The Story Behind the Glacial Cream...

A Quick Backstory

We’ve been riding off the coattails of our Glacial Clay Pomade for a while… we know. Since the day we first launched our pomade and Highland as a brand, we’ve been dreaming about what other game-changing hair product creations we could bring to life. 

It was in college at CU Boulder that we first took note of a vital flaw in the industry of high-end, salon and barbershop quality hair products: Even the best of the best are littered with harmful ingredients and cheap plastic packaging that undermine our health, our fragile ecosystems, and the very purpose of a high-quality product. 

This disturbing revelation is what led us down the path of formulating our Glacial Clay Pomade with 9 all-natural ingredients you can trust and pronounce. You can call it beginner's luck if you’d like, but this product went on to be sold in prestige shops across the country, has won awards from the likes of GQ and Esquire, and has improved countless lives with healthier, better-looking hair… But each of these successes only reinforced one thing when it came to the matter of expanding our product line – we had to crush it.

Enter Glacial Cream: the versatile multitasker that deeply conditions and tames frizz while enhancing your hair's natural texture. Developed for hydration and smooth styling, our all-natural formula helps you to effortlessly achieve happier hair. 

This versatile, gender-neutral hair styling product has already claimed its place in the spotlight, securing the coveted 2023 GQ Grooming Award before it even graced the shelves. In this blog post, we unveil the story behind the Glacial Cream, exploring the inspiration, features, ingredients, and the diverse audience it caters to.

Why We Made the Glacial Cream...

Fueled by the positive response on our Glacial Clay Pomade and a desire to meet the evolving needs of our existing customers, while catering to other hair types and styles that our Pomade didn’t serve, we embarked on a mission to introduce a light-weight and multi-tasking styling cream that provided light control and a matte finish…

And even though we envisioned this creation to be used by men, women, and non-binary genders, what we really liked about this opportunity is that we could solidify our position as the gender-neutral company we’ve always envisioned. It’s no secret that a pomade tends to cater toward men and shorter looks, and we knew our Cream would have broader appeal.

See, in assessing the Creams and leave-in conditioners on the market and in our professional community, we found many of the exact same problems that led us to create our pomade in the first place... Harmful toxins, carcinogenic ingredients and microplastics, and much of the same shitty plastic packaging destined for the landfill. Formulating a hair styling cream and leave-in conditioner that followed through on the same promise of our Pomade just made sense. We aimed to provide everyone from professions behind the chair to consumers at home with a hair styling cream that they can trust… one that promotes the health of their hair and scalp while out-performing the mainstay salon and barbershop brands. 

But this time instead of the stovetop, we flew out and met with our California based chemist and production team to deliver the goal: 

“A lightweight, low-hold, matte finish and versatile styling cream that could cater to all hair types and lengths, but would specifically resonate with women, those with longer hair, and those with curly hair. Filled with nature’s ingredients, this styling cream should provide nourishment to the hair and scalp that allows it to double as a leave-in conditioner and dry-shampoo.

This product should provide rich texture, allowing it to be a product that could boost and texturize natural curls, create smooth styles, and anywhere in between. The texture of this product should be light, buttery, and ultra smooth.

With a matte-finish, this product should absorb excess oil and bring life back into unwashed or dirty hair. It should lean on only natural ingredients and needs to be packaged in infinitely recyclable aluminum.”  

R&D was kicked-off, and Ben and I flew back to Denver. Between Ben’s curls, Lauren’s long curly or straightened hair (Boone’s girlfriend), a bunch of our friends, and of course some elite industry professionals, we had some pretty incredible test subjects along the way… and 6 months later, we had a formula that we were pretty damn proud of. Then, something wild happened…

With no expectations, and knowing we probably wouldn’t be able to release the product until December of 2023 at the earliest, we sent out some of the approved formula to a well-known magazine. As our “beginner's luck” would have it, they asked us if we could get a pre-order page live for the product by November. We obliged, and had a sneaking suspicion of what would happen next…

So, with this 2023 GQ Grooming award in the bag, let's get into the core functionality of the product below.

Features & Benefits

Our new Glacial Cream is a versatile multitasker that deeply conditions and tames frizz while enhancing your hair's natural texture. Developed for hydration and smooth styling, our all-natural formula helps you to effortlessly achieve happier hair.

This “do-it-all” product can style freshly-washed curls, can be used as a smoothing cream for slicked-back styles, can be used for a messy low-hold look, or can revive dirty hair in between washes. 

It’s designed for all hair types & textures, but is best suited for medium to long hair or those after a 'loose, natural look'. GQ even thinks it's the perfect product to help tame and hydrate the sought after Wolf Cut hairstyle (the newest craze)...as well as People Magazine singing praises...

Thoughtfully crafted with only 15 natural & sustainably sourced ingredients that boost hair and scalp health.

How to Style

 * For all styles, we recommend applying with moisture *  

+ Enhance Curls: Scrunch evenly through wet hair to enhance curl definition.

+ Slick it Back: Apply to damp or dry hair and comb back into a pony, braid, or bun.

+ Tame Frizz: Apply as a finisher to smooth flyaways.

+ Refresh Between Washes: Use as an alternative dry shampoo to absorb oil, add moisture, and revive dirty hair.

+ Scalp Treatment: Staying in? Work a quarter-sized amount through your scalp for nightly nourishment. 

+ Style Short Hair: Use as an alternative to our Glacial Clay Pomade for a low-hold, matte finish.

+ Combine with our Pomade: Use before/after our pomade to condition, texturize and create a matte finish look.

All-Natural Ingredients

At the heart of the Glacial Cream lies a carefully curated selection of 15 all-natural ingredients, each chosen for its unique contribution to the formula. Let's delve into the essence of some key ingredients:

+ Water - You know this one. We included it for hydration and aid in the product's creamy feel.

+ Vegetable Glycerin - Our superhero, vegetable glycerin is deeply hydrating, nourishing, and totally creamy. 

+ Arrowroot Powder - This white powder provides texture, a bit of hold, and absorbs all oils that dare come near it. 

+ Stearic Acid - Not only does this ingredient condition the hair and scalp, it helps emulsify the formula so that all our ingredients play together nicely. 

+ Cetyl Alcohol - This powerhouse fights frizz and tangles. And while the name contains “alcohol”, it’s highly hydrating and moisturizing. Don’t let the name fool you. Dive into the why deeper here.

+ Kaolin Clay - One of our faves, this clay adds texture, it exfoliates, and it mops up unwanted oil. 

+ Isopropyl Palmitate - This new friend for your hair has excellent emollient and lubricant properties, allowing it to condition your hair as it’s easily absorbed into each strand. 

+ Shea Butter - It’s too easy, we may never make something that doesn’t include it. Hydrating, de-frizzing, and incredibly nutrient rich. 

+ Carnauba Wax - For a little bit of control and hold, of course. It also seals moisture into your hair.

+ Canadian Glacial Clay - You didn’t think we’d leave it out, right? Exfoliating, detoxifying, and texturizing, this beautiful gray clay harvested in the waters of B.C. is basically our entire brand. 

+ Caffeine - Clinically proven to prevent hair loss and promote hair growth, this stimulating ingredient is for your scalp friends. 

+ Ethylhexylglycerin - Same as below, this gentle preservative is included to ensure our natural powerhouse ingredients maintain efficacy and prevent bacterial growth. 

+ Phenoxyethanol - When combined with the ingredient above, this life preserving combo can be used at near microscopic levels – allowing our formula to do what it does best and inhibit harmful bacteria from forming in your Cream.  

+ Sandalwood & Amber Essential Oil - Ya know, just an effortless and fresh aroma you’re guaranteed to fall in love with… Or get fallen in love with. 

Infinitely Recyclable Packaging

Our commitment to sustainability extends beyond the product itself to the very packaging that houses it. The Glacial Cream comes in an infinitely recyclable aluminum tube, reflecting our dedication to minimizing environmental impact. Join us in our journey towards a more sustainable future in haircare, one tube at a time.

Who is This Product For?

Versatility is at the heart of the Glacial Cream, making it suitable for individuals with a diverse range of hair types and styling preferences. Whether you have short, long, straight, or curly hair, the Glacial Cream is designed to enhance your natural texture while providing a light-control solution for effortless styling.

Releasing the Cream…

This product is a culmination of our dedication to quality, transparency, and sustainability. From the carefully selected all-natural ingredients to the infinitely recyclable packaging, every aspect of the Glacial Cream reflects our commitment to providing you with the very best in hair care.

As we celebrate the product’s release and its accolades, we can’t wait to get this product into your hands and into your hair… If you have any questions or feedback on our Glacial Cream, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with us at team@highland.style 

Now back to working on our next releases – we’re far from done.