When I noticed my first grey hair at the age of 25 I took a big breath in and… promptly snatched it out of my scalp.
Since that time I’ve learnt that no longer is it extremely common to sprout grey — or almost clear hairs — in your mid-twenties and sometimes earlier, but a product exists that can help slow down that growth.
Australian-born Robe Haircare produced The Tonic ($69.99) as an after-wash scalp spray treatment that effectively stimulates hair growth and revitalises the hair directly at the follicular level.
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The fragrance-free formulation works for all hair types to address the concerns of thinning hair by promoting accelerated growth and revitalising fatigued strands for full, healthy locks.
But interestingly the unique formula also contains darkenyl to seamlessly conceal and even out any persistent patches of greying hair — which is exactly what I’m looking for.
The founder of Robe Haircare, Lauren Mackellar, was well-versed in hair and all its myriad forms before launching the brand because she worked as a celebrity hairsdresser for 16 years.
Yet, despite being an expert in everything from coarse to thin and “unmanageable” locks, she still struggled to find products she could reliably recommend to clients to fix their hair woes.
“Even though I’d worked in the industry for close to two decades, I couldn’t find anything I felt confident recommending that offered any long-term benefits or support with the hair changes women experience through their lives,” Lauren previously told Best Picks.
“While there were a lot of products around that gave a really lovely cosmetic result, there was nothing I could see that gave any long-term result.”
Lauren added: “We know men experience hair loss as they age, but as women, we also experience hair changes too.
“There’s postpartum hair loss, textural changes due to hormones and ageing, and then hair loss that comes about as a result of stress or health issues.”
She says although we have come to expect our skincare to “do more for us”, she was frustrated that nothing was available in the same category when it came to hair products.
So, she decided to change this.
At home in Melbourne in 2020, Lauren started formulating what would become her best-selling brand: Robe Haircare.
“I wanted to create the haircare range I had always wished for as a hairdresser – a range of haircare essentials that actually worked to achieve longer, stronger, healthier hair for all hair types,” Lauren says.
She poured her heart and soul into the Robe formulas, incorporating ingredients that had been used for centuries in Chinese medicine, natural medicine and ayurvedic philosophies to promote hair health and growth, such as sea moss and nettle.
“I knew from my own experience, buying the herbs in capsules or mixing them into teas, that I had seen amazing results from these ingredients when I lost it due to stress-related reasons,” Lauren says.
“I knew that if there was a topical product with those ingredients that could be used directly on the hair, then the results would be even more powerful.”
Devastatingly for Lauren, halfway through formulating Robe Haircare she received a cancer diagnosis which required treatment that would cause her to lose her hair.
After dealing with chronic migraines, she was diagnosed with a brain tumour – which was later removed via surgery.
After this, Lauren had to start radiation and chemotherapy immediately, which led to her inevitable hair loss.
“Hair plays such a huge part in how we feel about ourselves,” Lauren says.
“When I lost all of mine and was told by doctors that it was unlikely to grow back due to the amount of radiation I had to have, I was devastated.
“My entire world revolved around hair.”
But she started using the $69.99 tonic she had developed herself – for use on her own hair – applying that tonic to her scalp.
“A few weeks later, I noticed my hair was growing back,” Lauren says.
“Now, at least I can jokingly say that I ended up becoming my own clinical trial!
“The fact that my hair grew back thicker and healthier than ever before, all while doing chemotherapy, is pretty incredible.”
Lauren continued to pour herself into her “north star” of finishing Robe Haircare, and launched in 2023 – with huge success.
Those who have tried the Robe products – which consist of various shampoos and conditioners for different concerns, and other products – have raved about them, describing them as “amazing” and “so good”.
Alongside the shampoos and conditioners, there are also leave-in treatments – and the tonic that Lauren credits with helping her own hair.
“I want to be able to help as many people as I can to feel confident about themselves, and fall back in love with their hair again, because they’re using products that actively support their hair,” Lauren says of Robe.
“I spent a lot of time not only making the formulas, but designing the bottles, fragrance and in-shower experience, to help rebuild the relationship we have to our hair, and make sure that the person who buys Robe has a really beautiful experience from the moment they pick up the bottle.”
For more information about Robe Haircare, and to take the quiz to find out which product is right for you, head here.
Not everyone will have the same results and results may differ.