The cost stack
Raw material is the largest single input and swings hardest by origin and length. Sorting and hackling labour follows — this is where Remy alignment is preserved and it cannot be automated cheaply. Colour development adds cost that rises steeply with lift level. Construction varies by product, with hand-tied the most labour-intensive per gram. Then inspection, packing, freight, duty.
Every intermediary adds a layer on top. A three-step chain from factory to you can carry 40–70% in stacked margin before anyone has improved the product.
Why length and light shades cost disproportionately more
Long hair is rarer at collection, and the yield after sorting drops sharply above 22 inches. Light shades require more development time and lose more material to rejection. Neither cost is linear.
A supplier whose 26-inch blonde is priced close to their 16-inch natural is telling you something about how the blonde was made.
Comparing quotes properly
Normalise to landed cost per 100g in the same shade, length and construction. Then ask both suppliers for the written specification. Two-thirds of apparent price gaps disappear once specification is matched.
Judge the remainder on reorder consistency, not on the first invoice.
Buyer Questions
Do you publish a price list?
We send a current wholesale list on request to trade buyers, with volume tiers at 10kg and 25kg.
Why are you cheaper than Western brands at similar specification?
Because there are fewer layers between the raw material and you. That is the whole of the difference — not a lower specification.