Nylah

Background

Nylah is a science-led haircare brand creating targeted formulas for people with textured hair and those experiencing hair loss - an audience historically underserved by mainstream haircare.

With ambitions to scale the brand and spark a wider movement around hair wellness and confidence, Nylah applied to the 2025 Channel 4 Black in Business initiative. Their goal was clear: harness the power of TV to build brand awareness at scale and drive meaningful traffic to their website.
 

The Big Idea

Channel 4’s Black in Business initiative, delivered in partnership with Lloyds Bank, exists to level the playing field for Black founders.

The programme is backed by stark data, revealing that 56% of Black founders only receive funding once their business is already established, with just 0.24% of venture capital invested in Black-owned businesses.

To address this imbalance, winning brands receive:

• £150,000 of premium Channel 4 airtime
• Six months of business mentoring from Channel 4 and Lloyds Bank executives
• A brand-new TV commercial

From over 200 applicants, Nylah was selected as one of just four winners, unlocking the opportunity to reach millions and scale fast.

Making It Happen

Working in close collaboration with Channel 4’s Commercial team, Nylah built a campaign designed for precision, relevance and impact.

The brand’s TV debut launched with a bespoke Premiere break during Bake Off: The Professionals, Channel 4’s biggest show of the day, reaching 1.4 million viewers.

From there, the campaign expanded across Channel 4’s linear schedule, placing Nylah alongside trusted, high-attention content including:

• Educating Yorkshire
• First Dates
• Celebs Go Dating

This premium context was mirrored on Channel 4 Streaming, with activity appearing in standout titles such as:

• The Great British Bake Off
• 24 Hours in Police Custody
• Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins

To amplify effectiveness, Nylah layered in a supporting social campaign, targeting audiences most likely to have been exposed to the TV activity - driving additional frequency and reinforcing brand recall.

Results

With their goals set at the beginning of the process, the campaign outperformed key business expectations, delivering strong commercial growth:

• New Customers +42%
  • Orders +18%
  • Total Sales +15%
  • Sessions +20%
  • Returning Customers +12%

These results were underpinned by a step-change in performance among women aged 25–44 with textured hair, driven by highly effective creative that clearly communicated Nylah’s scientific credentials and everyday consumer relevance.

Brand outcomes included:

• Significant uplifts in both brand awareness and consideration across the campaign period
• Nylah moving to second place within its competitive set, closing the gap on more established brands
• Clear correlation between media weight and brand performance, with brand metrics peaking in line with Channel 4 activity

Crucially, the campaign didn’t just deliver short-term visibility, it repositioned Nylah as a serious player in hair wellness.

The results underline the power of pairing premium TV environments with focused audience planning and strong, consumer-led creative, proving that Channel 4 advertising can accelerate growth for emerging brands ready to scale.