We chatted with Kristen Leanne, the beauty vlogger and hair empress behind Arctic Fox
Arctic Fox burst on the hair color scene in October 2014 and has since grown to be one of the top semi-permanent dye companies worldwide. According to their website, the company was born after founder Kristen Leanne and partners bonded “over a shared passion for color, self expression, red wine and of course animals.” Not a bad way to start a business! Her hair dye line not only offers a rainbow of shades, it also donates 15% to animal charities!
Kristen Leanne was a model with bright-colored hair when she set out to create the perfect product in the shades she wanted!
https://www.instagram.com/p/BRRq4fZji3a
In January of 2014, she posted her first makeup tutorial (a redwood smokey eye that still slays, btw). Three years later, her success as a vlogger and influencer has skyrocketed, with over 350k channel subscribers and over 550k followers on Instagram. Kristen’s band of loyal “foxes” rely on her for the all-around beauty know-how.
Kristen Leanne not only heads Arctic Fox along with her husband Ryan Morgan, but she also has her own channel of hilarious and informative YouTube videos!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vdynL-Yk5co?feature=oembed
We caught up with Kristen to talk glitter, animals, and all things hair!
HelloGiggles: Which hair color have you not tried out yourself, but really want to?
Kristen Leanne: None, haha! I have tried every hair color out there that I’ve ever wanted to try! Orange is growing on me though, to be honest, and so is neon. I might do that for summer!
https://www.instagram.com/p/BNybNhyAsNu
HG: What was the first color you ever dyed your hair?
KL: The first color I ever dyed my hair was pink. It doesn’t really count because I tried to use Kool-Aid and it just doesn’t work well!
HG: Are there any new beauty products you can’t live without?
KL: As it turns out, I can’t live without large chunk glitter! I’ve been incorporating it into pretty much all of my looks. I should probably grab some makeup-grade glitter, rather than craft glitter…
HG: What movie character do you most identify with?
KL: Lucille Ball is my all-time favorite, I identify with her in many ways. She was strong, stubborn and a businesswoman.
HG: It’s hard to believe Arctic Fox has only been around for a couple of years, how did you deal with such rapid success?
KL: Yeah, it’s pretty crazy that Arctic Fox just launched in October of 2014! I’ve always been that person who expects quick results and will work my ass off to get there. Have you seen that optimistic picture of the TINY coffee hut with the red ropes out a mile long to manage the line? Haha. That’s always been me when it comes to opening businesses. On the flip side, I am extremely grateful for the love and support of my Foxes. They’re the only reason anything that we do works and continues to grow. I couldn’t ask for a better fan base honestly, they are the oil to my engine.
HG: What is the difference between using the color-diluting Arctic Mist than say, a plain conditioner?
KL: Arctic Mist works very well with the rest of our color line because it contains the same exact base. It’s very conditioning but doesn’t contain any oils or toners that can prevent semi-permanent color from sticking well to the hair shaft. It won’t kill you to use another conditioner, but for the best results, I stick with Arctic Mist. It also smells better than most conditioners!
HG: Arctic Fox is committed to animal well-being, can you tell us about the charities that proceeds go to from sales?
KL: I’ve always been super skeptical myself of businesses who claim to donate to charity, so I wanted to make sure to bring our fans into the experience and invest them in our cause, rather than just talking about it. We are 100% committed to animal welfare. We donate 15% of our profits to currently three different animal charities which include Second Chance Animal Shelter, IFAW (International Fund for Animal Welfare) and most recently, Animal Hope and Wellness. Whenever we are able to, Ryan and I like to document the donations in action so our customers can SEE where their money is going, rather than just saying it goes somewhere and who knows.
HG: We have seen a wave of ombré color and a wave of pastels, what do you think the next hair trend will be?
KL: I don’t think the trend of ombré colors and pastels are going anywhere, but I do think neon colors are about to be the next “big” thing, and possibly hue-changing color!!
HG: What advice would you give to someone who is looking to dye their hair for the first time but is a little scared to?
KL: I would say make sure you find someone who is great with bleach and will throw some Olaplex in there to help preserve the health of your hair as much as possible, and maybe go for just an underneath layer first, to test it out before fully committing. You can always just lighten your hair enough to do a little pastel wash, that always comes out somewhat quickly! There’s also always extensions — you don’t necessarily have to take the plunge, you can color some platinum blonde extensions and clip them in to see how you feel wearing them and see which colors you feel your best in!
https://www.instagram.com/p/BNC1uUOAI4w
HG: What is the best, or most fun, part of your day as an entrepreneur?
KL: The best part of being an entrepreneur is being able to create something and put it out there and watch people enjoy it. It is extremely rewarding!! I have always been a creative person, so to be creating things people actually care about is really a cool concept! Although I work WAY more hours than I ever used to, I have flexibility with my schedule which is priceless, and I’m very grateful for that. I don’t like being tied down to a strict schedule, never have!
