We love everything EVOLVh makes, but what you may not know is that one of our favorite hair products of all time is their Better Roots RootBoost Serum: it’s scalp-soothing, it seems to help blowouts last longer, and it really does help with hair shedding. We were thrilled, then, when we heard that they were expanding the Better Roots lineup. Learn all about it in Dara’s interview with EVOLVh’s founder, Boris Oak, below. 

Dara: Better Roots is growing! So exciting. What prompted you to expand the range?

BORIS: I wanted to create more opportunities for people, myself included, to get these active ingredients onto the scalp.

I started with just myself in mind, in a way: I’m very interested in preserving my hair for the future, and I’ve been thinking about it in the context of hair longevity. How do I ensure that people have healthy hair, and hopefully an abundance of hair, 20-30 years into the future?

The serum remains the key hero product in the range; it has the highest amount of the active ingredients that really move the needle for healthier scalp skin, hair follicle support, and protein synthesis needed to create healthy hair fibers, and melanin synthesis to create healthy hair pigment.

Dara: I am already a huge fan of the Better Roots Serum —I swear by it — and couldn't wait for its new companion products! Can you take us through the development of each of the new products? 

BORIS:

Sure! First, there’s the Growth Support Shampoo. What allowed us to move forward with this product is that one of the ingredients companies that we have a relationship with ran clinicals on a very popular natural active called Capixyl. We weren’t using it previously, but I began to see its value when I dug into it. It’s been shown in clinical studies to be effective even in a rinse-off application.

We paired it with a few other actives, including another Lucas Meyer ingredient called Gravers, which is a peptide-based active that’s helpful for supporting melanin synthesis. It has a similar mode of action and delivery system as Capixyl, and in discussing it with science team at Lucas Meyer, they felt optimistic that it would work in a rinse off formula, too, since it’s a similar material. So we decided to include that in the formula, along with two other actives that we already have in the serum.

Dara: What made you decide to make a shampoo in the first place?

BORIS: I thought it was important to include a shampoo in the Better Roots range because, while using a scalp serum is a new behavior for people, everyone’s already in the habit of using a shampoo! The Serum you love will still continue to be the most important product in the lineup, but the Growth Support Shampoo is interesting because shampoo is inherently part of everybody’s current haircare routine.

Dara: It feels beautiful, too — very gentle and moisturizing, but it still leaves hair feeling really clean.

BORIS: Yeah, we’re using a different surfactant system than you’ll find in most shampoos; it’s a completely amino based system more commonly used in skincare. I wanted to use it because of how gentle and moisturizing it is for the scalp, and we also included prickly pear extract, which is clinically proven to deliver moisture even in a rinse-off application. As a result, the formula is super gentle and softens hair without being heavy or over-depositing too many oils; it also cleanses really well and lathers beautifully. It’s a luxurious product, equal parts hair-growth and scalp-wellness-supporting.  

Dara: And tell us about the Growth Support Conditioner, which is also lovely.

BORIS: The Better Roots Conditioner is really focused on strengthening the hair. For the most part, people aren’t applying conditioner to the scalp or roots, so this formula isn’t intended to deliver scalp benefits. Instead, it’s geared towards helping to prevent breakage of both the new hair and older hair so that it’s as strong and as healthy as possible.

It has a number of interesting ingredients: first of all, there’s creatine, which is a very popular ingredient as an ingestible for people who are trying to build muscles, but it’s also very effective on the hair. We also use a ceramide-based active ingredient designed to strengthen the outer layer of the hair fiber, and it’s an effective heat and environmental protectant. Then we use something really powerful for shine, too: castor oil esters.

When we were developing this formula, we worked with two active ingredient companies from Brazil that are geniuses at certain types of hair actives, especially ones designed to control frizz, strengthen, and improve shine. For example, one of them has developed a silicone alternative that’s clean and very effective at reducing frizz, polycitronellol acetate: I might bring that and some of the others into our existing formulas.

I think this might be even more effective than our current conditioners overall in terms of moisture and hair-strengthening. It’s a supercharged formula but still stays true to our efforts of not coating the hair or leaving the hair too heavy or oily. Like all of our conditioners, it’s lightweight, with a focus on delivering nutrients into the hair instead of just coating the hair.

A lot of these new technologies just weren’t available when we were first developing formulas, so we’re now looking at evolving some of our older formulas since there’s been so much innovation.

Dara: That’s exciting! The last product I want to task you about is the Growth Support Styling Foam, which is the perfect styling companion.

BORIS: Yeah, the Growth Support Styling Foam is a really innovative product; it might be the world’s first styling product with hair-growth actives. The idea came to me from my own personal experience: I happen to be a daily user of styling foam. With foams, you always end up with a lot of product on your scalp, especially on the hairline. It’s an area that’s of such concern for a lot of people, so I thought it could be a great opportunity to deliver actives to the scalp.

Dara: Who’s it best for?

BORIS: It’s ideal for anyone who’s interested in more volume, especially with fine hair. They could have short, medium, or long hair; their hair could be curly, or straight. Whatever hair you have, it’s super easy to use and performs even without blow-drying. So even if you’re air-drying, you’ll get lift off the scalp. It also helps reduce frizz, and there’s heat protection built in, which is really nice for creating definition in curly hair. It also makes hair that’s prone to reacting to humidity less reactive – so it’s very helpful for people whose hair is impacted by moisture in the air.

The Growth Support Styling Foam has soft hold, so you don’t really feel any product in the hair. You can run your hands through it and it won’t deconstruct or collapse. If you have straight hair and like to curl it, you can apply the foam, air dry, and curl it: it’ll help hold the curl. And if you’re already curly, it can help create curl definition.

The next day after styling, you can spritz it and reactivate the foam, or work a small amount of additional foam into the hair. You barely need to spritz it. I basically woke up today with my hair fully styled – it has a lot of memory!

Dara: Anything else that we should know about the Styling Foam?

BORIS: One thing to keep in mind is that it’s more expensive than our mousse because its active ingredients are so pricey. So we packaged it in smaller volumes to keep it affordable, but the good thing is that the 100ml size still lasts a long time, and it’s also easier for travel or your gym bag; it’s super portable, but large enough to get a lot of use out of it.

Dara: How do you suggest thinking about using Better Roots as a whole routine?

BORIS: I think there are two main types of people who might be interested in using the whole lineup: people with immediate concerns around hair loss or excessive shedding, and people who aren’t really in a state of emergency yet but would like to invest in the health of their hair now to set it up for greater longevity, sort of like you do with your exercise routine or your diet when you’re in your 30s and 40s. Start with the shampoo and conditioner, apply the serum to your scalp, and style with the foam: it’s a comprehensive approach for better hair health.

Learn more about how Better Roots first began here, and shop the EVOLVh lineup here.