| The rise and rise of GHD is becoming an ever more | | | | It would appear that GHD have realised from the |
| impressive story. Despite being ultimately a | | | | start that building a fashion brand is not exclusively |
| one-product company (the iconic ghd hair | | | | about sales figures. Turnover, although important, |
| straightener, albeit it in various sizes and colours), and | | | | must be conducive to brand building. For that reason, |
| despite (or perhaps because of) being headquartered | | | | GHD have a famous reputation for refusing to supply |
| in deeply unfashionable Silsdon in Yorkshire, UK, GHD | | | | to high street names - culminating in rejecting likes of |
| seems to get as many mentions in the fashion press | | | | Boots when GHD themselves were only a few years |
| as a certain Mrs Beckham. | | | | old. Although this policy has been relaxed slightly in |
| Monique Lhullier, Miss Sixty and many others featured | | | | recent years (with Boots and Amazon starting to sell |
| GHD as their haircare partner at their recent Fashion | | | | directly supplied GHD hair straighteners in the last 12 |
| Week shows, with wavy, sea-inspired styles that | | | | months), it helped create the exclusivity and allure |
| showed off the versatility of the ghd iv styler. | | | | that any brand needs if it is to become a significant |
| Perhaps even more importantly the GHD marketing | | | | asset in its own right. |
| and PR machine that was so effective in dominating | | | | Which brings us to the issue of how much GHD might |
| the UK market for GHD, is now fully up and running | | | | ultimately be worth. When the most recent |
| on a global basis with the famous pink GHD | | | | management buy-out took place last year (just |
| promotion now appearing across the globe (with a | | | | before the global credit markets seized up), the |
| global network of breast cancer charities benefiting). | | | | valuation was around $288 million ($160m). One of |
| Other campaigns like the GHD Pure / GHD Dark | | | | the reasons given for injecting capital a that stage |
| promotion also enjoyed global promotionfurther | | | | into the business was to help it strike out around the |
| example of how GHD is becoming a genuine | | | | globe to boost its presence and revenues from the |
| international fashion brand is the unwelcome arrival of | | | | US, Europe and Australasia. Achieving this, particularly |
| large-scale counterfeiting of GHD products. Indeed, | | | | in the US, where it was previously an underground |
| major UK-based discount beauty and cosmetics chain, | | | | cult brand, will certainly see the valuation of the GHD |
| Superdrug, recently admitted supplying its customers | | | | brand soar. |
| with counterfeit GHD hair straighteners, albeit | | | | Of course, now isn't the time to get carried away |
| unintentionally [Source: BBC News Website, Friday, 19 | | | | with valuing privately-held companies, but once the |
| September 2008]. This would suggest that GHD | | | | markets have returned to normality in 2010 or |
| counterfeiting is now highly organised and very | | | | thereabouts, and provided that GHD has managed to |
| professional (as it is with designer perfumes and | | | | continue to build its presence globally, then there is |
| luxury fashion accessories). Of course, no-one at | | | | no reason why the people of Yorkshire won't be |
| GHD will be happy with fake GHD products being | | | | celebrating the presence of a billion dollar fashion |
| sold, but it does bracket the company in some | | | | brand just up t'road. |
| pretty exclusive company (Gucci, Prada, and the like). | | | | |