Who Owns Virtue?

The ingredient came before the brand. Dr. Luke Burnett, a retired Army colonel and biotechnology scientist, was working in regenerative medicine in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, developing keratin-based approaches to tissue repair. His team found a way to extract keratin from human hair in its whole form, rather than the fragmented hydrolyzed keratin used in conventional products.

Beauty veteran Melisse Shaban, who had built brands including Frederic Fekkai, partnered with Burnett to commercialize the discovery. Virtue Labs formed in Raleigh in 2014 under the earlier names Reason to Believe and Keratin Cosmetic Sciences, spent several years formulating, and launched its first consumer products in 2017.

Retail expansion through Sephora and Bluemercury established the prestige positioning. The Flourish line for thinning hair, backed by Jennifer Garner's public endorsement, became the fastest-growing franchise. Funding rounds through 2023 brought in Combe and other investors, and Palacios's appointment professionalized the operation. By 2026 Virtue appeared on most lists of top Olaplex alternatives, with its Alpha Keratin 60ku claim differentiating it from bond-building chemistry.