For Cyndia Harvey, T.H.O.M is more than a high-end haircare line. It’s a culmination of a life’s journey dedicated to creating a nurturing and liberating world centred on Black people and their hair. Her new brand is here to elevate the rituals of self-care by bringing together respect for ancestral practices with the very latest scientific innovations.

The Jamaica-born artist has become famed for her work on global catwalks and campaigns – most recently at Simone Rocha, Diesel, Nensi Dojaka, Schiaparelli and Jacquemus – as well as for magazines including Dazed, W, Perfect, Nataal and i-D. In 2021 she was voted a British Fashion Council Changemaker and she has also been sought after by the likes of Solange, Frank Ocean and Kendrick Lamar. However, it was her personal project, the 2016 film ‘This Hair Of Mine’, which sowed the seeds of T.H.O.M. The short, a collaboration with filmmaker Akinola Davies Jnr, explores the African diaspora through hair and the voices of its cast of young women who reveal how hair connects them to their heritage. The film is close to Nataal’s heart too – we gave it its online debut and screened it at art exhibitions in Paris and New York – so now T.H.O.M has come so beautifully into being, it’s time to pick up the thread.

“At that time, I was working in the industry and finding that the majority of my portfolio featured Caucasian hair. Having started out in a Black hair saloon, and being a Black woman myself, there was something wrong about that. So, the film was a radical reaction to this lack of representation,” Harvey explains. She’s at home in London for one night and talking to me as she unpacks and repacks, ready to jet off to Paris tomorrow. “It was quite impactful for the community and so, although the film is its own thing, it was a natural evolution and has a connection to the brand.”

Since then, while progress has been made in the way fashion approaches diverse beauty, desirable products for textured hair remain sadly lacking. “There were lots of products available but nothing that spoke to me emotionally, nothing good enough. As a consumer, I’m looking for a brand with a strong message and purpose that inspires me. And professionally, I need a product that’s high performing and looks amazing. So, T.H.O.M came naturally. It is for anyone who has had to work harder and in turn, come to expect better.”

It took three years to develop T.H.O.M as Harvey and her collaborators fine-tuned every aspect of the brand from the aesthetics to efficacy. “Visually, I wanted to create a world that was timeless and that wasn’t too prescriptive so that it could be serene space for self-expression through your own lens. Then we give you multi-functional products that can be integrated into your life as you please. The idea is to surprise and delight people, from the minute you interact with the product right through to how it performs.”

Crucially, she worked closely with a chemist to develop “supernatural” formulations based on next generation plant-based actives. In the mix is pomegranate enzyme, which acts as a mild exfoliant, pea peptide to stimulate hair regeneration and apple stem cell for its soothing qualities. “It was a creative process, which I didn’t expect and really enjoyed. I’m a such a nerd about it now,” she laughs. “We know that textured hair is so vastly different to all other hair types, and its needs are so much higher, so everything has been diligently researched.”

For Harvey, those needs begin at the scalp. The only part of the hair that’s alive sits beneath the scalp, so it makes sense that a happy scalp (and the 100,000-or-so follicles that reside there) will foster happy hair. As such, the first product to come out is the T.H.OM scalp serum, which promises to stimulate, hydrate and renew. “I have suffered from multiple scalp issues, especially because I oscillate between hairstyles. For example, the infamous itch from braids is an allergic reaction to the synthetic fibre the braids are made from. When I’ve worn them my head will be on fire,” she explains. “Other scalp products are either too water based, which can ruin your style if it’s not wash day, or contains alcohol, which is an irritant.”

By comparison, T.H.OM’s lightweight serum can be used at any point in your routine and addresses common concerns including dryness, itchiness, dehydration and hair fall. “It’s the one step solution to the hair of your life,” she declares, with a big, bright smile. “Also scalp care brings it back to something more sentimental. Many men and women have that memory of sitting in their mother or aunt’s laps and having their scalp groomed. This brings back that ritual yet with a more effective solution.”

Two more pioneering products are currently in development. In the meantime, Harvey will continue to make change behind the camera and backstage, where she brings to life technically impressive, spiritually uplifting hair for all to enjoy. And these days, she’s thrilled to be keeping company in the industry with more female hair stylists. “Hair is so dominated by men but there is some amazing talent coming through like Amidat Giwa and Virginie Moreira,” she reflects. As for her own protégées, she says: “These days, I am really invested in my team. Without them, it’s nothing. So, it’s important to prepare them well to go out on their own. Plus, I learn from my assistants every day. It’s an equal exchange.”

Last question. Will there be a This Hair of Mine film part two? “Maybe. It will be a new idea, have something else to say, sit outside of the brand. But the first film stands the test of time. I still get these heart-jerking DMs from people saying how much it moved them or that they’ve written their dissertation on it.” Another quality that the original film and T.H.OM share is that they were both self-funded, independent and have come together through sheer ingenuity. In that respect, nothing changes. “How I grew up and got introduced to creativity was from a position of not having much; looking around my yard and working with what I could find. So, I know now that if you work with what you have, and if there is intention and purpose behind it, then you can do anything.”

Watch the 2016 film This Hair of Mine here.