The Interview: T3's Julie Chung on pioneering the premium hair tool category and UK expansion plans

Founded out of frustration with frizz, long before "premium hair tools" was even a thing, T3 has spent the past two decades quietly reshaping how we think about hair styling.

Launched in 2003 by a then-medical student who couldn’t find a dryer that treated hair with the same care as skincare, the brand went on to pioneer the luxury end of the category - becoming the first hair tool brand stocked by Sephora and editorialised by fashion’s most influential titles.

Here, T3’s co-founder Julie Chung reflects on the early days of pioneering premium hair tools, the science-led thinking behind the brand and why the UK has become such a key market for its next phase of growth.

Can you tell us about your start back in 2003 and what inspired you to launch T3?

T3 began from a very personal need. I was a busy medical student, and drying my hair took far too long and often left it frizzy and damaged. My then-boyfriend, now husband, noticed that while I could do my makeup and style an outfit with ease, hair always felt like a struggle. That observation led us to ask a simple question: why weren’t hair tools better? That question became the starting point for T3.

T3 “single-handedly created the premium hair tools category” when it debuted in 2004. Can you tell us about this?

In 2004, and for years prior, hair tools and hair tool brands were sold as mass-market appliances in big box and drugstore or as “professional” grade sold at independent beauty supply stores. The category comprised mass brands like Conair, and the average ASP for a hair dryer was $29.

We viewed the category as lacking and needing a bona fide beauty offering. Emphasising functional and emotional benefits for the modern woman and with a keen eye on aesthetics, user experience and packaging.

Where it was sold and how it was discussed would matter, and had to do justice to the innovation that we were bringing to market. We were the first electrical device of any type sold in Sephora and on the cosmetics floor at Nordstrom. We were the first hair tool editorialised in leading fashion and beauty magazines.

We were relentless in our pursuit of celebrity stylists and prominent editors and tastemakers such as Fred Segal and CO Bigelow. These were tactics common to beauty and fashion, and had not yet been applied to hair tools.

We created overnight a premium segment which is now the same size and growing faster than the overall category that existed before T3.

What do you think the industry fundamentally misunderstood about hair at the time and why was premium performance reserved for skincare and makeup, not tools?

At the time, the US woman prioritised investment in skincare and makeup, and less so hair. It is true that high-end salon brands did exist, such as Pureology and Kerastase. But by large, department stores and magazines prioritised skincare, makeup and fragrance.

When was the moment you thought ‘ah we’ve made it’?

We always believed strongly that if our premise were true - that if the American woman were to embrace a proposition like what we envisioned for T3 - then the only logical outcome of this thesis would be to eventually sell and succeed in Sephora. When we were contacted by a merchant at Sephora who was responding to our editorial placements, we knew our defining moment had arrived. Shortly after, when had strong success at Sephora, we knew we were well on our way to "making it".

You trained and practised as an eye surgeon before returning to the business. How has that medical background shaped the way you think about product safety, innovation and the long-term effects of heat on hair?

I’m still a practising eye surgeon at a university hospital, so medicine isn’t something I left behind; it actively shapes how I think. In healthcare, the core principle is simple: help and do no harm. That ethos has guided T3 from day one. When it comes to hair tools, safety and long-term hair health aren’t optional; they’re foundational. Heat is powerful, and without thoughtful engineering, it can compromise the integrity of hair over time.

As a physician, I’m trained to listen closely. A librarian needs sharp near vision; a golfer needs something entirely different. The right solution only exists when you truly understand the individual's need. That same philosophy drives how we innovate at T3. We don’t believe in technology for technology’s sake. We create with intention - designing tools that address real concerns, deliver the results women and stylists are asking for, and protect hair in the process. By listening to our community, we ensure we’re not just innovating but innovating responsibly.

What is T3’s bestselling tool in the UK and why do you think this is?

Our product range in the UK is similar to that in the US but not identical. Nevertheless, the successes look familiar, including our Aire 360 and our long-barrel SinglePass X curling tongs.

Air styling is one of the most competitive categories in hair tools right now. Why do you think the Aire 360 has cut through?

Our insight is that simplicity of use, superior efficacy, an approachable price point and beautiful aesthetics will win the day in the air styler category. Our offering is focused on longer-lasting blowout-like results, using our ceramic barrel technology honed over 20 years of hair tools design, which we know delivers excellent results whilst also caring for your hair. Our momentum thus far certainly suggests this thinking is resonating.

You returned to T3 in 2023 to help guide its next phase. How are you thinking about growth today? Is it about category expansion, geographic focus or something else?

Yes and yes and yes. The story of T3 is still in its early days… twenty years later. We have plenty of growth ahead in our core markets and categories, but we know we also have future growth in broader markets, product adjacencies and even completely new white spaces. We intend to test the elasticity of the T3 brand and have heard from our consumers their interest in seeing us take their beloved T3 brand into some unexpected places.

The UK has become a particularly strong market for T3. What does the next phase of growth look like here? 

Yes, our intent is to execute a relatively straightforward expansion plan. As a self-funded company, we are very diligent in our incremental steps. Fortunately, we have many insights and have made many of the early mistakes from our long history in the US market.

Looking ahead, what would success here look like to you beyond sales alone?

If the customer here comes to love this brand for all that it offers, and sees how distinctive it is relative to our competitors, then we will have succeeded.