“The best business ideas tend to come from a passion or personal need”
As the founder of SEA+SOLU, Sinead Asple has developed Ireland’s first customisable haircare range. She shares her global vision for the brand with Accountancy Ireland
As the founder of SEA+SOLU, Sinead Asple has ambitious plans for Ireland’s first customisable haircare brand.
Launched in February 2024 and headquartered in Ireland, SEA+SOLU’s success to date is testament to Asple’s mission to redefine haircare globally.
“From the very first day, I wanted to create a global brand. SEA+SOLU is very proudly Irish but we have global ambition,” Asple says.
“I describe it as a customisable hair and scalp wellness brand, bridging the gap between clean beauty and clinical grade results.”
Priced from €20.95, SEA+SOLU features a set of four boosters, each one targeted to remedy a common haircare challenge, which can be added to the brand’s Moisture Melt shampoo, conditioner and hair masks.
“Our boosters address volume, strength, frizz and moisture because we found these were the biggest hair concerns based on the research we carried out,” Asple says.
“Our focus is very much on the idea of the haircare ritual.
In terms of innovation, I think haircare is about five or 10 years behind skincare. We want to change that.”
SEA+SOLU is, she adds, a “highly efficacious brand” whose vegan, sulphate-, silicone-, paraben- and cruelty-free credentials have already caught the attention of global celebrities, such as US actress Sarah Jessica Parker.
“We work with a worldclass Italian chemist to formulate our products with plant-based and mineral-rich ingredients and own all of our own intellectual property, which is quite unusual in the haircare sector,” Asple says.
Last year, when she decided to send the range to Parker to try, Asple was delighted to receive a direct message from the Hollywood actress on Instagram.
“I was astounded that she actually took the time to let me know she’d tried the products; to thank me and tell me that her daughters, Loretta and Tabitha, had loved them,” Asple says.
“That meant the world to me. As a solo founder, you don’t have anyone else to bounce ideas off, so the recognition really matters and it’s important to slow down and celebrate those wins.”
“SURESITTER LAUNCHED AS AN ONLINE PLATFORM CONNECTING PARENTS WITH CHILDCARE PROFESSIONALS, AND MINDME OFFERS A SUBSCRIPTION-BASED MODEL CONNECTING FAMILIES WITH PROVIDERS OF CHILDCARE, ELDERLY CARE, PET AND HOME CARE”
Having also won Best New Hair and Scalp Product at the Pure Beauty Awards in London in 2024, Asple’s first foray into the competitive haircare market is proving successful— but SEA+SOLU is not her first business.
From practice to business
Originally from Longford, Asple studied accounting and finance at Dublin City University before qualifying as a Chartered Accountant with PwC in Dublin.
“If you’d told me a few years ago I would be doing anything other than accounting, I would have said, ‘not a chance’, but I would absolutely not be where I am now as a business owner had I not studied to become a Chartered Accountant,” she says.
“The qualification is a huge part of my professional identity and has helped me through every single step of my entrepreneurial journey.”
After qualifying as a Chartered Accountant, Asple continued to work with PwC in wealth management for a further five years.
She then moved to a mid-sized practice in Dublin where she gained experience supporting SMEs and, finally, into industry herself, taking on financial roles with businesses in Dublin and Wexford before striking out on her own.
“I would say I had a commercial mindset from day one and wanted to get out and work in the business world because it appealed to me,” Asple explains.
“But practice was good to me too. I qualified as both a Chartered Accountant and Chartered Tax Adviser with PwC, and I met my husband there and made some wonderful lifelong friends.”
The launch of SureSitter
Asple launched SureSitter.com, her first venture, in 2019 with the company’s co-founder Paula Reilly.
An online marketplace connecting parents with babysitters, childminders, nannies and au-pairs, SureSitter went on to acquire MindMe.ie, its main competitor in the Irish market, in 2022.
“SureSitter launched as an online platform connecting parents with childcare professionals, and MindMe offers a subscription-based model connecting families with providers of childcare, elderly care, pet and home care,” Asple says.
“Right from the get-go, SureSitter placed a lot of emphasis on safety, introducing features like ID verification and Garda vetting. MindMe then had to follow suit which raised the bar for both platforms.”
Acquiring MindMe was, she says, a “huge milestone” for the business. “There are over 150,000 caregivers on the MindMe platform—so we now have Ireland’s largest online care marketplace.”
Although SureSitter and SEA+SOLU operate in very different markets, both start-ups were inspired by equally personal challenges.
“I think the best business ideas tend to come from a genuine passion or personal need—something you have struggled with yourself,” Asple says.
“I set up SureSitter because I was really struggling to find childcare while working, and the idea for SEA+SOLU came from my own problems finding good haircare for my specific needs.
“My hair is wavy and frizzy and, after I had my third child, I found my scalp was very sensitive. I was spending so much money on so many products and none of them were working for me.”
Steep learning curve
Moving from the technology sector to launching a consumer start-up from scratch has been a steep learning curve, Asple says.
“Setting up one business does give you a bit of confidence to think, ‘why not try it again?’ but launching SEA+SOLU has been a completely different experience to SureSitter,” she says.
“Compared to the tech sector, you have to think about product formulation and testing, manufacturing, packaging, logistics. There is so much. It hasn’t been easy at times but that’s business—there are always ups and downs. That’s how you learn.
“I’ve also learned so much about marketing a consumer business. SureSitter doesn’t really need to be marketed in the same way because so many people are desperate for childcare—it is a necessity—but you are always still listening to the market, responding to feedback and improving the platform based on what your customers are telling you.
“You do need that growth mindset in business I think—the desire to learn and to learn from your failures, move on and try again.”
For Asple, this comes naturally. “I love learning; I am forever curious,” she says.
“I did a full stack software development course at the start of the pandemic. I can’t build platforms, but I still wanted to upskill my technical understanding as an entrepreneur in the tech space and the same is true for SEA+SOLU. I learn something new every day.”
Omnichannel route to market
SEA+SOLU launched in February 2024. “We sold online initially on our own website, seaplussolu.com, and we were approached very quickly by a distributor,” Asple says.
“I knew from the get-go I wanted SEA+SOLU to be an omnichannel brand and I’m always very open to speaking to anyone—information is power, so we decided to go for it and now we have about 70 retailers selling the range.”
Stockists include retailers Avoca and Meadows & Byrne, pharmacy chains, including Meaghers and McCauleys, and salon group Peter Mark.
“We are a premium brand and the market in Ireland for premium haircare is quite select—we are particular about who we partner with, which is important for the integrity of the brand,” Asple says.
Future plans: global expansion
Looking to the future, Asple is determined to grow the SEA+SOLU brand globally, but at a manageable pace.
“We want to be a global brand; it was never my intention to build a small lifestyle business,” she says.
“I really believe we can succeed but it will take time, funding and careful planning. Launching in a new market before you’re ready can be detrimental; timing is everything.”
And over six years on from the launch of her first business, Asple continues to learn important lessons in entrepreneurship.
Her confidence has grown, she says, as she navigates the challenges of running her own business while raising three children.
“I’ve learned to trust my gut more, and to stop looking at what everyone else is doing and focus on my own plans. It can be very easy to get distracted but that doesn’t really help you,” she says.
“I’ve also become more resilient in learning to deal with the ‘nos’ you get along the way until you reach the ‘yes’ you need. Now, I tend to reframe the ‘no’ as ‘no for now’.
“It’s important not to give up. I think anyone in business would say the same thing. I was 39 with three young children when I first went out on my own with SureSitter.
“As you get older, I think it becomes more important to make your living doing something you enjoy. You start to value your time more and gain more clarity about what really matters to you.
“I didn’t want to regret not having tried a few years down the line and you’re never too old to start something new. For me though, I think my background as a Chartered Accountant has helped me enormously as an entrepreneur.
“For anyone interested in pursuing a career in business or entrepreneurship, based on my own experience, I would say it is hands-down the best qualification you can have.”