Kylie Jenner like a nice wig — her beauty area has a shelf dedicated to the numerous wigs she owns — but if those hairpieces are manufactured from real human hair (which is quite likely), they are likely to cost hundreds and thousands of dollars. Surprisingly, the wigs are pricey not only because of Kylie, but also because there is a high demand for human hair all over the world. In a feature story released this week, Priceonomics examined the state of the market; below are some of the most mind-blowing data that were revealed in the piece.
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1. The human hair industry is tremendously profitable. In reality, it's a multibillion-dollar industry. The value of hair is so high that in one extreme example, a gang literally hacked off the hair on a woman's head. It is used in the production of wigs, hair extensions, and **** eyelashes, as well as fertilizers and amino acids that are utilized in the production of dough (for pizza and bagels).

2. The majority of the human hair used in wigs and extensions is sourced from India and China. Religious pilgrims travel to temples such as the Venkateswara Temple in Tirumala, India, where they shave or tonsure their heads as part of a devotional ceremony. Every five minutes, hundreds of barbers shave a new person's head, leaving "bloody scalps and hair balls" all over the floor. The temple purchases these strands, which can be up to 30 inches in length, and sells them at auction.

3. Temple hair can sell for up to $700 per pound at auction, but when it is obtained at auction, it is not always in excellent condition. "Sweat, blood, and lice" can be found in the hair, which is then stored in warehouses that "reek of mildew and fungus."

4. It takes days to create a high-end wig. To begin, the hair must be detangled and sorted. Then the lice (if there are any) must be removed from the hair. This is followed by the washing, drying, and dyeing process. After that, it is transformed into a wig.

5. It's impossible to separate one's hair from the subject of economics. Throughout history, the migration of hair has always been from the impoverished to the wealthy. It is no different now, when hair is sourced primarily from China and India and sold primarily in the United States and Europe, as well as Africa.

6. If you have long, naturally blonde hair, you can sell it for as much as $1,500. One wig vendor informed Priceonomics that one woman from Indiana received that amount for her hair, which was then converted into a wig that sold for $8,000.

7. Short hair is also collected and sold. It is not as expensive or appealing as other types of wood, and it is primarily employed in industrial applications.

The ethical origins of wigs, as well as the methods of manufacture, are not particularly important to those who purchase wigs. Despite the fact that the majority of human hair comes from India and China, just a small percentage of that hair comes from temples. "We have no idea where the rest comes from," a regional minister for textiles and commerce in India told The Guardian in 2006. The unexplained origins of all that hair, on the other hand, do not disturb consumers; all they want to know is that it is clean.

9. The quality of synthetic wigs is improving all the time. The Chinese and Indian economies are significantly stronger now than they were ten years ago, which means that their residents are wealthier and that there aren't as many hair donors as there used to be. That said, firms are developing new methods of producing wigs and extensions that are as easy to style as actual human hair.