Building a Brand Movement Around Gray Hair with Chris Crump
What happens when a personal transition becomes a market opportunity, and a cultural movement?
In this episode of Her Business Playbook, we sit down with Chris Crump, founder of Slate Strands, to explore how she’s redefining the narrative around grey hair, especially for women with textured hair. With over two decades as a licensed stylist, Chris is building more than a brand, she’s creating a space where confidence, identity, and expert care intersect.
This conversation unpacks how she’s leveraging lived experience, community, and strategic patience to build a differentiated beauty brand rooted in purpose and poised for product expansion.
1. From Personal Journey to Market Gap Chris shares how her own transition to grey exposed a lack of products, education, and representation, particularly for textured hair sparking the foundation for Slate Strands.
2. Reframing Grey Hair as a Power Move This isn’t about “aging gracefully.” It’s about owning visibility, confidence, and identity in a space that has historically centered youth.
3. Building Community Before Product Slate Strands is intentionally growing as a community-first brand, using consultations, storytelling, and engagement to build trust before scaling into product lines.
4. The Role of Expertise in Brand Authority With 20+ years behind the chair, Chris discusses how technical credibility and real client experience shape her brand positioning, and future formulations.
5. Strategic Patience in Product Development Rather than rushing to market, Chris is focused on getting the product right, highlighting the importance of alignment between brand promise and product performance.
6. Representation as Strategy, Not Just Messaging Slate Strands centers textured grey hair not as a niche afterthought, but as a primary audience, creating differentiation and loyalty.
Presented in partnership with the Columbus [Ohio] Chamber of Commerce, The Her Business Play podcast shares strategies from female-founded and led brands. New episodes drop each week. If you found this content helpful in growing your personal or business brand, like this episode and subscribe to our channel.
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