Hair restoration business a growth area, says Maxim

MANILA, Philippines — Three in 10 people will eventually have to contend with baldness. New York-headquartered hair transplant expert Maxim Hair Restoration reports on its website that “hair loss is among the most commonly occurring conditions in both among men and women, (with) roughly 30 percent of the adult population (suffering) from (it).” As one would correctly guess, the incidence is higher among men. By the time they turn 65, nearly two-thirds of men will have suffered from some form of hair loss, mostly from androgenic alopecia or male pattern baldness. This manifests itself in telltale symptoms – a receding frontal hairline, and a thinning crown which eventually progresses into the dreaded horseshoe-shaped pattern.

The battle against baldness is something that Maxim takes seriously. In fact, it’s all that’s done in the chain’s 14 centers in New York, Dallas, Chicago, Houston, Long Island, Newport Beach in California, North Virginia, Dubai, and Manila (at the second floor of Alexander House on Amorsolo Street, Legaspi Village, Makati City).

“Hair transplants are all we do, and we do them well,” avers chief executive officer Mac Fadra at a recent press conference where the company introduced its celebrity client, PBA legend and team manager Alvin Patrimonio. The new endorser and satisfied customer had his first procedure in July last year, and is looking forward to two more sessions. His before-and-after photos already look markedly different.

Patrimonio admits that he was very self-conscious about his thinning hair (which he noticed in his mid-40s), particularly when he’d accommodate media interviews. “Under strong lights, it just seemed more apparent,” he says with a smile. “I took medicines and applied topical treatments, but they didn’t work for me.”

Amid a glut of choices, Fadra insists that Maxim’s unique propositions allow it to stand out – and tall. “We’re super specialized, and we do things right,” he insists, and explains to The STAR that the facility’s strengths are pretty compelling. “We are staffed only with registered nurses and plastic or general surgeons, we offer surgical and non-surgical procedures, adhere to strict US standards, and our prices are affordable – we don’t price-gouge.”

The 13-year-old chain opened its Manila doors in 2004, and offers “an advanced, no-stitch, no-linear-scar technique called follicular unit extraction (FUE) or the more conventional hair transplant technique known as follicular unit transplant (FUT). Both enable clients to grow back their hair via hair transplantation by harvesting hair from a donor area (usually the back of the patient’s head) and placing hair grafts on the bald area.”

The least-invasive treatment is called scalp micropigmentation (SMP), a non-surgical method that results in a short buzz-cut look without need for an actual transplant. Plastic aesthetic surgeon John Ocampo, a partner surgeon of the clinic, shares to The STAR that he uses Emla cream, a local anesthetic containing lidocaine and prilocaine, to dull the sensation on the scalp as the procedure is done.

Maxim country manager Mar Sabillo explains that hair would grow over the course of three to four months, and would take a year to appreciate the full result. But this permanent alternative to baldness is a more natural and sustainable fix over toupees and wigs.

Fadra reveals that these days, they “see patients who are older and much younger than before,” with some 25 percent of them in client-facing sales and marketing roles.

However, the executive emphasizes that hair transplantation is not a quick fix for everyone with disappearing locks. If the patient is still in the throes of hair loss, he or she will stand to lose the hair not transplanted. “It will restore what you’ve lost, but it does not cure the condition.”