‘I needed to bite the bullet': Aussie man's simple idea that is now making millions

News.com.au

12 hours ago

Making other people rich inspired one Aussie to risk everything and sink $700,000 into one simple idea.
Jordan Mylius, 37, was working in sales for a tanning company when he decided to focus on creating his own haircare brand, Hairification.
The idea came to Mr Mylius during one of Melbourne's multiple Covid-19 lockdowns.
One of the only things you could do at the time was go to the supermarket and it was there that he came up with the idea.
'I remember seeing a haircare brand launch and thinking it was a good idea. The brand looked cool, it was affordable and it was clearly selling well,' he told news.com.au.
'It got the cogs turning in mind. 'What else could be done in this space?''
The 37-year-old has always been incredibly self-motivated. He skipped university and went to the 'University of Life' instead and bought a tanning and beauty salon in his 20s.
From there he got into sales and ended up being the global sales director for Aussie tanning brand Bondi Sands.
During his tenure, he watched the brand go from being stocked in a handful of Priceline stores to becoming a multimillion-dollar success.
Mr Mylius has always loved his career working for other people and brands, but he has always known he wanted to do something for himself.
'I've made lots of people lots of money over the years. I needed to bite the bullet and do it for myself,' he said.
'I wanted to look back and think 'wow I achieved this' and see my products on shelves.'
So, when he saw a gap in the market to launch a haircare brand that delivered salon-quality results at supermarket prices, he jumped at it.
He created a shampoo and conditioner that retailed for $25 each, aiming to help combat frizz and revitalise thinning hair.
From his perspective, it is the kind of product everyone wants but usually can't afford to spend over $100 on, like similar ones on the market.
Once he had the idea and the vision, he felt he knew how to market the product, and he went all in.
'I just bootstrapped it,' he said.
'I used all my own savings and risked pretty much everything.'
At the end of the day, launching the brand cost between $700,000 and $1 million, which involved paying for everything from marketing to the salary of a chemist to develop the formula.
It sounds crazy, but the businessman explained that he figured 'you can always make more money', but you can't fix living with regret.
Mr Mylius said that part of his confidence stemmed from the fact that he believed in the product from the start.
'I knew that the products worked from personally using them and from trials we did with consumers and my family and friends,' he said.
'I just thought we've got to take the risk and put it to the market. We took the risk and it paid off.'
Once the range was developed, he went straight to Coles, and it turned out to be exactly what they were looking for.
Before the brand launched, Mr Mylius would go and check Coles every day, 'like a loser', waiting for it to appear on the shelves.
'I actually screamed when I saw it, I was like, 'oh my God'. I've worked in products for many years but there's nothing quite like seeing your product sell that you worked really hard on,' he said.
'I created this thing it is my baby.'
The brand officially launched in 2023 and, in less than three years, it has generated millions.
Hairification just hit $20 million in revenue without any celebrity backing and is now stocked in Coles, Woolworths and Priceline.
The brand is growing rapidly, partly due to its clever use of social media.
Hairification has garnered over 3 million likes on TikTok and collaborated with influencers like Kayla Jade to establish a customer base that extends beyond supermarket shoppers.
Mr Mylius is loving the success, but it isn't enough just for the brand to be generating millions; he wants more.
'I'm just so focused on where I want to take this brand and business and I'm laser focused on that,' he said.