Continental Hair was founded in 1963 by Peter and Emma Suba. They were hair stylists in the (then) Toronto suburb of Leaside. They quickly made a name for themselves in providing the highest quality wigs and hairpieces for women and men. This is where Continental Hair started working with virgin European human hair in its wigs and hair replacements. It is not a new technology, but one that many in the business abandoned for the more convenient and cheaper wigs. As the fashion for wigs reached its crazy heights in the early 1970's Continental Hair never went off the path of only providing the highest quality products, both in retail and wholesale.
When the fashion changed and women no longer wanted extra hair as a fashion accessory, over 95% of Continental's competition had to move on. But Peter and Emma stayed the course, retailing to the many men that were getting into hair replacement, and making sure that women going through cancer treatments had access to the finest wigs available anywhere. Synthetic wigs were also available, and still are, but they have to be the most natural and comfortable available.
In the eighties many saw the opportunities in the hair replacement market and people started getting back in. There were not a lot of people left that had the experience to make sure that their clients were getting the best in the business and became dependent on huge wholesalers for their product. A flood of the cheapest wigs and 'other stuff" became available. Continental Hair even tried to carry some of the better fad stuff but it did not work. "We wanted to provide what so many people seemed to want," says Michael Suba, Continental Hair's president, "but our clients would have none of it. It was an experiment that we just won't go back to.
