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3/28/25
30 Years of Supporting Women’s Cancer Journeys
2025 marks a milestone year for Headcovers Unlimited: We turn 30 years old! This is a pretty big deal considering that we are still a “mom and pop,” family-run, and woman-owned American company founded by a mother-daughter duo as a labor of love by a breast cancer survivor and her college-aged child. And not unlike the cancer journey stories of courage, resilience, heartbreak, and endurance, the story of Headcovers Unlimited’s 30-year survival has similar parallels.
To appreciate and capture this impressive story, Headcovers’ Brand Ambassador Hollis Thomases interviewed Danielle Galland-Yates, the daughter, co-founder, and current CEO of Headcovers Unlimited.
[Hollis] Danielle, when you first started Headcovers with your mom, did you imagine you'd still be in business 30 years later?
[Danielle] No, I never imagined we’d be here 30 years later. When my mom came up with the idea to create head coverings for cancer patients back in 1990, it was born out of something deeply personal. It was clear to me that it was coming from someplace deep within her. After her own cancer treatments, she had spent five years living in limbo, waiting to see if she'd survive. But when she hit the five-year mark, something inside her shifted. She made the decision to truly live again. She dared to believe in life, and she wanted her painful experience to have meant something. So, launching this business in 1995 was part of her healing process. This was something that actually took a lot of courage for her.
At that time, I wasn’t thinking about the future. I was just there to support her. My personal motivation was simply to stand by my mom, to encourage her to follow her heart wherever it led. As her oldest child and only daughter, we were very close. My role was to be her support, to help her rise above the emotional depths she had fallen into. My focus was simply helping her through her pain, handing her life preservers where I could, cheering her on. That was my mindset.
For my mom, it wasn't about creating a business; it was about something deeper. It was a desire to make her painful experience count, to ensure that her suffering had meaning. Thirty years later, the company stands as a testament to her emotional journey from cancer survivor to healer. What we’re doing now, it all comes from her spirit. This company is still the fruit of one breast cancer patient's emotional journey to wholeness.
I never really thought about the future or where this would take me. Back then, I was still in college, pursuing a degree in education. I never imagined this would become my career. After graduation, I continued to work side by side with Mom, but I didn’t take a paycheck for over 10 years. This wasn't about money, it was a mission for me, a way to give back. It was my way of supporting my mom through her emotional healing. I was there to help her process her pain and to help others through their own struggles. I felt deeply that this was the path I was meant to walk, guided by a higher purpose. That sense of calling was always stronger than any material need.
Then, one day, the business began to evolve in a way that we hadn't anticipated, but the goal had never been about growth or profit. That was never the intent. Our mission was always about something far more meaningful - providing comfort, dignity and hope to women with cancer. Gradually, it became clear that what we were doing had the potential to reach so many more. But we never let the focus shift. We remained committed to the mission, driven by the desire to make a difference in women's lives. That's what woke up for every day - the passion to create hats that would truly make a difference for women in their most difficult times.
We lost Mom in 2009 to a recurrence that had metastacized throughout her body. At that point, she had battled breast cancer for over 20 years. It felt like I had lost a part of my soul. She wasn't just my mom - she was the heart and foundation of everything we had built. Her absence left a space that nothing could fill. Yet, in the midst of that devastating loss, the world around me didn't slow down. The business had become more than just a company, it had become a lifeline for so many. So it was up to me to carry on her work. I didn't have time to fully process the loss; time didn't stop for me. Through the tears, I found a well of strength I didn't know I had, rooted in the love and purpose she had instilled in me. Every single day, I held onto her vision, knowing that the best way to honor her life was to keep her mission alive. Continuing what she had started, with the same passion and heart she poured into it, became my way of keeping her spirit with me - knowing it was the greatest tribute I could ever give her.
Today, as we celebrate 30 years of Headcovers, I see my mother's compassion and vision touching lives in ways she could never have imagined and I think she would be so humbled and honored. Her spirit lives on in every pattern we design, every package we ship, and every life we touch.
H: Describe the early days of the business, pre-website.
D: When we started the business in 1995, it wasn't online, and we had no roadmap to follow. The early days were full of trial and error as we figured out how to bring my mom's vision to life. We were learning everything from scratch: how to design hats that could bring comfort to women like my mom, how to source the right fabrics, and how to find suppliers who could help us create something truly special and unique.
Mom's first idea was to design a matching hat and vest combination - something that could be moved to different outfits and give women an option to feel stylish during treatments. She would go to the local fabric store in Ardmore, Oklahoma and find unique, interesting fabrics that spoke to her. Then, she'd work with a local seamstress to create each hat and vest set by hand. I can still picture those early creations. I wish I could have just one now to hold onto - they were full of love and they meant so much to us.
From there, we began exploring local markets. That's where we found a lot of inspiration and met with designers who helped us understand more about the fashion industry. We had no background in this - we were just two women driven by a desire to help others. Even though we didn't know what we were doing at the time, we learned everything we could along the way, figuring it out one step at a time.
Marketing wasn't even on our radar in those early years. We were running the business out of my old bedroom in my mom's house, with boxes piled up around us and a fold up table as a desk. After a few years, we moved into a small office, and gradually, we expanded our operational space as the business grew. But back then, it was all about passion, purpose and figuring things out one step at a time.
H: You went online in 1997, which was so early! What were some of the earliest challenges in getting an online store going back then?
D: Our first challenge was that most people had never heard of the Internet or only vaguely knew what it was back then. I had only recently learned about it myself in a college class at the University of Illinois. This gave me the idea to marry the Internet and my mom’s passion in order to reach more people.
Back then, because we were mostly an online company, a lot of fashion designers looked down on us. They just didn’t see us as a real business—being online was considered lower tier at the time. It was frustrating, honestly, feeling like we weren’t taken seriously just because we weren’t a traditional brick-and-mortar brand. But as the years went by, times changed. I built the first website myself. Our first logo was made with clip art. I didn’t know what I was doing.
The other challenge we faced was that online shopping was completely foreign to most people. Socially, I would meet people who asked me what I did; I would tell them and then they would walk away saying “She does something with computers.” It was like speaking a different language. As far as building an online store in 1997 – I wasn’t aware of anyone who did that. That’s why I built our first website myself. Back then, shopping websites were mostly online catalogs, and customers had to call us by phone or order via regular snail mail to place their orders.
H: How many products did you carry when your website first went live?
D: We started with about 15 products, in a variety of colors. I took all the photos myself—I still do, most of the time. I quickly realized that capturing the right angles and details on the hats was something only I could see in the moment, so I taught myself photography. It wasn't something I planned on doing, but it turned out to be a useful skill for bringing our vision to life.
H: Do you recall what that mix was, e.g. wigs versus caps, etc? Please describe it/them.
D: It was all hats and caps at first. My mom wasn’t sure about adding wigs to the mix, but people were asking for them, so we took a cautious step in that direction. Initially, we offered a limited selection of wigs from a couple of designers—Dolly Parton Wigs and Revlon Wigs were the first. Now, we carry nearly 2000 wig styles across 25+ designers. The wig industry has grown tremendously over the past 30 years, and the quality of wigs and synthetic hair has improved significantly. Back in 1990, during her own treatments, Mom wore an itchy, uncomfortable wig. As a hairstylist, I know she’d be thrilled to see the wide variety of high-quality wigs now available to cancer patients.
H: How did customers find you/How did you get the word out back in those early days?
D: I remember the first day I put the products online in 1997. Just a few days later, we received our very first order. I was excited, yet so nervous when I spoke to our first online customer—a female minister. Looking back, that feels so fitting, like a beautiful, full-circle moment. Maybe it was a little sign from above, guiding us. In those early days, most of our customers found us through search engines. Back then, the big search engine was Yahoo, but there was also AltaVista and a few others. Google came later—it didn't even exist when we first launched the website. We slowly built a community of customers who felt connected to our mission over time.
H: As your online business grew, how did your product mix expand? In what direction?
D: Our product mix has expanded slowly over the years (and continues to grow) as we’ve worked to meet the evolving needs of women experiencing hair loss due to cancer treatments. The direction we took with new products was largely shaped by my mom’s personal experience and the feedback we received from our customers.
From the very beginning, our top priority has always been providing hats for cancer patients and those with hair loss. Over time, our collection has grown to include over 700 different styles in a wide range of prints and colors. My mom’s vision for Headcovers was inspired by a feeling she remembered from her childhood. Growing up in the 1950s, she would walk into a candy store, and it was like entering a world of endless possibilities—bright, colorful, and full of exciting choices. That sense of joy, wonder, and excitement she felt in those stores is what she wanted to recreate for women going through cancer. She dreamed of Headcovers as a 'candy shop' for cancer patients, a place where women could choose from an abundant selection of beautiful, fun, and stylish options that would help them feel like themselves again during one of the hardest times in their lives.
I can confidently say that Headcovers.com has the largest selection of chemo caps in the world, and no one else even comes close. We’re incredibly proud of this because we know how much it means to our customers to have that sense of choice and control, especially when so much is taken away during cancer treatments.
In a time when many businesses are shrinking their offerings, we’ve made the intentional choice to expand ours. While others focus on narrowing their product range to increase profits, we remain committed to offering a wide variety of choices because we believe that the experience matters most. Everyone’s journey through cancer is different, and we understand that the right item is deeply personal. Our goal is to provide that special, meaningful choice for every individual, even if it means offering items that might not be the highest profit-makers. For us, it’s about helping women feel empowered and supported, not just through a product, but through the experience of finding what truly speaks to them.
Wigs were added early on, and our wig collection has grown consistently since then. In 1998, we introduced our hats-with-hair, a collection of hairpieces designed to be worn under hats and scarves. They were a natural complement to our existing product line of hats that gave customers new and unique options that were more affordable than typical wigs. When my mom was having one of her final chemo treatments at MD Anderson, she drew out a design for a "Ponytail Headband"—A ponytail hairpiece designed to be worn under baseball caps—on a piece of notebook paper and gave it to me. I developed and patented the design after her passing; it has since become one of our most beloved products.
As a professional cosmetologist, my mom was ahead of her time in makeup application - long before 'influencers' were a thing. She was focused on helping women who had lost their eyebrows due to cancer treatments and became determined to create an eyebrow prosthesis that looked natural and felt comfortable. We experimented with lace-backed eyebrows, but my mom knew that there was room for improvement. So she traveled overseas and worked with designers to develop the very first silicone-backed eyebrow prosthesis, meticulously shaping the design and ensuring the direction and amount of hair looked authentic. We're incredibly proud that our eyebrows are still regarded as the very best, thanks to the dedication and craftsmanship that goes into every hand-made piece. We've heard from so many women whose lives have been changed by these prostheses, with many saying they now feel confident enough to go out in public—something they hadn't been able to do before
Mom also loved experimenting with eyebrow makeup to help patients recreate the eyebrows they lost. She worked really hard on various techniques and took classes from experts. After her eyebrow products received such positive feedback from customers, we added false eyelashes which were also well received.
More recently, we added chemo port shirts and mastectomy products. Feedback has been positive. We are still experimenting with these products, and we will see where that journey takes us. One thing I have learned is that we need to keep experimenting and learning in so many areas – product offerings, our website/online store and business operations, and how we engage with our customers. Fashion is not static, so we need to keep creating.
H: Your mom was a real pioneer in product development – your company owns several patented products that she or you designed. What are they? Do you recall the order in which they came to market?
D: The patents actually came later. My mother and I were constantly creating new, innovative designs that no one had seen before. As Headcovers began to grow, we became the authority in our niche. Then, our products began to be copied. Even our custom prints were knocked off. The most egregious infractions were perpetrated by a well-known non-profit organization, which, as it turned out, wasn’t a non-profit at all. Their catalog started to look like a direct copy of ours, and it got to the point where we were practically designing their products for them. I finally had to get an intellectual property attorney involved. My mom didn’t live to see that day, but I think she would have been really proud as we battled their huge team of lawyers with one local attorney. In the end, we won.
Because of that experience, I started patenting many of my designs to protect them. It’s an expensive process, but I currently hold nine active patents, with more in the works. I also have several trademarks. The bigger challenge now is Amazon – with Chinese sellers copying successful products almost instantaneously. Sometimes Amazon honors our patents but there are many instances where imitative products remain available for sale. This is a huge problem for everyone in the fashion industry. Brands like Nike have stopped selling their products on Amazon for that reason.
We've made the decision to stop listing our new designs on Amazon. While it's a massive marketplace, selling there has become a catch-22 for small businesses. Once your products are listed, you risk giving copycats the information they need to rip off your designs. Often these imitations are marketed as premium materials like organic cotton when they're actually low quality synthetic blends. It's frustrating, because consumers don't always realize they're being misled. It's important for people to understand the value of supporting brands that prioritize quality, craftsmanship and ethics.
H: Are the same types of products that were popular then still popular now?
D: Some are, some aren’t. Most products have a lifecycle. They have a phase of building up, a peak, and then a decline. The keepers, while they may not be the hottest commodity of the day, are timeless; others, come and go. There are some essentials—like the Cozy Cap, Lace Sleep Cap and Three Seam Turban that we've had for over 25 years now—that just never go out of style.
It often surprises me what takes off and what doesn’t. Some of my favorite products have been items that simply did not sell, so I had to let them go. That’s hard when you put your heart into something. But I’ve also learned that sometimes, I can bring it back in a few years and try again. Some of those “do-overs” were successful the second time around! Timing is important. The keepers – the legacy products – these patterns have been honed to perfection, and they are still here because customers love them. You could call them the little black dresses of chemo headwear.
H: In terms of headcovers as products, what has evolved or changed the most and what do you think the impact of these changes has had?
D: That’s a hard question. One thing that has evolved is scarves. There was a day when customers wanted flat scarves that could be tied in many different and unique ways. It’s a more formal, elegant look. Now. I think they really just want something they can slip on their head, quick and easy. It took me decades to create a scarf that looked like a tied scarf that could be slipped on like that. I really put my all into our So Simple Scarf. It only needs a quick knot in the back to tighten it and customers really love it.
But I’ve noticed in more recent years that customers are now gravitating towards something that slips on and requires zero effort. It’s a less formal look. I think this may reflect a shift in overall fashion trends in general, which have become much more casual. Just look at the “athleisure” fashion trend – I’ve seen something similar to that in headwear, too. The patent-pending Slip On Slinky Scarf is a great example of our interpretation of the athleisure trend. It's scarf-beanie hybrid made in sportswear-inspired fabric that gives a casual, "wear-anywhere" look without any tying.
H: Over time and because you carry more diverse products, how has your customer base has gotten more diverse? In what ways has this changed over time?
D: We serve a diverse range of customers, including many with alopecia, those experiencing hair thinning due to aging or other medical conditions and people who wear head coverings for religious reasons. We also serve a number of African-American women who wear head covers on an ordinary basis stylistically or to protect their hair.
One thing I’ve sadly noticed is that our customers have gotten younger. I don’t have empirical data regarding the ages of cancer patients over time and when they are diagnosed versus 30 years ago, but anecdotally, I can tell you that our customers have gotten younger, particularly over the last 10 years. For decades, we were primarily selling wigs for older women; now we are selling longer, more youthful styles. Preferences have changed somewhat in headwear as well. Some of the more youthful looks have become more popular than they were in decades past. I think that reflects the age difference. Personally, I find this demographic shift alarming.
H: How do you decide what kind of new products to bring onto the website? Why did you decide to diversify as you have?
D: It starts with listening to our customers. Our customers are our compass and are always at the center of every direction we turn. When they ask for something that we don't have, and I hear the same request more than once, I feel a responsibilty to explore that, especially if it's something that can make a difference for them.
Some of the most meaningful ideas come out of the blue from moments of pure inspiration. I love traveling overseas to local art markets. There's something so special about seeing the care and artistry that others put into their work - the colors, the textures, the culture. It really inspires me. It's important to step out of everyday life, open myself up to new perspectives and just observe. My goal has always been to bring more beauty, comfort, and confidence to the women we serve—especially those who are going through something as difficult as cancer.
H: Let’s talk about your packaging for a moment, because you do something rather unique. How has packaging-up and shipping customer orders changed since 1995?
D: From the very beginning, we’ve always made it a priority to personally fulfill our own orders. To me, it’s so important to stay connected to our customers and maintain that personal touch. When we first started, we handled everything ourselves—every single package had to be taken to the post office, where the clerk would process each one by hand. We didn’t have any automation back then. Every credit card was charged manually, with numbers entered into a machine one by one. And we kept track of everything with paper receipts, carefully filed away for each customer. It was a slow and labor-intensive process, and there were no tracking numbers to offer our customers.
Now, thanks to advancements in technology, we use software that handles a lot of those tasks, and customers can track their orders in real time. It’s so much more efficient and streamlined. But I’ll always remember those early days because it reminds me of how much we’ve grown, and how much we’ve always strived to do things with care and attention. Even with all the convenience and automation today, staying connected with our customers remains at the heart of everything we do.
When it comes to packaging, we’ve always taken the time to hand-wrap each order neatly with tissue paper. My mom always felt strongly about offering a gift-wrapping experience for our customers, something that felt special. It was something she never had the chance to fully implement. After she passed, I found cut-up pink ribbons and sample stickers in her desk—clearly, she had been planning something meaningful for our packages. I decided to bring her vision to life, both as a tribute to her and as a way to serve our customers with more personal care.
Now, each order leaves with a pink ribbon and a gold sticker. The pink ribbon is a symbol of her battle with breast cancer, and every time I put one on a package, I think of her strength and love. We want our customers to feel like they’re opening a package from someone who truly cares—because we do, deeply. My mom never got to see her idea come to fruition, but since it came from her heart, a piece of her heart goes out with every order.
As we grew, I wanted to add something inspirational to our packages to make them even more meaningful to our customers. Initially, I thought of including inspirational cards because I’ve always loved quotes—they have a way of uplifting the soul. Over the years, I’ve gathered countless quote books, and they’ve always been a source of comfort and inspiration for me.
I started experimenting with how to incorporate these quotes into our packaging. As I was experimenting with my card idea, I used a Post-It™ note as a placeholder for the card, and the size felt just right. But then, a thought struck me: “Customers will probably just throw these cards away.” And that’s when the idea for an inspirational quote magnet was born. I realized it could be something they’d actually keep—something useful that could brighten their day every time they saw it. It was my way of giving them a little piece of positivity that they could hold onto.
I added the thank-you envelope at the same time as the magnet. The invoices go inside, but the real purpose of the envelope is to send a message of gratitude and warmth. As I was designing this, I was imagining our ladies opening up their packages and feeling love and encouragement coming through. It’s me and my mom sending out love with every single order! I’m always thinking of new ideas to expand on this concept, and I think we will see even more in the future.
H: Looking back over the past 30 years in business, what has changed and/or what has stayed the same?
D: Obviously, the loss of my mom was devastating, but the heart and pulse of the company has not changed at all. Throughout our 30 years, we have stayed true to our mission to serve cancer patients and honor my mom. I believe that’s why we are still here. I feel her near.
In 2007, I moved the company from my hometown in Oklahoma to Houston. A year later, I brought my husband in to help me manage it all. Shortly after that, Hurricane Ike blew the roof off our building, and we lost all our inventory. We had to start all over again – we lost everything. Although we had insurance, we didn’t see any payout for over two years. During that time, we had to fight our insurance company to pay the claim. In the end, we received only a portion of what we were owed, and much of it gobbled up in attorney's fees. It was a terrible experience – I’m so empathetic to anyone who has to endure a natural disaster like this. I was so grateful I had my husband there with me through that – I don’t think I could have done that alone.
Last year, Hurricane Beryl knocked a giant Texas pecan tree onto our building and it broke through the roof. It was a setback, but nowhere near as devastating. It was also a literal reminder of a business’s lifecycle – it’s never smooth sailing for long. There are highs and lows; ebbs and flows.
Running a company also carries an emotional weight. I’m responsible for the livelihoods of several families, and that's a responsibility I take very seriously. Leading a company wasn't originally in my life plan. When I was supporting my mom in those early days, I was focused on the mission, not on becoming a business leader. As someone who is naturally introverted, stepping into a leadership role was initially a struggle for me. Being assertive didn't come easily, and I found it challenging to find my voice in those situations. But as I've grown and matured, I've learned to care less about what others might think and realized that focusing on our mission was more important than my personal discomfort.
As the company grew, I discovered leadership abilities I didn't know I had. This role chose me as much as I chose it. Oddly enough, my education degree has proven surprisingly useful: managing people is not much different than managing a classroom. Learning styles matter; it's important to understand how people are wired and what motivates them. Since each person has unique talents, I see it as my job to surface those talents and elevate my team to be the best they can be. That’s what a good teacher does, and an employer who cares about their employees should do that, too.
But leadership isn't just about fostering growth - it's also about having the courage to make difficult, sometimes unpopular decisions. I've had to develop the courage to make choices that challenge me personally. Sometimes, I have to make decisions that people don't like and that is never easy. In those situations, I focus on what's best for the cancer patients we serve and remind myself that tough decisions are part of doing what's right, even when it's hard. Intuition plays a big role too.I always remember that I'm not really in charge here—I’m merely a vessel for our mission and our customers. They are the ones guiding this work, and I answer to them in every aspect. That makes some of those decisions really easy.
As far as what’s changed operationally, that has a lot to do with marketing. In the beginning, people didn’t even know what the Internet was or what online shopping was, and that was our challenge. Now it’s what everyone does. Google has become the dominant force in search, which has changed things considerably. Ranking well on Google is now paramount. Competition has also gotten much more intense. Then came Amazon, and it was a game changer for small businesses. We've had to evolve our approach and strengthen what makes us unique - our personal connection with customers and specialized knowledge that marketplace giants simply can't replicate.
We are now a third-generation business, with my daughter Emily involved. She was 12 when her grandmother passed away and knew her well. Having Emily as part of our family business not only provides practical continuity, but it also means continuity of the heart and in our guiding purpose of serving women.
Emily plays a vital role in the company, handling marketing, helping with product design, and basically being my right hand. It’s been such a joy to see her take on more responsibility and bring her own ideas to the table.
I often find myself in my mom’s shoes now—wondering how she felt when she was in my position, with a daughter by her side, helping carry on her vision. Watching Emily grow into her role, I can only imagine how proud my mom would be of her. It's a reminder of how much our family legacy means and how far we've come. There’s something incredibly special about passing the torch and knowing that our mission is continuing through the next generation.