PHS Hairscience: Enhancing Holistic Haircare in Singapore

In September 2023, Anita Wong, founder of PHS Hairscience, a Singaporean firm that offers stem cell research-based hair care solutions, was contemplating the company’s growth strategy. As a former flight-crew member of Singapore Airlines, renowned for its world class service levels, she provided rigorous training for service staff at PHS Hairscience, creating an eco-system that could not be easily replicated by competitors. Wong initially partnered with Phyto, a large French hair care brand, to cater to hair health. Recognising an opportunity to focus on the hair care needs of Asian consumers, she broke away from the partnership and rebranded as PHS Hairscience to focus on providing clinic-grade treatments. The company is developing multiple outlets in Singapore, including a “capsule format” that focuses on simplicity and convenience. The firm’s success in China through its distribution partnership with Sephora has led Wong to consider shifting the focus locally towards selling products. Should she focus more on products or services?

This case may be used for graduate, postgraduate and executive education classes. By the end of the case, students will be able to understand the key marketing issues for a B2C business that has product and service offerings with a combination of experience and credence attributes, assess success factors using the dimensions of the service quality framework, analyse different subscription models for a service business and develop a growth strategy for a firm that has opportunities in both the product and service spaces.

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