Waterclouds

Waterclouds is a Swedish hair care brand built around the idea that hydration is the basis of healthy hair. Its recipe traces back to the 1960s, when three colleagues in the hairdressing trade set out to make a more caring shampoo; the full product range launched under the Waterclouds name in 2001 [1]. The brand is positioned as professional hair care and has been used by hairdressers and stylists since that launch. Since 2021 it has been owned by the listed Swedish beauty group Lyko [2].

The line spans salon-oriented hair care alongside styling products and several sub-ranges aimed at men's grooming. Waterclouds remains an active, transactional brand, selling across the Nordic markets through its own store and third-party retailers.

Waterclouds grew out of a shampoo recipe first developed in the 1960s by three hairdresser colleagues who wanted more nourishing properties than the products then available [3]. That recipe was refined over the following decades, and the brand as it exists today launched its complete range in 2001 [1]. The founders associated with the business — Kent Lundmark, Niclas Bratt and Stefan Fall — later sold it to Lyko [2]. The brand's operating company, INZO Lars Bratt AB, was itself incorporated in 1996.

Waterclouds was acquired by Lyko Group AB (publ) on 18 October 2021, when the listed group purchased INZO Lars Bratt AB, including the Waterclouds brand, for 18 million SEK upfront for full ownership [2]. At the time of the acquisition the company employed 15 staff and reported revenue of 39 million SEK in its most recent fiscal year [2].

Sources within the brand's own site do not agree on how the current ownership is stated. Waterclouds' English "about" page lists the parent company as Valley Beauty Brands AB, while the site footer names Lyko Group AB [4]. The 2021 acquisition press release confirms Lyko Group AB as the group that bought the brand; Valley Beauty Brands AB appears to be a related holding entity within the Lyko corporate structure.

The brand's central idea is hydration. According to Waterclouds, "hydration is the key to beautiful, healthy hair," and well-hydrated hair is described as the foundation for strong, healthy hair; every product is built around moisturizing and hydrating ingredients [3]. The company frames its wider mission as letting customers tailor their own routine with results-oriented products that are gentle on both the hair and the environment. On its guides, Waterclouds distinguishes between moisturization — binding water to the hair surface with oils — and hydration, where moisture penetrates deeper into the hair structure. The brand's tagline is "Waterclouds – here to hydrate."

Waterclouds is primarily a hair care brand, with its core range organized into lines such as bonding, colour, detox, moisture, repair, silver refine and volume, alongside styling products. Beyond hair care, the brand describes several distinct sub-ranges: The Dude, a men's grooming line inspired by 1950s barbershops; Beard Junk, a beard care and styling range; and Black Brush, a brush collection [2]. Beard Junk is treated as a line within the Waterclouds brand rather than a separate label, a relationship confirmed by an independent men's-grooming retailer that describes it as "a series of beard care products from the successful Swedish hair care brand Waterclouds" [5].

Waterclouds says it develops and manufactures most of its products in its own factory in Sweden and ships from its own warehouse using what it calls "entirely fossil-free shipments" [3]. The press release accompanying the 2021 acquisition places the factory in Tyresö, outside Stockholm [2]. The company states a goal of making products kind to both the hair and the planet. No formal third-party certifications were identified in the available sources.

Waterclouds is active. It operates a live e-commerce store carrying its current hair care, styling, The Dude, Beard Junk and Black Brush ranges, and is sold across the Nordic markets and through Lyko and other European salon retailers. It has been owned by the listed group Lyko since 2021.

The brand's stated headquarters is not recorded consistently across its sources. The "about" page gives a Stockholm office on Sveavägen, while the site footer lists the Lyko Group address in Vansbro, and the 2021 press release places manufacturing in Tyresö [4]. All are within Sweden.