Mandy Moore celebrates the new R+Co x Fred Segal collection curated by her friend and hairstylist Ashley Streicher at Fred Segal in West Hollywood.
WEST HOLLYWOOD, CA (LA ELEMENTS) 4/8/2019 – When it comes to brands defining the modern approach to hair, you’d be hard pressed to find one doing it better than R+Co, founded in 2014 by top hairstylists Garren, Thom Priano, and Howard McLaren. This brand has made a name for itself with products like the Dallas Thickening Spray and the innovative Badlands Dry Shampoo Paste, which are beloved by hairstylists, consumers, and beauty gurus alike thanks to their all-day hold. Not to mention their Instagram-friendly packaging.
R+Co co-founder Howard McLaren at the launch party for R+Co x Fred Segal.
And when it comes to brands with a lasting legacy of style setting, you’d be hard-pressed to find one more influential than Fred Segal, which has been charting the course of “California cool” for nearly 60 years. This is exactly what makes the new R+Co x Fred Segal limited-edition collection, curated by Ashley Streicher, a match made in heaven.
Known for her effortless approach to red-carpet hair, the Los Angeles-based hairstylist counts high-profile celebrities like Mandy Moore, Rachel Brosnahan and Sarah Paulson, among her clientele. “I am the newest member of the collective and the first lady!” Streicher exclaimed excitedly to an intimate group that gathered inside Fred Segal’s West Hollywood boutique on Wednesday, April 3 to celebrate the launch of the covetable collection. Select members of the media were in attendance as well as Mandy Moore, who was there to celebrate her close friend’s latest venture.
Ashley Streicher hosts the launch of the R+Co x Fred Segal collection.
“I was really excited to do this collaboration because I feel like I could bring a fun, fresh California vibe to the R+Co x Fred Segal collaboration—which is exactly what we did.” The resulting hair care line, which Streicher says includes “all of my favorite (R+Co ) products at the moment,” features playful packaging designed to encompass R+Co, Fred Segal, and Streicher’s aesthetics. Products like the Trophy Shine & Texture spray and the Death Valley dry shampoo—both of which Streicher uses to add a bit of grip, lightweight body, and serious shine to nearly all of her looks. These have been repackaged in a playful rock-n-roll inspired trophy print and a collage dreamscape inspired by the sights and sounds of LA, respectively. The Television Shampoo and conditioner have also been repackaged with a psychedelic twist on their original TV screen and Lip prints. What hasn’t changed is the fan favorite formula: juniper berry extract, glycerin, and babassu seed oil that combine to deeply nourish the hair and scalp.
The line is also the first collaboration the R+Co has released since going fully vegan in February of this year. “We’ve always been paraben-free, sulfate-free, and sodium-chloride-free, and I’d say we were 99% vegan with the exception of a couple products that had beeswax in them,” Daniel Langer, president and chief marketing officer of R+Co, explained to LA Elements. “One of our co-founders, Tom Priano, has lived a vegan lifestyle for a long, long time, and as a collective we are always trying to respect each other’s ideals, so this transition is very important to him. It’s also very important to the world right now, too as people are really paying attention to what they are using on their bodies and putting inside of them.”
Fred Segal CEO Allison Samek and R+Co President Daniel Langer
The reformulation of products that previously contained beeswax, like the semi-matte Control Flexible Paste, has proven to be an instant hit. That particular product is also part of Streicher’s R+Co x Fred Segal collective. Attendees at Wednesday night’s event were able to give it a test drive at the celebration’s hairstyling station. This re-commitment to plant-based products also aligns perfectly with Fred Segal’s approach to beauty, which is led by CAP, a New York City-based boutique that is a leader in the clean beauty movement. “All of Fred Segal’s products are actually clean beauty, so it was such a natural fit,” Langer told LA Elements. “Plus, I’ve been shopping at Fred Segal since I was a little kid. It’s one of the most iconic stores in the world and has always set the trend. You come here to shop and figure out what is of the moment, which makes this collaboration even more perfect.”
“When Daniel approached me about the potential to do a partnership, we didn’t even think about it,” Fred Segal CEO Allison Samek explained to the crowd on Wednesday night. “It was a ‘yes, yes, one-hundred-times yes!’ This collaboration is a perfect fit for our store, a perfect fit for our brand, and we absolutely love the look.”
The R+Co x Fred Segal collection is priced from $28 for the Control Flexible Paste and $29 for the Waterfall Moisture + Shine Lotion, to $32 for the Television Perfect Hair Shampoo & Conditioner, Outer Space Flexible Hairspray, Death Valley Dry Shampoo, and Trophy Shine & Texture Spray. All of these products are now available at Fred Segal boutiques in West Hollywood, LAX, and Malibu, as well as Fred Segal online and the official R+Co site.
The R+Co x Fred Segal hair care collection.
All photography courtesy of Chris Baldwin.
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