a single look, drawing, it says, on the range of Los Angeles styles from beach-tousled hair to red-carpet glamour.

The brand was created by Michael O'Rourke, described by its current parent as an "international award-winning hairdresser". Before Sexy Hair he had founded the Carlton Hair salon chain in South Africa and moved to the United States in 1978 to expand it. O'Rourke started Sexy Hair after concluding that the products available for use in his own salon fell short.

There is some divergence in the record over exactly when the business began. The company's own account and the aggregator Cosmetify give a founding year of 1998 in Los Angeles [4], and a brand anniversary note refers to the signature bottle having stood for boldness "for 25 years" [6]. Trade publication WWD, by contrast, reports that O'Rourke "launched Sexy Hair Concepts in 2000", the date the corporate entity was formalized [2]. The brand had earlier operated under the name Sexy Hair Concepts.

O'Rourke gradually stepped back from the company he founded. According to WWD, he sold most of his stake around 2006, when a new chief executive took over, and ended his financial ties to the business by roughly 2008 [2]. In 2007 he had collaborated with the singer Katharine McPhee, then known from American Idol, to introduce a line marketed as "Strong Sexy Hair" [9].

The brand passed through a chain of private-equity owners. WWD reported that it was sold to the private-equity firm Thoma Bravo, and it later came under TSG Consumer Partners [2]. On 2 June 2014, TSG announced the sale of Sexy Hair, together with Alterna and Kenra Professional, to Henkel [3]. In 2018, Henkel consolidated its professional hair-care operations, including Sexy Hair, into a single Los Angeles-area headquarters [10].

Sexy Hair is owned by Henkel AG & Co. KGaA, which acquired it in 2014 from TSG Consumer Partners [3]. Within Henkel's portfolio it sits alongside other professional and consumer hair brands such as Schwarzkopf Professional, Joico, Alterna and Syoss. Its ownership before the Henkel deal ran through several financial owners, from the founder to Thoma Bravo and then TSG.

The company positions Sexy Hair as a salon-grade, professional line sold with stylist education. Its stated mission is that "sexy is more than just beautiful hair, it's a self-expression of style". Alongside its work behind the salon chair, the brand says it aims to cultivate self-expression through professional products, advanced education, and, in its own words, "leading the change for better". Cosmetify describes it as "the #1 professional hairspray brand" with both styling and sulfate-free hair-care products.

Sexy Hair is organized into named collections aimed at different hair needs, including Big Sexy Hair for volume and Healthy Sexy Hair for damaged or dry hair, along with Curly, Straight and Silky lines. Among its recognized products are the Big Sexy Hair Spray & Play volumizing hairspray, the Powder Play texturizing powder, and the Style Frenzy Matte Texturizing Paste.

On formulation and ethics, the brand carries several third-party-noted claims. It is certified by PETA as cruelty-free [5]. Editorial coverage notes that its Big Sexy Hair line includes vegan options that are also sulfate-free and paraben-free, though such formulations apply to specific products rather than the entire range [7].

Sexy Hair is an active, currently selling brand rather than an independent company. Since being acquired by Henkel in 2014 [3], it has been marketed under Henkel Consumer Brands, with a direct-to-consumer site and distribution through salon and retail channels in North America. Its founder, Michael O'Rourke, left the business around 2008.