Interview with OPHIR HAIR - The Virgin Hair retailer you need to know about!!

10 things i discovered about Ophir Hair

I promised that each month, I would focus on emerging talent across the fashion, music and Hair & beauty industry. And I’ll be honest, I haven’t managed to stick to my promise. However this month I’m proud to introduce all of my urban beauties to a human hair extension retailer I discovered called OPHIR HAIR at Afro Hair & Beauty Live 2013.  

I immediately got on with the husband and wife duo, Joanna and Marcus and promised to feature them on urban beauty said... Well, lets fast forward 12 months later and OPHIR HAIR will be back at Afro Hair & Beauty Live 2014 again, but this time with even more products to share.

For those of you who haven't heard of OPHIR HAIR  its a London based international virgin hair extension retailer, specialising in the best 100% virgin hair sourced from responsible suppliers across the globe.

I'm delighted Joanna and Marcus, have agreed to their first interview with urban beauty said.
I predict great things for OPHIR HAIR o I want to find out more about the husband, wife team behind the brand…

1. Hi Joanna and Marcus, thanks for taking the time out to be interviewed by urban beauty said. What inspired you to get into the virgin hair industry? Do you have any advice for anyone wanting to start selling virgin hair extensions online? 

M: Joanna’s been wearing and testing hair extensions for over a decade. It took me a while to figure out what the whole fascination/craze was about (as your female readers will know - it's all a big secret!) and especially how much money my wife spend on extensions!


J: Well husband, doing all this "research" led ultimately to the start of OPHIR HAIR  I got so fed up with bad hair, tangling hair, shedding hair, too shiny hair, too expensive hair that I made it my mission to find the best hair for myself (with help of hubby).


M: Joanna has always been very entrepreneurial (she ran a successful estate agency in Notting Hill) and I like to organise and design things (my background is photography and architecture). So, 18 months ago we decided to give it a go and search for the best natural virgin hair we could find. We both love travelling and so we went on two long trips through South East Asia and we found gorgeous natural virgin hair! And that was the start of OPHIR HAIR.

Like with any business you have to give 100% of your energy, time and creativity to make it a success. You have to be prepared that things will go wrong and take sometimes longer than you think. 
A lot of people sell virgin hair these days and the Chinese are flooding the market with so much virgin hair that you wonder if there are any women with real hair left in Asia. Obviously a lot of the virgin/remy/AAAAA+ hair is not what it is claimed to be.

urban beauty said : So how do you know if you have genuine 100% virgin hair?

If your hair tangles after you wash it, it definitely isn't virgin hair! 
It's a tough and very competitive business and we wouldn't advise anyone to start a virgin hair extensions company halfheartedly. If you decide to,  do proceed and have a good plan in place.
We decided early on that we wanted OPHIR HAIR to become a brand that our customers only associate with top quality 100% natural, unprocessed, virgin hair and ultimately we want our company to become a worldwide recognised (hair-) fashion brand. 

2. What does OPHIR mean?

M: Joanna's daughter found this name for us. OPHIR is a port or region mentioned in the Bible, famous for its wealth. King Solomon is supposed to have received a cargo of gold, silver, precious stones, ivory and peacocks from Ophir every three years.

Whilst no one is really sure where this fabulous port was located, we thought it was nevertheless a very appropriate name for our company. We will travel to far flung places to source the most precious and beautiful virgin hair and ship it to our valued customers around the world!

3. With the largest exhibition within Europe for black afro hair due to take place on 25th & 26th May in London, what will you be promoting at this years Afro Hair and Beauty LIVE event?

J: The Focus this year will be on our new Cambodian virgin hair. It comes in straight, wavy and curly. 
We have had already great feedback from our customers and hair bloggers in the UK and the US and we can't wait to show it to the audience at Afro Hair & Beauty LIVE .
We have a great 20% off sale on all our hair and you can also claim your discount online by using the code "PUREBEAUTY" at checkout. 

OPHIR HAIR DISCOUNT PROMO

4. What’s your most popular virgin hair extensions line and why?

J: It varies. Last year the Burmese virgin hair was very popular, this year the 'Cambodian' is clearly the customer's favourite. Some customers prefer the Vietnamese virgin hair ... We have different types of virgin hair for different types of women and they will all be on display at the show so that our customers can touch and feel it.

Model with Cambodian hair

5. Roughly, what do your prices start from? 

M: Our bestseller - Cambodian virgin straight - starts at £59 for a bunch of 12" (100grams).
We have great offers like bundle deals every month so it's worth checking out our online shop at  www.OphirHair.com. 
 

6. I have urban beauties all over the world reading my blogsite, do OPHIR HAIR distribute virgin hair extensions globally?

M: Absolutely. We are an international company and we regularly travel to Europe, North America and the Caribbean to visit our clients. 
Our customers can order online and we offer free worldwide shipping on all orders.

7. Who would you say is your favourite hairstyle icon and why?

J: At the moment we both love Kerry Washington! She looks strong and classy and her extensions are perfect ... They don't even look like extensions, this is how good installs should look!

Kerry Washington

Kerry Washington

8. I have been looking at a variety of human hair extensions, but so confused with what’s out there. What advice do you have for anyone considering buying human hair extensions for the first time?

M: If it sounds too good to be true it probably is. 
Natural human hair that is unprocessed and that doesn't tangle (because the cuticles are still intact and they run in the same direction) is a like a pair of Gucci shoes or Tiffany sun glasses. You get what you pay for. A bunch for £20 can't be 100% virgin hair, it's as simple as that. Our hair lasts 2-3 years with the right care. We have clients on their fifth install, they dye and colour it, curl and straighten it and the hair still looks fab. 
If you do the maths, good quality hair is worth it's money and on top of that, you will look stunning and that's priceless, right?! 
So our advice is always buy quality!

9. So what’s next for OPHIR HAIR?

J: We have lots of exciting ideas for this year already. One thing we can reveal is that we plan to 'pop up' around London this summer. So keep your eyes open for Ophir Hair.

10. Well, we look forward to hearing more about OPHIR HAIR  in the mean time, before we finish our interview, how can my readers get in touch with you or buy virgin hair from OPHIR HAIR?

J: You can visit our online shop www.OphirHair.com or contact us to make an appointment. Our office is on Portobello Road/West London
Our email is beautifulhair@ophirhair.com and Joanna's number is +447792424801
And don't forget to sign up to our mailing list to get our monthly specials and sales!
 

I would like to thank Joanna and Marcus for taking time out of their hectic schedule to be interviewed by urban beauty said and I wish them every success for 2014. I feel a lot more clued up on virgin hair  now, so i hope you all do too. And i'll definitely be taking advantage of the 20% offer on their hair, so look out for a blogpost soon.

In the mean time, with Afro hair & Beauty Live celebrating its 33rd birthday this year, for our readers wanting to keep up to date with Afro Hair & Beauty Live event visit the website.