For women (...and horses) with ‘long, flowing manes’

IF you struggle to tame coarse, straw-like hair, forget expensive potions and smoothing serums.

A rather more rustic product is proving a winner among a number of women searching for glossy tresses – a shampoo for horses.

Mane ’n Tail was created to keep show ponies’ coats looking glossy and healthy.

But more and more women are now turning to the product to achieve thick, lustrous locks. Lloyds Pharmacy stocks the shampoo for €6.95, while it is available in Boots for €6.99. And now hipster haven Urban Outfitters has picked up the product, and is selling both the shampoo and the conditioner for €10 each.

The shampoo has a host of celebrity backers, including reality TV star Kim Kardashian and actress Jennifer Aniston, and it has received glowing reviews online.

A contributor to Irish beauty guide beaut.ie gave a strong thumbs-up to the product, writing that after she used the Mane ’n Tail colour protect range, her ‘hair looked ultra shiny and was soft once blow dried, [and] the conditioner was creamy and luxurious, but didn’t make hair greasy’.

Another wrote: ‘I LOVE this product. My hair is much stronger and isn’t snapping off at the ends like it used to. (I have lots of highlights and thin hair). The bottles last ages too, you only need to use a little bit of it. The hair strengthener spray is also really good!’ Urban Outfitters’ website says Mane ’n Tail is ‘loved by humans and horses alike’. It was created by the Katzev family, who own a horse farm in New Jersey, for show ponies with ‘long, flowing manes and tails’. Devon B Katzev, president of the brand’s parent firm Straight Arrow, said the crossover happened when horse owners started using the products on their own hair and word ‘spread like wildfire’. He added: ‘Our original formula [has] been a best-kept secret for beauty aficionados everywhere.’

Because Mane ’n Tail is designed for horse hair, which is five times stronger than human hair, just a small application is needed. Its strength is the key, rather than any unusual ingredients, as the shampoo’s contents are broadly similar to those designed for humans. Mane ’n Tail is made from the foaming agent sodium lauryl sulphate – used in many human cleansing products – as well as coconut oil derivatives, salt, glycol distearate – which provides pearlescence – and propylene glycol.

There is also hydrolyzed collagen – which helps to rebuild damaged hair – as well as citric acid, preservatives and fragrances.

The product’s crossover into the women’s market began in the big-hair 1980s, initially aided by word-of-mouth among horse groomers before being adopted by celebrities.