Big Hair No Care & RadSwan

Growing up, we switched styles every single month. From the age of four, I had a different braid style every four weeks, and it's not like I was given the choice. "Make no waves, roll with the punches" is an immigrant parent's textbook for their kin. But there was this loophole: hair that changed every few weeks, almost like being told you were more mystical than you'd ever comprehend. So I genuinely can't not shapeshift.

I've always felt we were multifaceted, magical like that. Our culture felt like a testament that we were all many wrapped into one. From our style and our music to our food, we've always amplified everything. That's what we do.

Yet within the Black community or outside it, I still can't get my head around the stigma attached to artificial hair: the judgement from some, the shame expected from others. Self-pride and self-love can't mean always looking the same. If I can change my shoes and my printed dress every day to express myself, I can do the same with my hair, and I always have. It's fun, like clothes and shoes are fun. Hair is just as fluid as self-expression.

The problem was never us. It's the industry. 70% of Black women switch hairstyles every one to three months, yet the hair extensions market is a stale place with no leading brand and poor options for textured hair. You're stuck between itchy, shiny synthetic and overpriced natural hair, sold in beauty supply stores known for poor hygiene and humiliating treatment. Almost two-thirds of Black women wear protective styles, yet they own only 1% of Black hair businesses. Poor options and poor service feed the stigma.

Big Hair No Care started by accident in March 2017, a one-woman side hustle on Instagram after people kept asking about my hair. Pop-ups followed in London, Paris and New York, and after NYC we realised this was a movement, bigger than hair. So I relaunched it as RadSwan. My audience helped find the name, and they picked the launch collection too, with more than 1,000 votes across 10 styles.

From Big Hair No Care to RadSwan, the ambition stayed the same: to upgrade and dignify the shapeshifter experience and make it novice-friendly. After a year of R&D, we created the RadShape, the most realistic synthetic wig on the market and a perfect match for afro-textured hair. Then came the RadGrip, a patent-pending alternative to glue that keeps the wig secure and protects your hair and edges. Finally, novices get to play!