A hairstylist in Orlando is among a number of customers across the country accusing DevaCurl of causing serious damage to their curls.
Stephanie Mero says she used DevaCurl products on herself and her clients until early 2019. She says that's when she started noticing some of her clients with dry and damaged hair.
"I would never have thought it was the products," Mero said in a Youtube video posted in December. "We have been on those products forever, we hadn't changed anything. So it couldn't be the products."
Mero, who goes by The Curl Ninja, says that changed when she started to see damage in her own hair. She eventually stopped using DevaCurl and recommended that her clients do the same.
Mero went on to create a Facebook group for others who believe DevaCurl is behind their hair damage. Currently, there are more than 22,400 members.
Mero says she'll continue speaking out about the issue until DevaCurl issues a recall and the FDA takes the issue more seriously.
And, she isn't alone. Ayesha Malik, a Youtuber with more than 200,000 subscribers, posted her own video on January 31 where she speaks about her own experience with DevaCurl products.
Malik tells viewers to immediately stop using the products and apologizes for recommending them. She says she used the DevaCurl products "religiously" for six years before she started to have hair problems.
"For the first time in my life I experienced dandruff," Malik said. "My scalp was on fire on some days, I didn't know what it was."
A thread on Sephora originally posted in 2016 is now flooded with comments from customers complaining about the products and looking for answers.
In January, a law firm posted an article titled "DevaCurl Hair Loss Class Action Lawsuit Investigation," and though a lawsuit has not been officially filed, but the article has been shared more than 4,000 times on Facebook.
DevaCurl released this statement amid the complaints.
To our Devoted Deva Community,
Over two decades ago, DevaCurl was born from conversations with people like you and from our salons and stylists about what you wanted and needed to embrace your curls. As a result, our community has grown to include millions of Devas around the world who use our products every day. When that conversation includes product and safety discussions, we are as engaged as you are. We are committed to providing the information you need to continue to use DevaCurl with confidence.
From the beginning, all of our formulas are subject to rigorous and thorough testing such as stability, microbiological testing and repeat patch testing before DevaCurl allows any product to be manufactured. During manufacturing, a variety of testing is conducted on each batch of a DevaCurl product before it is sent out to salons and customers. This includes testing for pH, viscosity, fragrance, appearance and microbiological testing to ensure our products meet strict internal quality assurance standards and regulatory requirements before they reach the market.
Because some of our community have recently asked more questions about some of our products we have conducted additional testing at the manufacturer and warehouse level. In addition, we worked with an independent third-party toxicologist to verify the safety of these formulas. All these tests verified there are no safety issues with our products.
We don’t speculate on why some people are attributing the challenges with their curls to our products. As part of our ongoing commitment to product safety and the satisfaction of our Deva Community, we are conducting additional testing with an independent party. Please share your experiences with us at customercare@devacurl.com.
We will go above and beyond to help anyone on their curl journey.
Your DevaCurl Family
