Salon brand shampoos can cost more per ounce than top-shelf liquors. They're supposed to be sold only in salons, but you can find them in grocery stores, pharmacies and online.
But what are you really getting?
Typically, high-end manufacturers don't sell their salon products directly to stores, so stores buy from third party companies.
"Unfortunately, it's not an authorized sale, said Paul Mitchell national trainer Tanya Ozmendez.
Those products usually cost more in stores than they would at a salon.
"Because it's changed hands so many times, the price goes up and up and up," said Ozmendez.
But those expired products can break down over time.
"You see white solid clumps. As opposed to in this case, you see a much creamier consistency," said Dr. Jim Leahy. "If it's solidified like that, now you're gonna have those chunks of whatever it is in your hair."
Old shampoo can acidify, making hair tangle and tear and it can even carry bacteria.
"There's no quality control," said Dr. Leahy.
U.S. Customs seized 2,200 shipments of counterfeit personal care products last year. But that underground market isn't going away any time soon.
"They're gonna purchase it where it's convenient for them. It's still on their grocery list many times,” said Ozmendez.
Online stores like Amazon and eBay are constantly fighting to remove these third party products, but some still make it online.
