Natural and textured hair is finally getting more attention in the product and brand arena, with dedicated lines addressing the needs of these hair types. TreasureTress, a subscription service founded by entrepreneur Jamelia Donaldson in 2015, helps consumers discover these products from the comforts of their own home, or attend community events hosted by the company in-person.

The enterprise recently released a whitepaper on the shopping habits of the Black UK beauty consumer, compiled from insights from over 45,000 customers. Given TreasureTress’s broad client base, dispersed over 26 countries, there are also comparative statistics for other parts of the world. “Marketing tactics aren’t one size fits all, instead brands need to hone in on the independent countries, regions and create fresh campaigns to treat them as such. This whitepaper is just one step into our mission of utilizing our platform to provide a voice and space for the global Black beauty consumer to be heard and seen,” Donaldson comments. “A key theme of this paper is showing that Black women are not [a] monolith, highlighting the importance of nuance and why regional differences exist.”

BeautyMatter rounded up some of the report’s main insights below.

Market Size

• Black adult women in the UK account for 10% of haircare spend, but constitute only 2% of the UK adult population
• The UK haircare market is valued at $1.7 billion
• Black British women spend £168MM a year on hair products

Shopping Habits

• 1% of Black British women buy haircare products at supermarkets, compared to 35% of African American women, 13% of Black European Women, and 30% in the rest of the world
• 59% of Black British women shop at independent retailers for hair products, compared to 18% of African American Women, 30% of Black European Women, and 37% in the rest of the world
• 58% of Black British women buy hair products at least once a month, compared to 61% of African American Women, 36% of Black European Women, and 52% of in the rest of the world

Product Discovery

• Social media was the highest discovery method for all regions and generations
• Black British women were most likely to discover products through word of mouth than women from any other region