Who Owns Olaplex?

Olaplex was founded in 2014 in Santa Barbara, California, by entrepreneurs Dean Christal and research chemist Dr. Eric Pressly, who developed a patented bond-building technology called bis-aminopropyl diglycol dimaleate (BAPDDM). The technology claims to repair broken disulfide bonds in hair caused by chemical treatments including bleaching, colouring, and perming.

The brand launched initially through professional salon channels, with celebrity colourist Guy Tang among the first prominent adopters. The product quickly gained a reputation among professional colourists as a genuine technical advancement in chemical service protection, building professional credibility before expanding into retail.

In 2017, Advent International, a global private equity firm, acquired a majority stake in Olaplex, accelerating the brand's retail expansion. Olaplex expanded into standalone retail products for consumer home use, creating an at-home bond-building regimen to complement the salon professional service.

Olaplex went public in September 2021 at an IPO price of $21 per share, valuing the company at approximately $14.6 billion. The IPO was one of the most successful beauty brand listings in history at the time.

In 2022 and 2023, the brand faced a significant legal and reputational challenge when a class action lawsuit alleged that Olaplex's No. 3 Hair Perfector caused hair loss. Olaplex denied the allegations, but the controversy coincided with a broader softening of social media enthusiasm for the brand. Revenues declined, the stock fell from its IPO-era highs to under $2 per share, and the brand initiated marketing investment to rebuild consumer trust and professional channel relationships.

By late 2025 and into 2026, Olaplex had stabilised revenues through professional channel refocus and product line innovation. The Henkel acquisition at $2.06 per share, while representing a fraction of the IPO valuation, reflected a premium to the prevailing share price in the months prior to announcement.