2024 is a big year for Beyoncé Knowles-Carter. Following that bumper Superbowl commercial and a pending world tour – Renaissance Act II, it was fresh into the new year (February to be precise) she launched her highly-anticipated business endeavour: Cécred.
Pronounced ‘sacred’, the hair care brand for all is a play on the singer’s name, much like her latest fragrance, Cé Noir. The premium, rose-heavy floral scent was a colossal evolution from her previous inexpensive and widely worn perfumes (who didn’t own a bottle of Heat?), but Cécred, a hair collection set to disrupt the market, is Beyoncé’s first foray into the world of hair products.
In true Beyoncé style, she dropped a series of teaser clips on Instagram in the run up to the launch. The first being a video of young Beyoncé in what appeared to be Headliners Hair Salon, the Houston-based salon owned by her mother, Tina Knowles. The video was then spliced with close-ups of salon treatments, using Cécred products. Much like Bey’s music and visual art that transcends in to her performances, the brand was already giving off an air of heavy production and a highly curated aesthetic. Could we expect any less from one of the highest female earners in music?
It was long before Cécred secured its Instagram username that its formulas had been in production. Back in May 2023, Beyoncé posted a photo on her own account, with what looked like early iterations of her product range, followed by a note that read: “How many of y’all knew my first job was sweeping hair in my mama’s salon? Destiny’s Child got our start by performing for clients while they were getting their hair done. I was exposed to so many different kinds of entrepreneurial women in her salon […] I’ve always dreamed of carrying on her legacy.”
Cécred’s products are centred around healthy hair, which appears to be a theme amongst today’s celebrity hair care ranges. Its ethos is shared by Tracee Ellis Ross, whose curl care brand Pattern launched in 2019; and previous Spell Magazine cover star Sarah- Jane Crawford, who entered the hair industry in 2023 with non-toxic, family-focused brand Clean Curls. With a greater societal awareness on the toxicity of certain chemicals and microplastics, as well as sustainability and environmental causes, healthy hair products are likely to be seen as a bare-minimum expectation from celebrity product offerings moving forward, rather than a unique selling point.
In addition to putting healthy hair at the forefront, Cécred is a texture-inclusive brand, and celebrities and influencers are noting this in their reviews.
Salon owner and stylist to Kelly Rowland, Annagjid “Kee” Taylor, proclaimed that the brand will now be part of Kelly’s regular hair regime, adding that the product combo made the singer’s hair “soft, shiny, and lightweight”. Meanwhile, Nope actress Keke Palmer raved about the curl definition she achieved with a combination of Cécred shampoo, conditioner and mask, telling her Instagram audience, “it’s shaking, it’s moving […] Cécred is a great product”.
Over in the UK, Gina Atinuke Knight, who has alopecia, proved that the brand is truly “for everyone” by demonstrating the Clarifying Shampoo & Scalp Scrub, stating, “this is not a good scalp scrub, it’s a great scalp scrub”.
That being said, there were some initial gripes about the cost of delivery to the UK. Keshia East, owner of No Knot Co, mentioned in her review, “Wish she had a UK stockist so shipping wasn’t so expensive”. With a host of British fans, cheaper international shipping is a wise decision, which may be why the brand recently dropped their shipping fee to a minimum of £6, with a five to seven business day wait.
Shipping prices haven’t been Cécred’s only criticism. Some have questioned whether Beyoncé should be at the helm of a textured haircare brand when she so often eschews natural hairstyles for wigs and weaves. Bey’s own hairstylist, Neal Farinah, is often bombarded with comments on his Instagram page speculating about the authenticity of his famous client’s tresses, with some even theorising that the singer has never worn her natural hair in public, despite Farinah himself confirming that her famous loose, undone texture is her actual curl pattern.
“Beyoncé never goes too OTT, she works with colours or styles which are consumer friendly and that the modern day client could also achieve in the salon. She shows you can have fabulous hair at every opportunity.” – Jay Birmingham, celebrity hairdresser
Regardless of her preferences concerning her own hair, Beyoncé has publicly championed the connection between Black women and their curls. In a 2021 interview with Harper’s Bazaar, the singer said, “I’ve seen how much Black women’s emotions are attached to our hair and beauty. The beauty industry does not always understand these emotions and what we need. I want to build a community where women of all races can communicate and share some of those secrets, so we can continue to support and take care of each other. I want to give women a space to feel their own strength and tell their stories. That is power.” Is this enough to secure the singer’s legitimacy as an authority in the textured haircare industry? Only time will tell!
Following its announcement and in anticipation of its launch, worldwide Google searches for Cécred reached peak popularity, as did searches for Beyoncé’s own name, suggesting that this celebrity-owned brand is likely to have a cult following that may mirror the likes of Rhianna’s Fenty Beauty. As for its long-term popularity, stay tuned.
Our celebrity haircare launch predictions
Zendaya
Zendaya is a living, breathing fashion icon. We’ll never forget the time she debuted faux locs on the red carpet in 2015. So it stands to reason, a hair care line in her portfolio, would easily garner a dedicated audience. We have our fingers firmly crossed!
Rihanna
Not content with conquering the world of beauty, Rihanna applied for a trademark application for ‘Fenty Hair’ in 2021, and though we haven’t yet caught sight of a launch date or product reveal, expectations are running high.
Halle Berry
With the relaunch of rē•spin, a digital community focused on perimenopause and menopausal health, Halle Berry’s passion for the subject means there’s an opportunity for the actress to address an underserved audience with a menopausal hair care line.
