Tints of Nature

Tints of Nature is a British hair-colour and hair-care brand specialising in natural, plant-based home hair dye. It is the take-home retail line of Herb UK Ltd, a manufacturer based in the New Forest, Hampshire, in southern England [1]. The brand positions itself around low-chemical formulas, vegan and cruelty-free credentials, and salon-quality results for people colouring their hair at home. Its products are sold in the United Kingdom and the United States and, through its parent company, distributed to more than 40 countries.

Herb UK dates its manufacturing origins to 1990, and Tints of Nature grew out of that business as its consumer-facing colour brand. The company remains active, with a live e-commerce presence, ongoing blog content and current retail distribution.

Herb UK describes its beginnings as three friends — a hairdresser, a salesman and a herbal formulator — who set out to make a difference for people colouring their hair at home. According to the company's founder, Raoul Perfitt, the earliest formulas were mixed "on a camping stove in my garage" more than 30 years ago before the business grew into an international one [6]. Perfitt founded Herb UK; his grandfather, Hubert Mitchell, was a founding figure in British herbal medicine, a lineage the company draws on in its heritage story [6].

The company gives 1990 as the year it began manufacturing natural plant-based hair colour [5]. The specific launch year of the Tints of Nature brand itself is less clearly documented: one editorial source records the brand as established in 1995 with a "20 year heritage" [9], and founder Raoul Perfitt is separately reported to have joined the business in 1994. The 1990 date reflects the parent company's own manufacturing origin rather than a separately stated brand-launch year.

Tints of Nature is owned by Herb UK Ltd, which describes itself as Britain's leading manufacturer of natural plant-based hair colour and one of the country's largest independent hair-care manufacturers. Under the Herb UK umbrella it sits alongside a sister brand, Organic Colour Systems, the group's salon-professional line, while Tints of Nature serves the take-home retail market [5]. In 2021 Herb UK acquired the herbal-products brand Bio-Health, expanding beyond hair care [10].

The brand's stated aim is to make what it calls "the world's cleanest, most sustainable DIY hair dye" without sacrificing performance. Tints of Nature says its formulas exclude ammonia, resorcinol, propylene glycol, parabens, DEA, gluten, SLS, SLES, silicone, salts and GMO ingredients, and that it uses the lowest possible levels of colour pigment. The company frames its supply chain around transparency, describing "visibility from field to follicle."

Its products are marketed to an eco- and ethically minded audience — home colourists, vegetarians and vegans looking for natural, ammonia-free hair dye. The brand's tagline is "simply healthier hair colour & care."

Tints of Nature is built around hair colour, offered in three main lines: a Permanent Hair Colour range, a semi-permanent Henna Cream, and a set of semi-permanent Bold Colours. The permanent range is marketed as containing the "smallest level of PPD possible in a permanent hair dye," while the Henna Cream line is described as completely PPD-free [1]. The company also sells lightening kits, shampoos, conditioners and treatments, and hair-and-nail supplements.

Across its formulas the brand emphasises natural and organic content, stating that its colour is over 95% naturally derived and 75% certified organic. All products are described as vegan and cruelty-free and made in the United Kingdom.

The "natural" positioning has drawn scrutiny from consumer-safety reviewers. An ingredient analysis by I Read Labels For You argues that the permanent colour contains six synthetic petroleum-derived dyes and p-phenylenediamine (PPD) — a compound classified by the EU Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety as an extreme sensitiser — and cautions readers against reading the range as non-toxic [7]. A separate review by Groovy Green Livin praised the colour results while flagging the PPD content of the permanent line [8].

Sustainability is central to how Tints of Nature presents itself. The company says its cartons and bottles are 100% recyclable and made from non-virgin waste materials, and manufacturing takes place at Herb UK's New Forest site. The brand became a Certified B Corporation in 2020 [4] and is approved by The Vegan Society; it also cites cruelty-free certification.

Tints of Nature is an active, operating brand. It runs a live transactional website across the UK and US markets, publishes regular blog content and offers current promotions, while parent company Herb UK exports to more than 40 countries.