VietNamNet Bridge - A group of Thai women in Dien Bien province are very careful to collect every stray and excess hair that falls out after combing. Duc Hanh finds out why.

“We take great care of our hair. We use traditional herbs to keep it like this. It should be black, glossy and smooth, like black velvet,” says Lo Thi Yen, a 24-year old who has never cut her hair. Their hair is so beautiful that people actually come here to buy it as it can be used to make hair extensions in salons inHanoi and beyond.

Beside Yen and her friends there are bundles of hair of tangled hair, which are weighed then sold. It will set you back VND180,000- VND250,000 for 100 grammes of quality Thai hair. Although for hair under 30cm in length it costs just VND50,000 for 100g.

Previously, Thai women in Na Ngam village worked on the farm and embroidered clothes, but now they have this third, rather lucrative trade. When traders first expressed an interest in buying hair, the local women refused as it is an ancient Thai custom that women must never cut their hair. But then, one local woman, Quang Thi Phuong, noticed all the excess hair that fell to the floor every time she washed and combed her hair.

“I saw all this long hair on the floor,” recalls Phuong. “I thought why I don’t collect it, store it in a basket, straighten it all out then sell it! When I shared my idea with my family and friends, they all agreed and we started our business with a group of seven women.”

The group slowly expanded and now there are 30 members. As well as collecting their own hair, sometimes Phuong and others travel to other Thai villages in the province to buy up loose hair for VND80,000 to VND150,000 per 100g. “This extra income helps me a lot as my son is going to university in Hanoi.

Each month I can earn VND800,000 to VND1 million from selling hair and that covers all his cooking and accommodation costs,” says 32-year old Lo Thi Thuy. “I know Thai women in other villages are cutting their hair to sell it so I’m really happy we have found a better way,” says Phuong.

“I come here to buy it then I resell it to hair salons in Hanoi or export it directly to China,” says Kien, a middle-aged trader from Hanoi. “The women here came up with this idea [to collect excess hair]. It is really sad when you see a girl cut her hair and burst into tears, as if she’s losing part of her body. This is a much better way.”

Myanmar hair thieves

Vietnam isn’t the only place where people have designs on women’s long hair. In Myanmar there have even been stories of hair thieves, who snip off women’s hair while they are commuting, shopping or walking down the street. Long-haired women in crowded areas have fallen victim to sneaky snippers, who the sell the hair. In 2007 a viss (1.6 kilograms) of hair was reported as being worth between $320 and $400.

“My long hair was cut while I was on my way back from the office. I only found out when I got back home,” one unidentified female bus commuter told the local press. The woman added that her friend’s tresses were cut while she was walking down the street and she only noticed when some remaining strands fell. Another woman’s hair was cut while she was shopping at a roadside store.

Many women in Myanmar have waist- or knee-length hair, which they wear in a ponytail, making it easy for thieves to snip off the hair and sell it as extensions. Women are also approached by hair traders who ask to buy their long hair.

(Source: Timeout)