What Spending A Half A Trillion Dollars on Hair Care and Weaves Says About Us

May 11th, 2011 - By TheEditor

By H. Fields Grenee

Straight, wavy, curly, fine, curse – few things generate more passion or anger among African American women than their hair. Some critics note that the emphasis placed on hair is a double-edged sword aimed at ones’ self esteem. Or when quaffed well, i.e. “Good Hair” becomes a passage to acceptance within the dominate cultures’ ideal of beauty.

Then there are those who view hair – commercial or natural – as an accompaniment to an outfit; like a hat or that essential accessory that glams up the whole look. Despite what stance you view the landscape from – hair – African American hair and the cultivation of that “look” via the placement of weave is a multi-billion dollar industry.

Extensions can cost as low as $300 (depending on your geographical area) and go up to $10,000; based on the service – strand by strand extensions or weft (track) that are calculated per weft or a set price for the entire head, says Atlanta-based beautician Toni Love, who has more than 20 years experience styling hair with the addition of weave placement.

Factor in maintenance; better known as touch-ups, required every four to six weeks determined by how fast the recipients’’ natural hair grows – commercial hair placement can range between $4,000 to $80,000 a year – not including transportation, child care or lost productivity incurred by the three to eight hours required to complete the process.

Despite the cost reductions since weaves first gained popularity in the late 70s and early 80’s – when it was primarily used for theatrical purposes, movies, videos and on fashion runways – the expense is difficult to juggle with real incomes. Nevertheless, their hyper-visibility can be seen everywhere from corporate boardrooms to inner-city food desert bodegónes.

Quest for fashion fabulous hair speaks volumes about us

Consider this: $46,326 was the median household income in the United States according to 2010 U.S. Census data and the average income for African American families was $32,584, well below a middle-class lifestyle. Yet we over-spend for the purpose of appearance. Why is this?

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  • Stephanie_rola

    Great Article, enjoyed the read! The figures are astounding!

    • D.d.8

      the figures are wrong. black people as a whole  spend 500 billion across 27 product and service groups. about 8 billion of that was spent on personal care products and services. this writer should check the facts they are using to make black people feel bad for taking care of themselves. shock and awe is all this article is….

  • Lotusbudblooms

    My opinion is that black women should stop wearing weave and go back to their natural texture but with a flat ironed out look. I don’t like the afro look, it looks very unfeminine to me, so a nice full, feathered out do that’s flatironed is most attractive in my opinion.  I wear that style myself and when I work out, I wear it up with a headband. I don’t like the constant berated black women get for trying to improve their looks. We are not separate from society. We are americans and need to assimilate to our country’s cultural standards for survival and to live better. It’s adaptation and those who don’t adapt well, become extinct. All women have to conform to beauty standards. All of them. Quit with this self hatred non-sense because it doesn’t work. I value beauty in all women and when I beautify myself I may borrow a little from different types who  I find attractive. I like some features of asian beauty, some of caucasion, some of latin, some of black women. It’s not that we are only looking at white. No because the standard of beauty has been globalized. If you’ve noticed, it’s becoming more and more ethnic by the year. However, men generally don’t find african features that appealing on women (dark skin, short fro-like hair) I think it is in black women’s interest to render those traits more attractive to men’s taste and also their own. Look, it’s about selling your product on the market – remember that. If what you have to offer isn’t that sellable, then you should offer what is to the best of your ability. If it’s done well, then you’ll be respected for it. If it’s not (which I think is the issue with most black women’s taste) then you’ll get rejected or ridiculed for it.

    • proudnaturalblackwoman

      I’m sad for you.

    • http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1438551270 Jessica Lucinda Williams

      i am the first person to say each to his/her own you know, but reading your post……you have definitely been assimilated into the collective. Different men love different things in different women. i wear my hair in an afro sometimes, and my husband loves it. Thank the Lord above, the majority of men don’t really think the way you accuse them of. They want a woman who takes good care of herself, no matter what, and is classy enough to not put others down for their style choices.

  • sophisticatecovergirl

    Wow not one comment?

  • Andrea

    ACTUALLY! I get to do this every morning, as I wish, wash my hair when I wish, have my man pull it when he wishes as well, and it's all mine.

    Micro locs/ sisterlocks for the win!!

  • http://www.natoyaebony.com/ Mac

    Wearing weave has nothing to do with wanting good hair….GOOD hair is HEALTHY hair. It can be short, long, curly, straight, in pig tails…it just needs to be healthy. http://www.natoyaebony.com/

  • anonymous

    I have "good hair"–it is long and wavy–not at all kinky and it is natural–no perm, no relaxer, texturizer or heat training. To be completely honest, I'm more messed up than girls with kinky hair wearing weaves because I remember a time when there were no weaves and my hair was exceptional and exotic for a black person but now that everyone has the same indian remy deep waves and curly weaves (not to mention lacefronts), my hair no longer stands out. It took a lot of multi-generational mixing to get my hair and these girls now just go down the street and literally buy it like fast food.
    I feel a little less unique–and questions of authenticity abound. I noticed other black women assume I must have an expensive weave and I am routinely asked if "it's all real." In fact, I went to an upscale hair salon while traveling in New York and was told that they "don't work with weave"–a weave that I don't even have.

  • Truth

    THE WHOLE BASIS OF THIS ARTICLE IS BULL!!!!!
    Black people do not spend do not spend half a million dollars on hair care and weaves. Target market news clearly says, I quote
    "In 2009, black households spent an estimated $507 billion in 27 product and services categories. That's an increase of 16.6% over the $435 billion spent in 2008. African-Americans' total earned income for 2009 is estimated at $836 billion."
    The 27 products and services included in the $507 billion include educaation, food, electronics entertainment amongst other things. You dont believe me, check out the link http://www.targetmarketnews.com/storyid11011001.h…

    Stop trying to make us look bad with your false statistics…who every wrtoe this article should be fired!

  • Jada1

    Also, I think instead of everybody just focusing on black women wearing weave and contributing so much money to our hair, I think we should focus on the root issues,which is the way society and our own community views “nappy” hair.
    White/Euro-looking features is what our society and our world views as beautiful and acceptable. The black community is the same and views anybody more Euro-looking/less black as beautiful and that includes hair type. As long as our society/world is like this, then the black hair business will continue to soar. Whenever plastic surgery gets affordable(and it will soon enough), more black women will get nose jobs, butt and breast implants, everything. You have black women getting sick and dying because of black market butt injections. Its sad and it makes me sad to even think about having children,esp. a daughter cause I couldn’t protect them from all the negative things our society and black-American community has. Sad.

  • Elle Peay

    JESUS. I guess the editor fell asleep under the dryer! I presume by 'quaffed', the writer actually meant 'coiffed' and by 'councils', she actually mean 'counsels'. I won't go on.

  • Leslie

    The difference is that white women aren't "called out" or looked down upon if they don't wear weaves. In fact many times they are applauded for not following these expensive and laborious beauty standards(google Brazillian Blowout). When was the last time there was a large mainstream effort to make manufacturers answer for the chemicals they put in relaxers? The difference is that MOST hair care products and salons are geared towards women who don't have kinky hair, and the products that supposedly are for women with kinky hair are designed to make our hair straight, not maintain its natural beauty. If you wanna wear a weave, that's your business. But, if you can't walk out of the house without a weave or a wig or a fresh perm on your head because you're embarrassed about your natural hair, then you might have a problem, and that is the state of things for MOST black women. It is getting tiresome, but not in the way that you imply.

  • Loren Witherspoon

    I have worn my hair loc'd for over 2 years now. It has grown faster and is healthier at the root than it has ever been. It started out less than an inch long and is now down to my shoulders. Natural and organic products to maintain and very little upkeep. My maintenance cost is approximately 2.00 a month which includes water, maintenance products and twisting. There is something to be said for the natural state of your hair.

  • Michel Imhotep

    With all due respect to H. Fields Grenee, the report from Target Market News does not state that in 2009 African-Americans spent $507 Billion on Hair Care and Personal Grooming Items out of total Buying Power of $836 Billion. It states that in 27 product categories we spent $507 Billion. As far as Hair Care and Personal Grooming Items we spent $7.4 Billion. If we spent $507 Billion on Hair Care and Personal Grooming Items, then how could we spend $203.8 Billion on Housing and Related Charges, $65.2 Billion on Food, $23.6 Billion on Health Care and $29.1 Billion on Cars and Trucks? That equals over $827 Billion and we still aren't done counting.

  • http://www.AfricanHistoryNetwork.com Michael Imhotep

    With all due respect to H. Fields Grenee, the report from Target Market News does not state that in 2009 African-Americans spent $507 Billion on Hair Care and Personal Grooming Items out of total Buying Power of $836 Billion. It states that in 27 product categories we spent $507 Billion. As far as Hair Care and Personal Grooming Items we spent $7.4 Billion. If we spent $507 Billion on Hair Care and Personal Grooming Items, then how could we spend $203.8 Billion on Housing and Related Charges, $65.2 Billion on Food, $23.6 Billion on Health Care and $29.1 Billion on Cars and Trucks? That equals over $827 Billion and we still aren't done counting.

    Thanks,

    Michael Imhotep
    The African History Network Show http://www.AfricanHistoryNetwork.com

  • Mariar

    Womens been grooming their hair and body since the beginning of time!
    Who doing these studies worrying about a person look? worry about your wife, girlfriend, daughters, sister, aunts,
    grandmother whatever.

  • da truth

    What about those who inject Botox in their lips and their behinds to achieve that Black girl silhouette!
    I haven't seen the psychological evaluation of those. I am waiting….but won't be holding my breath,
    cause they're won't be none. Why, the media, including Black media is intent on portraying Black women
    in a bad light. Period. End of Discussion. Put we're still here despite all the HATERATION. I want to see a
    study on Black Executive Assistants (or Secretaries) with BA and MBA degrees, next to High school degree holding Beckys working as VPs.

    • Correction

      I just saw a special on National Geographic and Discovery about WOMEN in general mutilating themselves for botox, implants, and "corrective surgeries". But maybe you didn't catch that, as those are EDUCATIONAL channels. Women are beautiful and shouldn't feel the need to go off and spend so much time, effort, money etc to accompilsh these durastic changes and modifications. Black women have curly hair-EMBRACE THAT! My point being is that black women are BEAUTIFUL. I just wanted to make my point that each has their own imperfections but how lame would it be if we were all perfect?

  • Jamie

    I went natural a year ago, but I've had it all, relaxers, hot combs, colors across the rainbow, braids, and different extensions. At some point I realized that I was 22 and knew nothing about my real hair, and guess what I loved the little secret that sprouted beneath. Even though I learned to love it I found that having dark skin and "Puerto Rican" curly hair got mixed reviews like "How did you get your hair to do that?" or "Did you process your hair?" All questions from black people. When I wore it straight there were no questions, because it was "normal." The reality is it is not. That curly, kinky, wavy, poofy texture is what is normal. We as women need to teach our sons and daughters that what they are born with is just as beautiful as the rest, and that variety/change is okay too. Hair should be healthy and can be a form of self expression, not a political issue that White America has created for us. Sometimes you just have to turn off the TV, put down the magazines, look in the mirror and see real beauty for yourself.

  • Jamie

    Anyone who claims that the concept of "good hair" v. "bad hair" doesn't exist is in denial. With that being said, I will admit that "good hair" is not the only reason women wear weaves, extensions, color, or fry, dye, and lay it to the side. Women in general love variety and perfect hair, whatever that means for the individual, but black women have to be honest with themselves about why we do what we do to our hair. Some of it is self-hate, some of it is self-love. No matter what style you choose it shouldn't be because you don't know how to manage what is naturally yours first. I say learn to love and care for what naturally grows out of your scalp first, and if you decide you want a change out of personal preference then do you.

  • Clarence

    I would suggest that the writer of this article check his figures since this figure can not possibly be accurate. I am sure that he has confused millions of dollars with billions of dollars in this story since he is stating that 40 million African Americans spend more than $500 billion on hair care products. The GNP of California is approximately $1.85 Trillion for nearly 40 million citizens, and United States GNP is $14 Trillion. There is absolutely no way that African Americans could be spending such a high percentage (i.e. 61% of total spend power) of their total $836 Billion of buying power on hair products. $500 million is still outrageous and astronomical, but $500 billion on haircare products would be suicidal and impossible. I am very concerned that we are spreading inaccurate info to our people! In the computer word, this phenomena is known as "Garbage In, Garbage Out! I am also wondering if they have editors at the Atlanta Post! This article only shows that the writer had some serious issues with basic arithmetic and placement of zeros during his grade school days!

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