The inspiration behind Autumn Brown Yarbrough’s state-of-the-art haircare brand, NU Standard, was her pain.
Beyond the fact of being the third generation of the hair care business, it was her pain – the pain of hair loss, the pain of breakage, the pain of constant dryness, the pain of managing the hair, the frizz, the detangling, and other challenges women face daily with their hair.
“We have the demands of today where we need to be picture perfect within 30 minutes, and not having innovative products for the Black community and the textured hair community at all, and really being left out of second in line, last in line, third in line.” she emphasized.
“We’re never really part of the solution at the very beginning. When coming into science, innovation, wellness, we have to wait; that’s my pain.”
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Founded in 2020, NU Standard was created so that women who have textured hair would not damage or lose it using products that were not made for their type of hair. Autumn feels that the textured hair community is left out when it comes to the creative process of creating hair care products. She wants everyone to have a sense of belonging when it comes to their hair, and that is why NU Standard was birthed.
“I’m here to make sure that we are not left out,” she stated. “I believe it should be a new standard, not just for Black owned, but for all brands to start making sure that we are taking care of.”
Autumn comes from a lineage of family in the Black haircare industry. Her grandfather, Cornell Cottrell, Jr., started global haircare company, Pro-Line International, and her parents also led global haircare companies.
Representation and inclusivity in the beauty industry is extremely important to Autumn. She wants all people of all hair textures apart of R&D (Research and Development) so that everybody celebrates and win.
“I’m here to make sure that we are not left out,” Autumn emphasized. “I believe it should be a new standard not just for black owned, but for all brands to start making sure that we are taken care of.”
She believes it is crucial that the industry embraces Black founders, and most importantly, Black consumers, to ensure that they feel they are a part of R&D and innovative products and solutions and making sure that the pain points are taken care of. The color one’s skin should not be the focus, but what she describes as the “pain points” of hair.
There have been many success stories of very happy customers who have used NU Standard products, including her HYDRASILK Bond System, a two-step Hydrating Bond System that enriches the hair bond structure by revamping fragile disulfide bonds, reinforcing cuticle strength, and restoring moisture in the hair.
She described one particular customer whose success story touched her about a 12-year-old bi-racial young lady who always felt that her hair was “different” from everyone else’s. Her hair was severely damaged because she would regularly use new products that everyone else would use, and would not get the same results.
Her mom tried to explain to her that the products she was using wasn’t made for her kind of hair and was damaging it, resulting in her having an emotional breakdown. When this transpired, the young girl was in the process of getting the NU Standard, HYDRASILK bonding treatment. Autumn tried to assure her that her journey would be different. HYDRASILK is a product made for all hair textures.
“We created a product that you could use but also your mom could use so that you don’t feel that you always have to do something different from everybody else,” Autumn explained.
When they finally got the result of her hair, Autumn said the smile on her face was everything she had worked for and is currently working for.
“She said she had never been able to rub her hands this way or sway her hair like this and it was a sense of belonging that she could enjoy and celebrate her hair,” Autumn described. “It was exciting for the mom because she could buy a product that she could also use, and they both could share the same experience.”
In January 2023, NU Standard made history by launching the HYDRASILK Bond System at Cosmo Prof stores nationwide. This partnership is the first-ever distribution of a bond system created by a Black woman and customized particularly for textured hair to distribute to licensed professionals in the hair industry.
For more information on NU Standard, visit: https://nustandardhair.com/ and on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nustandardband/.
