Unlocking the power of biomimetic bond builders: Key insights on KeraBio K31

A rapidly expanding global opportunity

Bond building has moved from a specialist repair claim into the mainstream of hair care. Today, 28% of prestige hair-care launches make bond-building claims, showing just how firmly this technology has entered the category. The opportunity is also global. Our exclusive research across 12 markets points to an estimated $1.9 billion bond-building opportunity, with $0.8 billion across the US and Europe and $1.1 billion across Asia and Latin America.

Treatments are the growth engine

Treatment products are driving this momentum. Across the markets studied, bond-building treatment sales have grown strongly, particularly in Asia and Latin America between 2020 and 2025, and in the US and Europe between 2019 and 2024. Growth reached 197% in Brazil, 173% in Mexico and 145% in China, with further gains across Indonesia, the US, Europe, Korea, Japan and the UK.

Significant whitespace beyond the category leaders

The bond-building market is already much bigger than the two best-known category leaders. In the US, $790 million of the $1 billion bond-building market comes from brands beyond Olaplex and K18. There is also clear geographic whitespace: Olaplex is present in just 2 of the 6 Asia and Latin American markets studied, while K18 is present in none of them. For brands, this creates room to bring bond-building benefits to new consumers, markets and price points.

Discover the global opportunity for bond building

Explore our exclusive market data to see where bond building is growing, how the category is changing, and where new opportunities are opening up across 12 key markets.

Explore the global opportunity - Our global summary brings the data together to reveal the scale and potential of the bond-building category.

Discover emerging markets - Explore our Asia and Lain America focss, where bond building is expanding rapidly and new opportunities are emerging.

Understand established markets - Explore our US and Europe focus to uncover how the category has evolved and where further opportunities remain.

Biomimetic repair through biotechnology

As demand grows, brands need new bond-building approaches that combine advanced science with benefits consumers can see and feel.

KeraBio K31 represents a breakthrough in hair repair science. Developed using synthetic biology, it is a keratin engineered to mimic the structure of human hair keratin. Unlike traditional animal- or plant-derived proteins, KeraBio K31 features a human hair-identical sequence, ensuring unmatched performance.

Why biotechnology?

Biotechnology’s power in beauty care is widely recognised for unlocking exceptional benefits in performance-driven actives. When it comes to hair repair, it offers:

• Precision performance: designed to be hair identical to integrate seamlessly with natural hair keratin.
• Elevated potency and maintaining key active sites within the peptide structure, this delivers superior efficacy.
• Vegan keratin source, which eliminates the need for animal-derived materials for its production.

Science-backed efficacy: recharging strength

KeraBio K31 has been tested across a wide range of studies, combining established analytical and performance methods with new approaches developed to demonstrate its mechanism of action. 

1. Peptide bonding and hair penetration

To understand how KeraBio K31 interacts with hair, we used fluorescence microscopy and a newly developed peptide binding method. These techniques helped us visualise how KeraBio K31 penetrates hair fibres and how strongly it binds to hair keratin.

• Fluorescence microscopy shows that KeraBio K31 penetrates into the hair cortex and binds with keratin.
• Peptide binding assays demonstrate selective and preferential affinity for both keratin filament structures and amorphous matrix proteins.
• Quantitative analysis of fluorescence intensity shows that peptide penetration depth increases with repeated applications. 

2. Raman spectroscopy: independent validation of bond recovery

To further validate how KeraBio K31 works and how it affects hair structure, performance was independently assessed by TRI Princeton using Raman spectroscopy. This method gives molecular-level insight into hair structure and showed that KeraBio K31 supports the recovery of essential disulphide bonds, providing evidence of bond restoration within the hair fibre. This independent validation complements Croda Beauty’s own testing and strengthens the evidence for KeraBio K31’s biomimetic mode of action.

3. Cyclic fatigue testing: proven strength enhancement

To rigorously assess KeraBio K31’s ability to withstand real-world stresses, Cyclic Fatigue testing was conducted simulating real-life damage from brushing, heat styling, and environmental exposure.

• KeraBio K31 treatment resulted in a significant increase in hair strength, surpassing all tested benchmarks, including a remarkable 100% greater strength than the leading commercial bond builder.
• Performance of KeraBio K31 improves over time—the more you use it, the stronger hair becomes.

4. Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) analysis

Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) analysis was utilised to evaluate the impact of KeraBio K31 on the structural integrity of hair keratin. Studies revealed that:

• KeraBio K31 provides a significant elevation in the denaturation temperature of treated hair, indicating superior structural integrity compared to all tested benchmarks
• KeraBio K31 effectively delivers a “reset” to virgin hair, even after severe bleaching. 

From scientific innovation to consumer-perceivable results

Scientific performance matters, but consumers judge hair repair by what they can see and feel. To explore the real-world experience of KeraBio K31, a consumer study evaluated a hair-care regime featuring shampoo, conditioner and leave-on products. The study included 10 panellists across different hair types, with 10 applications over 2–7 weeks.

Hair that gets noticed

The study showed consumer-perceivable benefits, with panellists reporting improvements in the look, feel and manageability of their hair. Nine out of 10 agreed that their hair was easier to manage, looked and felt healthier, and had less breakage. Unretouched before-and-after images showed visible changes following the regime, while SEM imaging provided further visual evidence at the hair-fibre level.

“My hairdresser was so impressed with my hair after this treatment and said I had no breakage even after she bleached it.”
“Wonderful product. Manageability is 10+.”
“Soft and easy to style. I want this regime forever!”

These real-world experiences show how KeraBio K31 can translate scientific innovation into benefits consumers notice. Find out more by downloading our salon study infographic.

Application versatility

The potential applications of KeraBio K31 across diverse hair types present a compelling opportunity for formulators. As the hair repair category evolves, driven by consumer demand for stronger, healthier hair, an ingredient with broad applicability is highly valuable.

KeraBio K31 offers targeted repair for hair showing signs of damage from bleaching, colouring, and thermal styling. It is equally effective for naturally fragile hair, including textured hair and mature hair.

Another key advantage lies in its compatibility across multiple cosmetic formats, including shampoos, conditioners, intensive treatments, serums, and styling products.

This versatility allows brands to develop innovative solutions tailored to different consumer needs. Discover our latest formulations featuring KeraBio K31: a Bond Building Mask with repair and care properties, and a Bond Building Spray with repair and styling properties.

KeraBio K31 is undoubtedly a hero ingredient with standout performance. While powerful on its own, it also pairs seamlessly with complementary actives. Combining KeraBio K31 with FibraShield™ C creates a powerful synergy of repair and protection, ensuring long-lasting hair health and strength. 

Why KeraBio K31?

At Croda Beauty, we believe that consumers deserve more than just temporary fixes for their hair—they need deep biomimetic repair and targeted bond building to restore strength and confidence. That's exactly what KeraBio K31 offers. As the first ingredient supplier to enter the bond-building space with a human hair-identical keratin, we are redefining what's possible.

Unlike traditional hair care ingredients, KeraBio K31 works at the molecular level, recharging the hair's internal structure with keratin to repair and strengthen from within. It's not just about temporarily fixing damage—it's about hair reaching its full potential with scientifically-backed, advanced bond building. Whether it's for hair damaged by chemical treatments or heat styling, or naturally fragile hair, KeraBio K31 delivers lasting results that surpass conventional hair repair solutions.

Ready to take your formulations to the next level? Let’s work together to transform hair care with KeraBio K31 and bring the future of hair repair to your consumers.

Download the datasheet and presentation, request a sample, or connect with our team to discuss how KeraBio K31 can elevate your next formulation. Let’s push the boundaries of hair repair—together.

1. Persistence Market Research