Hair It Ferst
Welcome to the Hair It Ferst Podcast—the space where conversations about hair, beauty, and motherhood come first. Hosted by Tessa Mehl, Monica McCafferty, and Michelle Brockie, this show dives into real stories, shared experiences, and honest opinions about life, self-care, and the journey of womanhood.
Each episode is designed to feel like a cozy chat among friends—whether you’re looking for inspiration, relatable laughs, or a deeper connection to the world of hair and beauty.
Disclaimer: The hosts are not medical professionals. Nothing shared on this podcast should be taken as medical advice or claims. Hair It Ferst is simply a space for open conversations, learning, and connecting.
So grab your coffee, settle in, and join the conversation—because here, hair and life always come first.
Hair It Ferst
Why We Switched to Fermented Haircare (And Never Looked Back)
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In this episode of Hair It Ferst, we’re diving into the product that brought us together—Fermaglo. From fermented ingredients to real results behind the chair, we break down what makes this haircare line different from anything else on the market.
We talk about:
What fermented haircare actually means
Why “clean” products often don’t perform (and how this one does)
Real transformations we’re seeing with clients
The truth about buildup, ingredients, and scalp health
How this line is changing the game for stylists and non-stylists alike
Whether you’re a stylist, someone struggling with hair or scalp issues, or just curious about cleaner living—this episode is for you.
Hey, hey, hey, gorgeous people. Welcome to the Hair at First Podcast where Great Hair meets real life. We're your hosts, Tessa, Monica, and Michelle. Freestylists, moms, besties. We're keeping it real about beauty, business, and the chaos of motherhood.
SPEAKER_00We're here to share stories, laugh way too loud, and maybe spill a little shampoo along the way. Just a quick heads up. We're not making any medical claims or giving professional advice here, just sharing our own thoughts, opinions, and experiences.
SPEAKER_03So grab your coffee, your favorite blanket, and let's hair it first.
SPEAKER_02Good morning and welcome back to Hair It First. You're with Monica, Michelle, and Tessa. If you're a first-time listener, welcome. Never know what you're gonna hear or experience or learn or unlearn or I don't even know on this podcast, but we're glad you're here. If you are a return listener, thank you so much for all the support. And today we are going to talk about the thing that brought us together, and that is Fermaglow. And so we are all part of the company, and we are the stylist panel for the company, and so we get to work very closely with each other. We've met each other in person one time, and that's all it took because we were like, oh, I mean, we're just sisters right off soul sisters right off the bat, and it just uh we're very thankful, or I am, I don't know if they are yet, but to be determined if they if they're happy about it or we are, of course we are, yeah. So yeah, we just kind of wanted to talk a little bit about Fermaglow. And if you haven't heard about Fermaglow, we're gonna tell you all about it. If you have, um, then we would love to know your thoughts on things. We would love to hear from people, we would love for you to message us or um leave us comments or anything like that. So what's what's up, girls?
SPEAKER_04Well, I think we should for everybody who's never heard of Fermaglow, Tessa. I want you to take this and I want you to explain like what is Fermaglow because you are so like ingredient nerdy about it. Like, what is Fermaglow?
SPEAKER_02Well, Fermaglow the company or Fermaglow the products. Fermaglow the company is uh this was Tony Van Choyck's brainchild. If you don't know who Tony Van Choyck is, where in the hell have you been? Where you been? Uh, she's a powerhouse, she is a force, and this was her brainchild, and um, she wanted to create a 100% all-natural fermented hair care line, something that is new, new. There are not, you know, products. I know there's new companies that are following suit on that, but um, as far as fermented products, you couldn't get it anywhere. What are fermented products? They are we're taking 100% all natural ingredients and fermenting them into making our products, which the fermentation process takes all of the goodness and the greatness in all of these ingredients and breaks it down into the smallest molecules where our cells actually accept them instead of fighting against them. When your system is fighting against something foreign on your scalp or your skin or or anything, that's where issues start to create. And so this product and these ingredients are so top of the line. Our products are so concentrated, which means you're getting way more out of a bottle than you would some shit off the shelf in Walmart. Um, because it is it means that there's more of the good stuff in there rather than 90% water. Speaking of water, we have medical, filtered medical grade water in ours. That's healing, that's soothing, that's calming. It's amazing. So that's just a little overview of that.
SPEAKER_04But I love that. I love that. She gets so excited about products, and we all do, but Tessa has really done the research more extensively than anybody else has about what these products do and why they do what they do, and it's just it's amazing to me. So we have nine products, and we house all hair types, which is is a lot of companies say that they do and don't necessarily do that.
SPEAKER_00And there's so many product lights out there that say they're clean, and once you dive into the ingredients, they're not clean. And if they are clean, they do not perform. Like, if you know, if you're just listening to our podcast and you're not watching, I am a blonde, a heavily highlighted blonde. Um, so my hair tends to be dry, it gets a little frizzy because I got some natural curl in there, and any of these products I would try, they just would not perform on my hair. I'm like, I can't, my hair feels like it's straw. And you know, I was at my wits' end when I found FermiBlow. And not only did I get two amazing women, well, more actually, we've we've met so many people, but you guys are my homies, my girls. Um, you know, it really changes your hair, it changes your scalp, it creates the environment for hair growth. Every single one of my clients has new hair growing it in areas where they didn't. Not making medical claims. This is what I'm seeing every day behind the chair. And so my recession line that I was losing through menopause, um, that's starting to fill in. You know, it's just when you have the fermentation of clean ingredients and your body recognizes them, beautiful things happen.
SPEAKER_02Exactly. Exactly. That's why they work for alopecia and all those things. It's because it, I mean, fermentation has been around for a zillions of years. It's medicinal. Yeah, it is medicinal, it's not the big pharma, big pharmaceuticals crap that's out there. It is medicinal, it was created to be medicinal. Um, and so it's all in the science. You know, we're not making medical claims, but it's all in the science and the things that we have seen personally. We're not one of those companies that just take pictures from somewhere else and post them. Ours are all real results from our clients or people that we we travel all over with all the business partners and things between all of us. We're all over the nation putting this on people's heads. There aren't companies that go out and do that at all that are doing what we're doing. And it's not it, it's not to just be salesmen, it is to be, we as stylists, especially as stylists, are so passionate about this product because we see the value in it, we see what it works, we see everything behind that chair. We see eczema psoriasis, we see big patches gone in people's hair that they're so upset and crying because they're embarrassed of that. So, what we've seen personally, we're so passionate about, and so we want to get out there on people's heads. We don't want to just be one of those companies that nah, you don't get to try before before you buy. If you want to try before you buy, I can guarantee you you can reach out to the company and there's somebody in your area that will put this on your head. Yeah, and it sets us apart.
SPEAKER_04Even worse so than that, we have a 45-day money-back guarantee. Yeah. So, like that's huge because you can't go to any big box store and purchase shampoo and then return it if you don't like it. You're 45 days, whatever money. Yeah, price. Yes, you're out with all that money.
SPEAKER_00First of all, it'll probably be gone in 45 days because you need so much of it to work, and ours will not be.
SPEAKER_02Yes, yeah. That that is so true. I would have already had to replace so much stuff on my back bar, and to be able to make an eight-ounce bottle stretch as far as it has stretched, has been.
SPEAKER_00That's the biggest challenge that I've seen with my clients. You know, they they're like, I need to reorder. I'm like, wait, what? But you're using too much. You're using too much, you've got to back off because they're so used to traditional products where they have to, you know, put a big glob of it in their palm, and ours is one pump. That's all you need for the shampoo.
SPEAKER_02And if you're using more, and when you when you start using it consistently, you don't have to use a whole pump, or I don't have to anymore. Is it when you're consistently using it and you're not having to keep pulling that the silicones and crap that other things put on your you're not even having to use a whole pump? I think that is so impressive. Yep, it really is.
SPEAKER_04And you know, I just need to clarify like, so I am in the salon three days a week, and I'm fully booked when I'm there. So I placed my first reorder from my September order last month. So September, October, November, December, January, February, March, seven months. And I got through all of Christmas, all of Thanksgiving in the salon using those products, and that's huge. I've watched other people and tried to remember like how often I was buying new stuff. So I actually went back and looked at receipts from like Cosmo and Salon Centric from before Fermaglow. I was buying the big the big back bar sizes, the liter bottles. I was buying three of those every other month.
SPEAKER_00Wow. Yep, and you know what I noticed? I see this like the shape glue and conditioner. I see girls at the salon, you know, in the using the leader size, and I mean the amount of times, because it just becomes a habit, right? Especially conditioner. I mean, it's just pump, pump, pump, pump, pump, pump. I counted five pumps the other day, and one girl used, and I'm like, oh my god, because that's what you need to make it work. It's just, it's such. I mean, the fragrances alone in those products mess with your endocrine system. It's horrible for you. It's horrible. And then, you know, bring it into a business side. To me, I'm just so blunt about this. This is a no-brainer. As a stylist, you should be recommending products to your clients. You find something that you love that is healthy for them, you explain that to them. Your clients buy it online, you don't have to stock it, and you make commission. It's just an added avenue of revenue for you and your business that doesn't take a lot of extra work because you're already behind the chair talking to your client. Yes, absolutely.
SPEAKER_04I see a lot of people, like, I'm part of a couple of groups on Facebook for like care dressers. It's like Tessa, I know you're in a couple of the ones I'm in because I see you post on them. Yeah. But like, it's so crazy to me. People are, I had there was a girl that had posted and was like, I stopped selling retail. I want to start selling retail again, but it doesn't make sense financially for me to do it. And you know, we all have been like that before Fermablow, that's how I was. I didn't carry any retail in my salon because what was the point? What yes, what was the point?
SPEAKER_00I could I did, but I'm telling you, not compete. Yes, it was so I had so much money shipped sitting on the shelf hoping that somebody's gonna buy it.
SPEAKER_02So that and whenever they can walk into Ulta or somewhere in or Ross or TJ Maxx and or Walmart, see that same professional product sitting on the shelves and get it cheaper than what they're gonna get it at your salon. Right. What the hell? I mean, yeah, they put a product lines put salons out of business in the retail.
SPEAKER_00Absolutely.
SPEAKER_02You and and we cannot. I mean, I know what type of stylists we are. We cannot recommend those products that they're gonna go out and buy off their shelves because we don't know what's in them, right? We don't know what else they're filling them in with, and and they are they're out there putting if you go buy a bottle of by losh off the TJ Maxx shelf, you're not getting by losh that you would be getting at that salon. And I just that's what it is. The bylaws is not I not no packet.
SPEAKER_00No, sorry, they there's only what, like three companies that own all of the um like hair color, um, hair products. There's only like three, and like lever 2000 or whatever, like these companies are literally this. Is what I picture. I don't know if it's true or not. And I just see a bunch of men sitting around a table looking at dollar signs saying, How can we cut costs so we make more money? So then they just put shit in the products, which are not good for us.
SPEAKER_02Formaldehyde. They get real cheap. Formaldehyde. Here, let's fill the bottle more with formaldehyde because we don't even have to list that on the bottle because we have this in it, so these two work together, and then they legally do not have to list that on the bottle. Wow, they don't have that, yeah, because there was 0.1% or two percent of this other ingredient in there that makes and that formaldehyde makes that specific ingredient active, so they do not have to list the formaldehyde.
SPEAKER_00Oh, I see.
SPEAKER_02Okay, okay, yeah, so that's yeah, that's how they hide a lot of ingredients, and actually, I have a list of ingredients like that that when you see that in the bottles, you sure the formaldehyde is what is making that active. So when you see that ingredient, you know there's formaldehyde in the bottle. Yeah, yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_00That's how deep she goes.
SPEAKER_02You know, I do, and I literally do nerd out on it, but this is something so close to my heart. In a I have autoimmune and allergies, so does my son, but the type of salon that I run, you know, with tailoring to the allergies and autoimmune, I had to dig dig deep. I've had to do that, and so it was a passion of mine to keep them safe. And so now that I get to really exercise that outside of my just my salon and my clientele, I love it, and I just think it's so important. But I was carrying over 50 different lines, and now all I carry is this one. I've saved almost 2,000 or maybe a little over $2,000 since September in products that I would have had to replace using on my clientele. So that that to be is so huge. Yes, you know, small business, and yeah, yeah, and the fact that you guys you guys know this. We can't find clean products that work with color or bleach or any you can't find and this actually does and actually makes it better. It answers it. We're both highlighted, yeah. No more purple shampoo. No, I don't I don't have to use toner. My clients that use this consistently too, I don't have to use toner on them at all because you've got the natural state of your hair. It's going to be able to turn that blonde that you want. It's going it's a it's a matter of timing at this point. How long you're leaving, you know, you don't, it's just uh I don't know, it's just amazing to find clean products that work with what we do behind the chair.
SPEAKER_00One of the things that um the reason that we aren't have to having to use toners is because we're getting the buildup off, and the buildup can be from medication, it can be from water, and it can be for previous product use, right? So just think about layers that are sitting on top of the hair, and that lightener has to get through those layers, and that takes time, right? So lightener is only um active for so long. So if it's spending 15-20 minutes getting through the layers of buildup before it even gets to your hair, you're not going to get as light. You remove that buildup, butter. Love it.
SPEAKER_02Colors are processing so much faster, and bleaches are pre- especially my formula.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, I just told a girl I worked with the other day. I'm like, my friend Tessa puts 40 volume on everybody and throws her under the dryer. Double.
SPEAKER_02Oh my god.
SPEAKER_04Jesus.
SPEAKER_02She was probably like, what the hell? I I do apply mine on what I wash them first, I get rid of all that stuff. I always, and so you're processing that much faster anyway, but you're not breaking through things, and it and it is. I I my clients don't have breakage and all those kind of things. But I will tell you, I've noticed. No, you go ahead.
SPEAKER_04I've noticed that my resistant gray, my resistant gray clients, their coverage is a million times better. Like I'm not having to drop a level to get that coverage, yeah, or changing my developer up or anything like that. And their process time is phenomenal. Their resistant gray actually grabs. And my client yesterday said she was like, I feel like it's not as wiry, like the grays that stick straight up and just wreak all that havoc are just not doing it. They're they're laying down, they're texturally feel different, and it's just it's amazing. So that was been huge for me because I have a lot of really resistant gray.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, yes, it's just that's it's fantastic. It just is the proof, the proof is in the pudding, as we like to say. And it really is.
SPEAKER_00We have figured out cocktails with these products to do everything that we need. We can use the detangler for the root volumizer. I use the invigorate and the oil, you know, invigorate conditioner for my you know polishing cream. I it's insane what we have figured out and just use everything behind the chair. Yeah, with nine products, and my clients will text me the next day. Matter of fact, I just got somebody that decided she wanted to um sell it like we do. Because I know, right? Um because the last two times that I did her hair, it's very long, it's very dry, and you know, I can just feel the buildup on it. And she would text me and be like, my hair feels amazing. Send me everything you did. And then yesterday I did her hair, and she told me last night, she said, you know, I don't want to order it before I go on vacation. I'm gonna wait till I get back, probably by the end of the month. I'm like, okay, no worries, whatever. And she texted me today, she's like, I'm doing it, my hair feels amazing, I don't want to be without it.
SPEAKER_02I was like, okay, and that is also the thing, the reaction of people when they even with the first wash are is like, what? This is really legit. So that's awesome, Michelle. Congratulations. Thank you.
SPEAKER_04That is awesome.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, yeah. Um changing lives one shampoo at a time. Amen to that. Amen to that. Because it it really is not just the products, the business aspect of this is just so it is life changing, the community, the people that we have, the training, the In depth, in depth training for people to know what they're really selling, what's really in this, how to use it, why it works, what you get all that, and you guys know as well as I do. What company, what product line that we would use in the salon? Have we ever been able to walk in and be like, hey, why does this work doing this? And what's in it that does this? And what is I guarantee?
SPEAKER_00The people selling it to you have no idea. And we do. No.
SPEAKER_04I was just I was just thinking to myself, when was the last time we had a rep come into our salon and talk to us about a product and actually tell us what the product does, not just say, I have a new product. I want you to try. Like gives you like any information on the product.
SPEAKER_02This is like try it, then you're buying the and then sorry. I've said the S word twice. Try and keep it clean, guys. Pull it together, pull it together. Kylie. Help.
SPEAKER_04Um, but I don't know. It's just it's great. The community, the training, the availability that you have to like really be able to teach your clients. And for anybody who's not a stylist, like yourself, you do not have to be a stylist to sell this. This is not a salon, like a stylist exclusive thing. The person who created this is not a stylist, she's an ingredient nerd who nerded out and decided that she wanted to make something that was better than anything else on the market, and that's what she did. And I I think the stylist portion of this is like less than a quarter of the people that are in this business are stylists. Like, there's not that many. If you are passionate about something, I always hear all the time, like, I can't sell things. I'm not a person that sells things. You sell yourself every single day. You do when somebody says, Oh my god, I love your shirt, where did you get it? And you're like, Oh, I got it at Targan. How many like I have people stop me all the time and they're like, Your hair looks so beautiful. And I'm like, Thank you. I use Fermaglow. And then that immediately triggers the I've never heard of Fermaglow. What is that? And I'm like, oh, it's this fermented hair care, it's all natural. You know, it actually fixes my hair rather than just masking it with all the silicones. And they're like, that's really cool. Where did you get it? I sell it. Yep. You know, and these are people that I'm seeing in the grocery store or at my kids' soccer games or baseball games or ice skating glasses. It's like you see people every day, and I feel like people stop more now to like comment other people on different things than they used to. Like, you can anybody can sell this because when you're passionate about something, it doesn't matter what the product is, you can sell it.
SPEAKER_02And your hair is gonna be a good one. And these are so easy, and your hair is gonna, yeah, it's it's gonna be your conversation starter because it'll change she was saying, but I mean, our BPs in this company, our business partners in this company that aren't stylists, I guarantee you you would never be able to tell they weren't because they know so much about this product, they know how to talk about it, they know what's in it, they know what's because they're so bad. I mean, you can't help to have that passion to learn about it either once you're in this. It's just like, oh my gosh, this is so amazing! This really is, and it's what people are looking for. Everybody's got allergies, autoimmunes, or don't want them, and are trying to prevent them and trying to live cleaner. And if you are a stylist out there, we live in a sou happy world. You better have a line that is allergy free, all of that stuff, because if somebody has a horrible reaction in your chair, we all know A, you're blasted on every piece of social media makeup and think of, B, you're getting your butt suit off. Yeah, so everybody has to protect themselves as well. You need an option if you're not going to fully transform your salon into something to clean, you better have an option for people.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, that is a huge thing. So, you know, for the stylists out there, you know, we we changed everything just because we are so passionate, but don't be scared to bring it in as an option, yes, for your clients, and you don't have to go all in right off the bat because that's scary to people, right? You know, you've known a line for so long, you know what it does, blah blah blah. But you know, you can transition slowly or you could just keep this as an option. What you want with it, it's not a one and done, and you know, you have to use only this, it's not like that. It's just it's a very freeing company that in the products work, they just work these days.
SPEAKER_02A client is if you give them an option, this is very, very clean, this is blah blah blah blah blah, or there's what we usually use on you, they're gonna be like, I would love to try the clean one, and then when they fill their hair, they're gonna be like, Don't you ever use that other stuff on me again, right? Agreed, you know, I just really don't know.
SPEAKER_04But I love this. I love that we had this conversation today. Me too, and we will deep dive into this a little bit more as you know the weeks progress. But we just wanted to give you guys just a little insight into number one, what brought us all together. Because this is what brought us all together, and give you a little bit of information on if you didn't know that there was something else out there, if you didn't know that there was something clean and non-toxic and allergen-friendly, you know. So we wanted to give we wanted to let you guys know. If you guys have more questions about that, please reach out to one of us, all of us, any of us, and we'll be happy to answer any questions that you have.
SPEAKER_00We're on all social media platforms, so yeah, you can reach out to any of us.
SPEAKER_02And and the business opportunity. If you are somebody looking to make extra income, if you're somebody that wants to get out of your nine to five job and make lots of income and it be your main income, if you're a mom that is a very busy schedule and has to sit at gymnastics or ballgames or whatever, this fits into everybody's schedule. What you put into this is what you're gonna make. You can make thousands and thousands of dollars, you can make 500 extra dollars, whatever it's it's designed to fit into everyone's lives. So it is yeah.
SPEAKER_04It's been funny.
SPEAKER_00Wonderful to see you guys months.
SPEAKER_02Thank you. Bye. Bye. Have a good day.
SPEAKER_01And that's a wrap on this episode of Hair First. Thanks for hanging out with us. We hope you laughed, learned, and maybe felt a little more seen through all of the good hair days and the hot mess ones too.
SPEAKER_00Remember, we're just sharing our own thoughts and experiences. No medical claims or professional advice here, just real talk from stylists and moms who get it.
SPEAKER_03Don't forget to follow, subscribe, and share hair at first with your fellow beauty lovers and boss moms. We will catch you next time with more stories, laughs, and probably a little conditioner in our hair.