As more fans of pop-culture characters spend time creating sophisticated costumes to wear at conventions, fan fests, Halloween parties, or other get-togethers with like-minded friends, haircare brands have increasingly targeted cosplayers, professional and amateur, as a niche but loyal market for products such as hair paste and semi-permanent hair coloring. Licensing is increasingly coming into play as well, as brands offer products tied to specific characters.
Hair color has been the focus of most character-based collaborations to date, as the following examples show. Note, however, the recent agreement for hair paste, involving Yu-Gi-Oh!, which illustrates the opportunities that may exist in hair-care categories beyond color as well:
- Warner Bros. Discovery paired with Splat Hair Color for a limited-edition collaboration tied to Batman, which the partners announced in November 2025. The collection of five $100.00 kits (still available on the Splat website) are inspired, respectively, by the DC Comics’ super-villains and Batman nemeses Catwoman, Harley Quinn (classic and rebirth editions), The Joker, and Poison Ivy. Each includes two hair colors related to the character (e.g. Midnight Amber and Midnight Scarlet for Poison Ivy), an exclusive variant of a DC comic book, Gotham City Sirens Unfit for Orbit Issue #1, and a Funko Pop! figure.
- Konami Cross Media NY launched the above-mentioned line of Yu-Gi-Oh! hair paste products with The Best Paste, a company founded by celebrity hair stylist and men’s grooming expert Kristan Serafino, through a deal revealed in September 2025. The styling products allow fans to create the spiky anime-style hairdos favored by the characters in the franchise.
- Square Enix partnered with Schwarzkopf for a Final Fantasy XIV Online collection of hair color in an agreement unveiled in November 2024, with a release date in March 2025. The three limited-edition shades, part of Schwarzkopf’s Live Ultra Brights line, were Dark Red, Dusty Rose, and Vivid Green, all inspired by characters in the game.
- Riot Games collaborated with Arctic Fox for a hair-color collection inspired by Arcane, the streaming anime series based on the former’s multiplayer online video game, League of Legends, as announced in November 2024. The collection, timed to the debut of the second series of the show, consisted of three shades that allow fans to create hairstyles inspired by the characters Caitlyn (deep blue), Vi (vibrant pink), and Jinx (electric blue). A nail collection accompanied the release, which was available through the Arctic Fox website.
- In an earlier example, Cloudco Entertainment paired with Insert Name Here for a Care Bears collection of pastel hair dyes, unveiled in December 2020. The shades included Share Bear lavender, Funshine Bear yellow, Love-A-Lot Bear pink, Grumpy Bear indigo, and Wish Bear teal. They were available separately or in a $72 Care Bears Color Vault including all five.
Not only do such products pique the interest of cosplayers as a tool for creating a realistic look, but they also can attract avid fans, and even some non-fans, who like to sport colorful or dramatically styled hair in their daily lives. This is in keeping with the trend in the beauty industry for products that support radical self-expression, from dramatic cosmetic styles and nail designs to brightly hued and even character-inspired hair.
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