Ame mulheres. Cuide de mulheres. Seja cuidada por mulheres. - Vanessa Freitas, Founder of Archetype Hair

Purcuapà Magazine welcomes Vanessa Freitas, founder of Archetype Hair. Her closing words become mantras for us, those that we have been using for years. This is why we place them at the very beginning.

Ame mulheres. Cuide de mulheres. Seja cuidada por mulheres. Apoie projetos de mulheres.
Viaje com mulheres. Esteja ao redor de mulheres.
Fale com mulheres sobre carreira, negócios, dinheiro.
Só existiu por causa das mulheres incríveis que adentraram minha vida.

When and why did you create Archetype Hair?

Archetype Hair was born from one of the hardest seasons of my life.

When I became a solo mother in a foreign country, without a support network around me, it deeply affected my emotional health. I was trying to survive, care for my daughter, and at the same time find my way back to myself. In that search, I discovered aromatherapy, and what began as a personal refuge slowly became a path of healing and transformation.

I immersed myself in that world and became a certified wellness practitioner, with the desire to help other women reconnect with themselves too. Over the course of three years in clinical practice, I worked closely with hundreds of women and kept seeing the same pattern: so many were struggling with hair and scalp issues rooted not only in stress, but also in the harsh ingredients hidden in conventional haircare products.

That truly changed something in me. I began studying natural cosmetology because I wanted to create solutions that felt safe, effective, and deeply caring. At first, I only intended to make a few products from time to time. But the results were so meaningful and the word-of-mouth so powerful that, before I knew it, my kitchen had become a full-time lab!

That was when I realized I was holding something much bigger than a product. 

What made these formulations so special was not the idea of a miracle formula, but the ritual behind them. Each one was created with intention, around the real hair needs of the woman using it. And when the time came to grow, I knew that personalization could never be lost. I did not want to build just another haircare brand. I wanted to create something that felt like care, identity, and self-reconnection.

What has been the major achievement of the brand till now?

I believe our biggest achievement so far has been creating a haircare system that allows curly women to personalize their routine according to their real hair needs, instead of forcing them into the one-size-fits-all approach existing in the market. Creating a model that challenges the traditional haircare industry and seeing that vision genuinely resonating with people was heartwarming. 

If you are a curly woman reading this, then I am sure you have already felt like your hair has its own mood, its own personality… or, if I may, its own Archetype. 

Our initial launch targets 3 different curly hair needs: our Nectar booster - formulated with a mix of vegetal oils - targets Hydration; Titan, our booster enriched with vegan protein and biotin - aims to fortify the hair; and Wavemaker - formulated with Chia and Linseed extract - brings long-lasting curl definition. Simply add the boosters to either our Foundation Shampoo or Trinity, our 3-in-1 hair cream, depending on what your hair needs most. It’s like becoming your own alchemist*!

What makes me especially proud is that this vision did not stay only as an idea. In June 2025, we launched a crowdfunding campaign and raised over 13,000 euros to fund the production. 

There was no marketing, no ads, just me, the vision, and the community that formed around it. For me, that was the clearest sign that people were not only interested in the products, but truly connected with what Archetype stands for: creating something that would make curly women feel seen, understood, and cared for. 

What is your main next challenge?

I believe our main next challenge is education. Archetype introduces a different way of thinking about haircare through our mix-and-match system, and because it is still such a new and disruptive concept, many women are not yet aware that this kind of personalization is even possible. The market has conditioned consumers to think in a very fixed way: one shampoo, one conditioner, one solution for everyone… when in reality, hair needs are much more complex and personal than that.

So one of our biggest challenges now is helping curly and textured-haired women understand that they do not have to adapt themselves to products anymore. Products can adapt to them.

For me, this is about more than explaining how to use boosters. It is about shifting a mindset, showing women that haircare can be more intentional, more flexible, and much more aligned with their real needs.

How would you define your path as an entrepreneur?

My path as an entrepreneur did not begin with a business plan. It began with life pushing me into a place where I had to rebuild myself. What I created came from lived experience, from healing, from listening closely to women, and 

from the desire to turn something painful into something meaningful.

It has been a path marked by resilience, intuition, and constant reinvention that made me grow not only as a founder, but as a woman. Entrepreneurship has asked me to believe in my vision even before there was proof, to keep going through uncertainty, and to lead with both sensitivity and strength. 

More than anything, I see it as a path of turning personal truth into collective impact.

What would be your advice for someone willing to start a hair products brand?

Start with the problem, not the product! 

The haircare market is crowded, so your brand needs a clear reason to exist and a strong point of difference.

Be very clear about who you are creating for, so you can invest in formulas that truly perform. And very important: do not underestimate the importance of the business side! Margins, production costs, packaging, regulations, claims and logistics can break a beautiful idea if you ignore them. For me specifically, my biggest strength is that Archetype was born from lived experience, care, and a real understanding of curly hair needs. That is the kind of foundation people feel.

Where can we find you (website, Instagram, TikTok...)?

My personal instagram page is https://www.instagram.com/___vanessafreitas/

Archetype’s account is https://www.instagram.com/hair.archetype 

and our Webshop is https://www.archetypehair.com

*fun fact: in many occult and folk-magic contexts, wooden boxes with black interiors were used to store extremely important alchemic items, because it was believed to reduce visual distraction, to symbolically hide protective work and to hold the energy of the elements kept inside. That is why our shipping box is brown and the products inside are wrapped in a black silk paper: to protect the energy of the magic that woman is about to create :)

Thank you so much, Vanessa, for this incredible dose of inspiration!