FROMM

Few names in the American salon-tool trade go back as far as Fromm. The company started in 1907 with a single handmade razor strop out of Chicago, and 118 years later it’s a full professional-tool house operating as Fromm International from Mt. Prospect, Illinois. It stayed family-owned across multiple generations until a 2024 sale to Firelight Capital Partners, with the founding family keeping a stake — a long run by any measure in this business.

Heritage as context

That history is the real story here, more than any single shear. A brand doesn’t survive over a century by chance, and for a USA stylist who values a domestic heritage name with deep distribution, Fromm carries weight. The flip side is that scissors are one drawer in a much larger toolbox — Fromm is a generalist, not a specialist shear maker, so set expectations accordingly.

The range

On the cutting side you’ll find cutting and thinning scissors, left-handed models, and accessories, all built on Japanese steel. Techniques span blunt, slide and point cutting, volume and texture control, plus dedicated thinning and texturizing models and combination cut-and-thin pieces. It’s a sensible everyday spread rather than a specialist’s bench.

Price and buying

Fromm lands in the value band, roughly 100 to 200 dollars, which keeps it within reach for stylists fleshing out a kit. It’s carried by stockists including Williamsport Bowman and Chris & Sons alongside its own site, and the Illinois base means quick shipping and easy support for North American buyers — a quiet practical advantage that the spec sheet won’t tell you.