Nelly Ghansah,
All Things Hair
Experts at All Things Hair conducted a survey targeting US women of different ethnicities above the age of 16 to investigate hair inequality.
The survey revealed that women of color with 4c hair are being subjected to the Afro tax: price discrimination plus lack of availability and variety of hair care services and products.
According to the survey:
- African American women spend the most on hair care each month, with 21 percent spending more than 25 percent of their monthly budget on hair care compared to only five percent of Caucasian women
- African American women have to travel the furthest to get to a hair salon that really caters to their hair type
- Women with 4c hair spend the most money at hair salons
Read below to see how women of color are disproportionately spending income to maintain and care for their 4c hair.
Visiting the hair salon
The survey reveals that a quarter, or 24 percent, of American women don’t even go to hair salons, with multiracial and biracial women being the least likely to go to hair salons.
The survey also shows that African American women go to hair salons the most frequently, with six percent of Black women going to a hair salon once a week – double the consumer average.
Adding to this, African American women have to travel the furthest to get to a hair salon that really caters to their hair type.
Hair salon appointment lengths
The survey also reveals that African American women spend the most time at hair salon appointments while Caucasian women spend the least amount of time:
- 18 percent of Black women spend more than three hours at hair salon appointments –triple the average of six percent
- Almost half, or 46 percent, of White women in the US spend less than one hour at hair salon appointments, higher than the average of 40 percent
Hair salon spending habits
The survey reveals that almost a quarter, at 24 percent, of US women spend more than $100 in hair salons. African American women spend the most money, with 36 percent spending more than $100 at salons.
Additionally, women with 4c hair spend the most money at hair salons while women with straight hair spend the least:
Collectively, these figures show that African American women are spending more money in hair salons, visiting hair salons more regularly, and spending more time at hair salon appointments despite having to travel the furthest to find a hair salon that really caters to their hair type.
Shopping for hair products
Overall, 20 percent of US women find it difficult to find products that suit their hair. This increases to 29 percent for Multiracial & Biracial women, followed closely by 28 percent for Black women.
Additionally, women with 4c hair find it the most difficult to find products that suit their hair while women with straight hair find it the easiest: 37 percent of women with coily hair say that it is difficult to find products that suit their hair compared to only 13 percent of women with straight hair.
Hair care costs
The survey shows that seven in 10 (71 percent) American women spend less than 10 percent of their monthly budget on hair care while one in 10 (9 percent) spend more than 25 percent of their monthly budget.
Looking at this in further detail, the survey shows that African American women spend the most on hair care each month while Caucasian women in the US spend the least:
Additionally, women with 4c hair in the US spend the most on hair care each month while women with straight hair in the US spend the least: 16 percent of women with coily hair spend more than 25 percent of their monthly budget on hair care compared to just 6 percent of women with straight hair.
The full report can be found at All Things Hair.
This article was originally published by All Things Hair, a publication by Unilever.
The post The Afro tax: African American women spend four times more on hair care than Caucasian women appeared first on AFRO American Newspapers .
