December 16th, 2013

CASHMERE HAIR FEATURED ON BIG COMMERCE BLOG

By Cashmere Hair

BIG COMMERCE BLOG
Julie Neumann

About the Author Julie runs all things content at Bigcommerce. A true word nerd with extensive experience in journalism and marketing, she is passionate about empowering clients and sharing their stories. In her spare time, Julie enjoys hiking, yoga, live music and photography. She also has more books and typewriters than is strictly necessary in the 21st century.

CASHMERE HAIR FEATURED ON IN A BIG COMMERCE BLOG POST INTERVIEW/POST

Model Rachel Bernstein and hair stylist Melissa Barone were two friends on a mission. “We wanted to create the best clip-in hair extensions possible,” said Melissa. So nine months ago they created Cashmere Hair, luxury clip-on extensions that will be on ABC’s Shark Tank today, Dec. 13 at 9 p.m. ET/8 p.m. CT.

The fabulous, flowing, full locks you see on the red carpet and magazine covers are usually hair extensions. Permanent extensions are a salon service that can cost thousands of dollars and ruin your real hair. Because her hair was already damaged from previous modeling jobs, Rachel began searching for clip-in extensions but could never get the professional quality she needed. Her solution was to start making her own. “I got so many compliments,” she said. “People didn’t even know I wore them.”

In addition to using the best hair possible, Melissa and Rachel’s innovative design features five times the usual amount of hair per track. Less tracks means less clips while maximizing the amount of hair. Cashmere Hair can also be styled, cut and colored to ensure it blends flawlessly with your natural hair. The line started with six colors and has grown to 14 unique shades.

“Hair is really a confidence booster,” said Melissa. “We have a wide range of customers, from teenagers to women in their 50s. We love helping women feel beautiful.”

The duo also loves working together. “We always wanted to have a business together and this was the perfect solution,” said Rachel. “Ever since Melissa and I met, there was a chemistry between us, we clicked. Because we both had this passion, it just worked.”

While they do help out celebrity clients like Tori Spelling, who wore Cashmere Hair on the cover of her latest book, Melissa and Rachel also sell directly to consumers online. They’ve built a strong following of over 5,000 fans on Instagram and see a lot of sales from the social network. They also offer inexpensive swatches of Cashmere Hair, so customers can pick exactly the right shade before making a big purchase.

This unique business is sure to get a strong reaction from the Sharks. To see Cashmere Hair in action, tune in to ABC tonight, or catch the episode starting Saturday on Hulu. And don’t forget to the join the wait list for our free ebook on alternative funding for your SMB. You’ll get great tips from successful e-commerce entrepreneurs on how they used Shark Tank, Kickstarter, social media bootstrapping and more to fund their business.