For many curlies, heat styling tools call to mind the faint burning smell and sore arms from hours spent styling our curls into submission. This has often been followed by breakage and heat damage that lasts long beyond the stretched hairstyle. So when RevAir launched an innovative dryer that uses reverse air technology and less heat to cut down styling time, it wasn’t long before it made waves on social media and in the textured hair community. In 2021 the RevAir Pro was voted by the NaturallyCurly community as the Most Innovative Product for Type 4 Coily Hair.
NaturallyCurly got to ask RevAir Founder and CEO Scott Thomason why he channeled his background in product development, cosmetics manufacturing, and a degree in mechanical engineering into developing the RevAir – and how other entrepreneurs can continue to innovate in this industry.
How was the idea for the RevAir born out of your experience as a father?
A colleague of mine and his sister called me one day and said when he was a single father of two daughters, he did not know how to give them ponytails so he would put a band on the end of his vacuum hose, pull the hair in with the vacuum, and then roll the band on the hair to make the ponytail. We decided to try and make a device that would easily do this so I did some quick design work and made a 3D printed prototype. I had my 11 year old daughter test it with her friend and it worked. The device, connected to a vacuum, would pull a large section of hair in and when a trigger was pulled, they had a ponytail. BUT, the next day my daughter commented on how soft and silky her curly hair felt so I called my friend and his sister and we decided there could be something more important happening here so I began to prototype a device for drying hair. After hundreds of prototypes and trials we knew we could make a life-changing device so we founded RevAir and started building the company to bring this to the market.
Most of the styling tools we see in the hair industry are related to styling and straightening using high heat. What inspired you to innovate and disrupt this technology?
During testing I realized that because of the natural aerodynamics of the reverse air flow, high heat was not needed to achieve great results.
What has the process of building this tool looked like from idea to development?
I have developed many products in my career but getting this concept to work great, and work great on all hair types was challenging. The internal profiles to control the aerodynamics and hair movement along with managing the thermal response throughout the system took hundreds of prototypes and over a year to perfect. Once the technology was nailed down we began work on the detailed design to get it ready for injection molding and production.
What unique business challenges did you face, and how were you able to overcome them in launching this technology?
There were many challenges. The biggest challenge, and we knew it would be, was the fact that this product and process of using reverse-air (or suction) to dry hair was so different from anything ever done before, that it would take time to convince the world that this really does work and provides hair care options never seen before. We knew it worked and we knew it could be life changing for so many people so we were willing and determined to overcome that challenge and the many others. The amazing team at RevAir was also up to the challenge.
For our readers who are curious but haven’t yet tried the RevAir, what do you want them to know about this product?
- If drying, stretching, or smoothing your hair is a lengthy process, RevAir will save you a LOT of time. My wife saves 45 minutes per day drying and straightening her hair 🙂
- RevAir will leave your hair soft, smooth, and silky like you have never seen before.
- Less heat for less time will go a long way on your healthy hair journey.
- Because the reverse-air flow aligns the hair strands and does all of the work, a brush is rarely needed. Brushing wet hair is a common cause for hair damage and breakage
- At RevAir we stand behind our product and company 100%. We want every single customer to love their RevAir and love every interaction they have with us.
Do you have any advice for other budding entrepreneurs who also want to create a business in an untapped market?
- Innovate on products/services that make a real difference.
- Build a great team that is passionate about the mission.
- Treat your team, customers and vendors like family.
- Never give up. There will always be foreseen and unforeseen challenges.
- Do not focus on immediate profits. If you have a great product/service, take care of your customers and team, and do the right things, success will come.
You recently launched the New RevAir, what improvements did you make and what lead to this exciting launch?
Smaller, lighter, quieter, more efficient and better looking. We took everything we learned from our original device in the market and things we learned while working on other products to make the best new version of RevAir.
What can we look forward to from RevAir in 2023?
We will continue our focus on delighting our existing customers with new programs and offering them new product innovations.
You can save $50 on a RevAir or RevAir Total Package with the discount code CURL50. The code will be automatically added to your cart at checkout when you click this link.
This article is sponsored by RevAir.
