Baldness and mental health. How does Newman’s fight them?

Tama, a 27-year-old male, resorted to professional help to treat his hair loss when he was 25 years old. The doctor prescribed him with a set of shampoo, oral medication and spray. It took him three months to see strands of baby hair and nine months for his hair to fully regrow.

Two years after the treatment, he hasn’t fully stopped using the products. “My condition is genetic so I am still taking them at lower dose,” said Tama.

The same thing happened to 27-year-old Sergio in his early twenties. Sergio consulted with a well-known dermatologist clinic in Jakarta. He is still going for treatment until today.

There’s a thread created in 2016 on Kaskus where men seek advice on combating hair loss. The discussion is still ongoing even to this day. Members are actively sharing pictures of their treatment progress.

Baldness is more common than we thought. Data shows that half of the global male population has a hair loss problem. The available treatments vary from laser and transplant to products. The price for treatments combined with consultation fee could be steep.

“I used to consult with a dermatologist for my hair loss problem. It costs me almost Rp5 million per month. I love my hair, but do I love it that much?” said Anthony Suryaputra, co-founder of the newly launched local men’s wellness brand, Newman’s.

Tama has to spend around Rp1,500,000 per month for his treatment. The initial consultation cost him Rp300,000. At the current dose, he is spending Rp750,000 per month for his products.

The cost is slightly lower for Sergio. He spends Rp500,000 a month for four products and Rp200,000 consultation fee every three month.

Alternatively, men could find medication and anti-hair loss products on marketplace like Tokopedia or over the counter. But this begs another question: how do they make sure the product is suitable for their condition without any professional guidance?

A respondent on the Kaskus thread wrote ‘I consulted with the Klikdokter medical app, and it says that finasteride causes erectile dysfunction.’ Another respondent voiced the same concern. ‘I heard minoxidil and finasteride curb our appetite for sex.’

The information circulating around the Internet could be misleading. “There is cost barrier, doctor barrier and information barrier in the men’s wellness space,” said Alfred. “Not to mention the barrier of social stigma. Baldness, like acne, can affect confidence. It is getting into the mental health territory.”

Indeed.

Many believe that men shouldn’t worry too much about physical appearance because it makes them less manly. Hence, many find online forum a safe space to talk about it.

The use of sunscreen, for example, is often brushed off as a girly topic. Here’s the thing: skin cancer doesn’t attack a specific gender.

Appearance could affect mental health regardless of gender, belief and age. That’s a well-known fact. But the spotlight often goes to women, dismissing the fact that men could be affected too.

Those barriers in addition to their own experience with hair loss prompted Anthony, Alfred Ali and Elsen Wiraatmadja to come up with a products with clinically proven formula and provide free doctor consultation.

“Consumers have to fill in a form about their condition and they have to consult our doctors before purchasing the product,” Anthony explained. “They cannot buy products without consultation. We want to make sure the doctors recommend the right products.”

Armed with in-house doctors and pharmacies, the trio cut out middlemen and outsourcing and manufacture products themselves. The team also make sure every ingredient is scientifically backed and proven.

For instance, the brand sells minoxidil, FDA-approved medication for androgenic hair loss, in a liquid serum form.

The business model receives positive feedback from the audience. Some 40%-50% of them ends up buying the products after consulting via WhatsApp, a good number for a brand that just started in late 2019.

Newman’s brand positioning is quite unique. There are clinical products with serious approach, while the majority of lifestyle products don’t necessarily focus on clinical key ingredients. Newman’s combines both of them.

“We don’t want to give consumers products that smell nice and look nice but don’t work. We want our products to be backed by data but with a lifestyle approach on the branding side. We want it to look friendly. And we’re not just for the sake of selling; we want to solve the problem.”