6 hours Ago By Carolina Malis
Jen Atkin, founder of Ouai and Kashish Golani, founder of Ovviovita are among those creating scents that hydrate, protect and add shine, merging hair care with perfume for a luxurious finish Morning routines now have a new step: hair fragrance. The outfit is sharp, the skin is glowing, but there’s that final touch – a fresh scent that does more than make the hair smell divine: it hydrates, protects and adds shine. Hair perfumes have stepped confidently into the mainstream, at a time when the traditional fragrance scene has been playing it safe.
Negin Mirsalehi, founder of Gisou, saw an opportunity to reimagine the brand’s signature scent as a hair perfume. Her aim was to give the Gisou community constant access to the beloved scent, whether as a final touch or a mid-day refresh. With its playful, fresh and feminine vibe, the original perfume was such a hit that Gisou soon introduced a floral edition, blending rose and wild flower notes.
For a brand like Gisou, merging hair care and fragrance was a natural step. Fans already loved the scents embedded in their products, so creating a stand-alone hair fragrance was a no-brainer. Jen Atkin, founder of Ouai, knew it too, jumping into the hair fragrance game with her line of hair and body mists, blending scents that captured the brand’s chic and modern vibe.
In its alcohol-free, nourishing form, hair scents go beyond being just a lovely fragrance, and are created with the same consideration as skincare – think lightweight oils, vitamins and UV protection. Kashish Golani, biomedical expert and founder of Ovviovita, notes, “Hair fragrances are crafted to be pH-balanced, alcohol-free and enriched with essential oils that nourish and hydrate, leaving your hair not only beautifully scented but also well cared for.” Today, hair perfumes are packed with haircare benefits, making them the product that beauty lovers didn’t know they were missing.
And with influencers flaunting their glossy, fragrant hair everywhere, it’s no wonder these products feel like a modern twist on Old Hollywood glamour. What makes hair perfume different from regular perfume? Far from being simply diluted perfumes for the scalp, they’re softer, lighter and specifically crafted for the hair. Golani explains that “hair fragrances are less intense than regular perfumes”, allowing them to layer without overpowering.
These gentle formulas are designed to skip the harsh alcohol found in typical perfumes, which can strip hair of moisture and leave it brittle. Hair’s naturally porous structure gives it an advantage in holding onto fragrance, almost like a scent sponge that captures and releases perfume over time. “Unlike the skin, where scents evaporate quickly thanks to body heat, natural oils and even perspiration, the hair can retain fragrance particles for longer, making it an ideal medium for those looking to enjoy a scent throughout the day,” hair stylist and colourist Megan Lynn says.
She explains that hair’s structure, with its tiny cuticle layers, locks in fragrance molecules, “allowing them to settle and cling to the hair shaft, creating a gentle, almost ethereal diffusion of scent that moves with each step and turn of the head”..
