Dyson Develops $500 Hairstyling Tool Airwrap

When it comes to the beauty business, Dyson isn't stopping at blow-dryers.
The U.K.-based firm — known for its vacuums and Oprah's favorite fan — splashed onto the beauty scene in 2016 with the launch of the Supersonic, a $399 blow-dryer powered by Dyson's proprietary technology — the most expensive on the market to date. Two years later, the company is back with its second beauty launch — the Dyson Airwrap styler, which comes in three variations with prices ranging from $499.99 to $549.99. Yes, that's more expensive than the Supersonic.
The Dyson Airwrap is a mutihyphenate tool designed to achieve a variety of curled hair and smoothed-out looks without extreme heat damage. The Dyson motor that powers the Airwrap uses air to style the hair, instead of high levels of heat, and can be used on wet hair — a no-no for most hair tools.
The Airwrap's three variations are designed around hair types. The less expensive models — the Volume + Shape for fine hair and the Smooth + Control for frizz-prone texture come with four attachments each, including a pre-styling dryer that works like a Supersonic for rough-drying. The Volume + Shape includes two brushes and a barrel attachment, and the Smooth + Control comes with two sizes of barrel attachments and a firm brush to straighten while drying. The Airwrap Complete set retails for $549.99.
While the Supersonic launched in Asia in 2016 before coming to the U.S. later that year, the Airwrap is set to launch in the U.S. Tuesday night on Dyson's e-commerce site, and will be available at Ulta Beauty, Neiman Marcus, Nordstrom, Bed Bath & Beyond, Best Buy, QVC and on sephora.com by Wednesday.
Company executives are hoping the Airwrap can build on the momentum of the Supersonic, which now comes in an assortment of colors — including a new gold-leafed style — and a professional version, and has entered the company into the world of beauty retailers, from Sephora and Ulta to the Bergdorf Goodman beauty floor. The company is also unconcerned about the price tag being a turn-off for customers, noting that the Supersonic tool has received positive reviews online.
Said Tom Crawford, global category director for personal care at Dyson: "We didn't know how we'd be received by the world of beauty and fashion, so it's been humbling for us to launch and see that sales are still very much growing."
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