THE JOURNEY TO THE TOP

Wella Professionals made waves in the beauty world when a recent report by Kline’s announced it as the world’s No 1 salon colour brand. Pravesh Saha, General Manager, India and South Asia, Wella Professionals, talks about their success mantra and the continuance of the brand’s 140- year old legacy, with Priyanka Parshurami.

Take us through Wella Professionals’ journey to being the world’s No 1 salon colour brand?*

Wella’s achievement is the result of the steadfast commitment to innovation, maintaining high-quality standards and a dedication to enabling salon professionals and clients to achieve consistently impressive hair colour transformations. For over 140 years, Wella has been at the forefront of delivering innovative professional hair solutions that empower hairdressers and allow them to unleash their creativity. With a best-in-class lineup of products, Wella equips stylists to create a wide range of hair transformations, from bold makeovers to natural-looking colour that meets the unique preferences of their clients.

With Wella Passionistas, we introduced India-specific collections. These collections are not borrowed or inspired by other countries but are tailored to meet the preferences of Indian consumers seeking distinctive hair colour looks. Every single day more and more hairdressers deploy our techniques and colour palette on their clients and make our brands progress towards newer heights. The brand will continue their stories to be dedicated wholly to hair colourists who work so hard to bring a smile to their client’s faces and are around to support them.

The brand mantra remains - ‘An unforgettable experience every time for your clients; they will choose you, because you chose Wella.’

What are the dos and don’ts that a colour a brand should keep in mind while operating in a market like India?

The most important thing for achieving this milestone has been what I call a customer-first innovation approach. Wella works with hairdressers across the globe to consistently deliver on this promise.

The dos of the business:

• Prioritising heavily on product quality

The brand is extremely particular about product quality. Frequently, the pressing business requirement is to cut corners on various product aspects. Wella prioritises heavily on product quality and their achievement is a testament to this approach.

• Transformative educational approach

Providing top-notch content, assembling a highly knowledgeable team, implementing effective training tools such as studios, creating well-crafted virtual content and staying in touch with the latest market looks and trends. This holistic approach is what we at Wella call transformative education.

The don’ts of the business:

• Stop listening to customers and hairdressers

The first on our list is don’t stop listening to both your customers and the hairdressers. We spend an inordinate amount of time with hairdressers, of all scales, from the very creative to the very commercial. Such efforts make Wella stand out.

• Assume clients are gullible

Create narratives that withstand the test of time, focusing on genuine solutions rather than addressing non-existent problems. Consumers will eventually discern the authenticity of the approach.

What is your success mantra?

A highly curious and deeply committed marketing and education team is our topmost mantra. These individuals are the driving force behind our ability to think innovatively and surpass conventional expectations.

Another principle is constantly searching for captivating stories. Remarkable things are happening in our country, both within our team and among competitors, and nothing connects better than a well-told story. Continuing to stay at the forefront of industry trends, having a credible belief in our product quality, and executing with excellence are some of the other things that we have done and will continue to do, to stay on this path of success.

PBHJ

*Based on Wella Master Brand USD sales on the 2022 Salon Hair Care Study for the hair colouring products category published by Kline