Jim Markham

Early life

Markham was born in Houston, Texas, the youngest of three children, and raised in Farmington, New Mexico. By the age of 15 he was married with a child and had dropped out of high school as a means to support his family. He attended Lubbock Barber School in Lubbock, Texas, and became a licensed hair stylist at the age of 16.

Career

Markham began his career as a barber in Farmington, New Mexico, charging $1.50 per haircut. He began entering hair cutting and styling competitions, winning numerous awards including the Silver Medal in the Hair Olympics. In 1966, Markham went to Hollywood to meet Jay Sebring, a well known stylist to celebrities, to learn from Sebring's methodologies in hair styling. Later in 1966, Markham opened a Sebring franchise in Albuquerque, New Mexico distributing the Sebring Product Line in four states: New Mexico, Arizona, Texas and Utah.

After Sebring's death in 1969, Markham became President/CEO of Sebring International, and took over Sebring's celebrity clients, which included Paul Newman, Robert Redford, Steve McQueen, Johnny Carson, and Frank Sinatra. Later, he became a product developer and entrepreneur.

Markham Products

In 1972, Markham, with the help of investors including British actor Peter Lawford founded Markham Products. Markham sold Markham Products in 1981.

ABBA Pure and Natural

In 1989 Markham founded ABBA Pure and Natural Hair Care. The brand started with four products and was one of the first 100% Vegan lines in the United States. Markham’s formulas for ABBA included extracts of plants, leaves, fruits, nuts and berries, with a spotlight on an environmental consciousness and a strong emphasis on education for salons and stylists in the professional beauty industry. Markham sold ABBA in 1997.

PureOlogy Serious Colour Care

In 2001, PureOlogy Serious Colour Care began as the result of developing sulfate/carcinogen free formulas products for a friend of Markham’s diagnosed with cancer and unable to find carcinogen-free beauty products. The company was founded in 2001 in Irvine, California. Within 3 years of its inception, PureOlogy passed the $25 million mark in sales.

On May 8, 2007, PureOlogy was acquired by L'Oréal under the professional products division, and relocated to its headquarters in New York City.

ColorProof Evolved Color Care

In 2011, Markham founded ColorProof Evolved Color Care.

Awards

Markham has been the recipient of numerous awards including Entrepreneur of the Year for Ernst & Young for consumer products, and was inducted into their Hall of Fame as well as into the Professional Beauty Association’s (PBA) North American Hairstyling Awards (NAHA) Hall of Leaders where he was acknowledged for his achievements within the Industry. Other awards include: 2002 Independent Cosmetic Manufacturers and Distributors (ICMAD) Entrepreneur of the Year, 2007 Orange County Business Journal Entrepreneur of the Year and 2012 Beauty Industry West Entrepreneur of the year. In addition to his career in the beauty industry, Markham also supports philanthropic causes. Over the years Markham has supported charities such as the National Ovarian Cancer Coalition (NOCC), Habitat for Humanity, SeriousFun Children's Network (formerly known as Hole in the Wall Gang Camp) and City of Hope where Markham and his wife, Cheryl, were recognized with the Spirit of Life Award.