Olaplex CEO says hair loss complaints are 'sadly, a fact of life in our industry' as she's slammed with a new lawsuit and PR nightmare

• Olaplex's CEO defended the company's products Thursday as the company faces a lawsuit.
• JuE Wong said that Olaplex's hair care products are "safe and effective" in a LinkedIn post.

Olaplex's CEO defended the company on Thursday, saying that the company's hair care products are "safe and effective" in the face of a lawsuit from some of its users.

The lawsuit, filed earlier this month in California, claims that Olaplex led users to develop ailments ranging from brittle hair to bald spots. Some Olaplex buyers previously told Insider that they had experienced similar symptoms after using the company's products.

But JuE Wong, Olaplex's CEO, said in a LinkedIn post on Thursday that Olaplex's products are not to blame for those problems. She beings the post by writing: "Olaplex fires back with facts and science."

She quoted recent articles on Olaplex, including Insider's coverage, which say that a direct connection between the products and effects like hair loss are hard to prove.

"Complaints like the ones you have come across sadly, a fact of life in our industry, and have been made against other high profiled brands in the category for years," she wrote.

Other care hair brands, including Chaz Dean and DevaCurl, have paid out multi-million dollar settlements over the past year after lawsuits claiming that their products damaged customers' hair. The companies have not admitted wrongdoing.

"We are prepared to vigorously defend our Company, our brand, and our products against these baseless accusations," Wong continued.

Wong also pointed to test results from third-party laboratories that Olaplex recently released. Her response was in-line with statements that the company made immediately after the customer lawsuit was filed.

Olaplex's defenses have not reassured all of its customers.

A Facebook group called "Olaplex Hair Loss/Hair Damage?" has swelled to include about 6,700 members, double the number it had at the beginning of 2023. The group includes many posts from people who have used Olaplex's dry shampoo, hair perfector, shampoo, and other products, including some who say that the products damaged their hair.

Customers have also commented on Olaplex's social media posts to voice their concerns. One Facebook post from Olaplex's official account last week attracted several comments from users either referencing the lawsuit or claiming that Olaplex products left their hair in worse condition than before they started using them.

The company has responded to those comments, pointing to the third-party testing results and claiming that they are safe to use.

Olaplex has not admitted any fault with its products, but it has refunded up to 12 months' worth of purchases after customers who are unhappy with the products reached out to the company.

Do you work at Olaplex or have information to share? Reach out to Alex Bitter at abitter@insider.com or via encrypted messaging app Signal at (808) 854-4501, and to Sindhu Sundar at ssundar@insider.com or on Signal at (984)-377-3887.