In the dynamic world of beauty and cosmetics, the journey from concept to launch goes beyond crafting an innovative product formula or creating a compelling brand identity.

Navigating the complex regulatory landscape is a crucial step that every beauty brand must master. Compliance, product development, and operational excellence are essential for both emerging and established brands aiming for success.

Highlighted in this article are key points noted in a fireside chat between Cherie Buziak from BeautyEdge LLC and Sara Bumby from First Impact New York.

The Importance of Regulation in Product Development

Regulatory compliance isn’t merely a backdrop to product development; it’s the very framework that supports it. While brands often focus on formulation, sensory experiences, claims, and market targeting, regulatory guidelines form the structure that enables these aspects to be implemented legally and ethically.

According to Sara Bumby from First Impact New York City, “Brands can run into serious trouble if they overlook regulatory details, even unintentionally.”

Top Priorities when considering Regulatory Compliance

1. Understanding Mocra Regulations: The Modernization of Cosmetic Regulation Act (Mocra) is pivotal in the U.S. beauty landscape. It governs product safety, reporting, and transparent labeling. Compliance ensures that a product is legally marketable, preventing potential recalls and legal implications.

1. Global Standards and Variations: For brands eyeing international expansion, it’s essential to understand that regulations differ widely. The European Union’s standards, for example, are more stringent than those in the U.S., with specific requirements on ingredients, safety assessments, and labeling. Per Bumby, aligning with these global standards requires a proactive approach to avoid disruptions when entering new markets.

2. Claims Substantiation: Whether a product promises “anti-ageing” benefits or “24-hour hydration,” each claim must be backed by scientific evidence. This is not only a regulatory requirement but also builds consumer trust.

Balancing Creativity and Compliance

Regulation is the key that connects all aspects of work in the beauty industry. It makes sure that the creativity involved in developing products—whether it’s a new formula or an eye-catching marketing claim—follows the rules and can be defended. Failing to comply with these regulations can lead to fines or harm a brand’s reputation, risks that no brand, big or small, can afford to take.

In a rapidly evolving industry where consumer expectations for transparency and efficacy continue to grow, regulatory compliance has become as essential as the products themselves. Brands must not only develop standout products but must do so within a complex matrix of compliance standards. Ensuring these standards are met requires expertise, foresight, and dedication.

Establishing Accountability and Accurate Claims in Beauty Marketing

In an era where transparency is not just valued but demanded, consumers expect truth in advertising and integrity in claims. When brands approach First Impact, one of Sara’s first priorities is an exhaustive review of their copy, website, and any existing brand book. This foundational step ensures that all language aligns with regulatory standards, facilitating seamless communication for PR teams, marketing agencies, and influencers.

The Responsibility of Compliance Across Platforms

A critical aspect is that brands are fully accountable for all claims made, whether through their packaging, digital platforms, or spokespersons. “Brands need to realize that they are responsible for what their influencers say in the market,” Bumby stressed. This level of responsibility extends beyond a brand’s internal team to third parties, which makes setting up clear, substantiated claims from the beginning paramount.

Brands must also be aware that today’s retail landscape, split between brick-and-mortar and e-commerce, operates on an equal playing field regarding compliance.

This uniformity underscores that regulations apply universally, regardless of where a product is sold or how it is marketed.

Clarifying Responsibility Between Brands and Manufacturers

One point that often confuses new beauty entrepreneurs is the extent of responsibility when working with contract or private label manufacturers. While manufacturers can provide data on active ingredients, they are not liable for the claims brands make based on that data. At the end of the day, it’s your responsibility as the brand to ensure stability testing, efficacy testing, and that all claims have the necessary supporting documentation.

For example, while a manufacturer might provide data showing that a formulation contains vitamin E and highlight its benefits, this alone is insufficient to make broad claims against that one ingredient. Brands must invest in testing the final formulation to substantiate claims accurately. This includes conducting consumer science tests or, when applicable, clinical studies, using tools and methodologies to validate claims rigorously.

Types of Claims and Documentation

Consumer Science Testing: This involves trials conducted with real users under controlled conditions to gather feedback and demonstrate how the product performs. These tests are crucial because they show results based on the final product, not just its individual components.

Clinical Studies: Using specialized equipment and scientific measurements, clinical studies provide quantitative data on a product’s performance. These studies can support claims like “reduces the appearance of fine lines by x% in two weeks,” provided they are backed by reliable results from an independent testing facility.

Building a Foundation of Trust

For new brands, navigating these regulatory demands can seem daunting. However, it is this diligence that lays the groundwork for credibility and trust in an increasingly skeptical market. Developing a brand that is both innovative and compliant requires commitment from day one.

By integrating regulatory expertise into their development process, brands can confidently launch products that meet not only creative aspirations but the rigorous standards of today’s regulatory environment.

For beauty brands looking to succeed in today’s market, regulatory compliance is non-negotiable. As Sara Bumby and Cherie Buziak discussed, understanding and adhering to these guidelines from the outset not only protects the brand legally but also builds trust with consumers. Brands must take responsibility for their claims, ensure they have proper documentation, and work closely with their contract manufacturers to substantiate product
efficacy.

This transparency and attention to regulation will set a brand apart in the
competitive beauty industry.

Sara Bumby President, Co-Founder at First Impact New York are dedicated to providing a wide range of services for the beauty industry, production management, product development, custom formulas, consulting, focus groups and much more.

Feeling inspired?

Then why not visit one of the in-cosmetics events around the world?

BROWSE SHOWS

Launching a new beauty brand is exhilarating yet challenging and whether you are a startup or a longstanding corporation the foundational process of brand development is important. This journey is no simple feat, yet if executed correctly, the results can bring success over the long run.

Drawing from experience in marketing product development and brand strategy, especially within the startup realm, it is clear that there’s a common tendency to rush towards the endpoint of success without properly laying down the groundwork from the start.

This article explores the process of aligning messaging and branding with products, using case studies of two diverse brands. These brands, though rooted in trending lifestyle, ingredients, and performance, faced challenges in communicating their intentions effectively to the consumer.

By incorporating key points into your messaging and branding strategies, you can effectively align products with the brand’s identity and connect with consumers at a more engaging level.

Case #1: Crafting a Compelling Brand Story for Mass Market Bath Products

Overview:

Creating a successful mass-market self-care collection involves more than just assembling products with a beautiful design and componentry. The collection necessitates a compelling backstory and concept to distinguish itself in a competitive market. Crafting a strong narrative with engaging stories for products, effectively helps brands connect with consumers.

Problem:

Despite offering a variety of bath product collections with appealing designs, Bath At Work (fictitious name) wanted to stand out on mass market retail shelves. Additionally, the brand sought to align with current wellness lifestyle trends. The setback was that the brand lacked a compelling narrative to captivate consumers interested in this lifestyle.

Solution:

To address these challenges, a comprehensive narrative was crafted. The bath collection stories highlighted the products and their usage through creating a personalized regimen.

• As a result, Bath at Work spoke specifically to the experience of product use and time of day to use each product including directions for specialized regimens.
• Ingredients were combined as blends throughout the collections to offer a “theme” supportive of wellbeing.
• The names of the collections were updated and categorized to speak more personally to the user and designed to communicate an enhancement of overall well-being with themes like “Good Night – Sweet Dreams” and “Wake-Up – It’s a New Day”.
• Additionally, Bath at Work prioritized sustainability by minimizing packaging waste and utilizing eco-friendly materials.

Case #1 learnings

Incorporating product benefits and personalization into a compelling narrative is crucial for creating a unique brand identity that resonates with consumers, especially in mass market. Brands can effectively differentiate themselves by highlighting experiential product usage and integrating themes that promote a specific lifestyle,

Case #2: Streamlining Brand Messaging for Clarity

Overview:

In the highly competitive market of today, many brands struggle to effectively convey their unique brand message. Despite having captivating backstories and diverse product lines designed to appeal to a wide range of consumers, brands often find it challenging to stand out amidst the overwhelming amount of messaging that they hope to communicate to their audience.

Problem:

“Elevate Well“ (fictitious name) faced challenges in effectively communicating the unique benefits of its brand and products to various consumer segments. Despite highlighting holistic ingredients, superior product performance, engaging experiential product use, clinical claims, and the founder’s expertise, the brand struggled to convey a clear message about its true offerings and its distinct position in the market.

Solution:

1. A thorough competitive research analysis was conducted to determine the brand’s positioning and product pricing relative to similar brands in the market.

• This research yielded valuable insights, identifying multiple areas for improving communication and whitespace opportunities where the brand could differentiate itself and connect more deeply with its target audience.
• The research also highlighted that the hero product had room for a price increase communicating the high-end value of the product and its positioning, placing it in-line with the competition.

2. Development of a brand deck, served as a comprehensive guide for maintaining consistent messaging across all social media platforms.

• This ensured that every communication channel, including social media and traditional marketing channels, conveyed a unified message about the brand.
• The target markets were clearly defined and supported by products and claims for those targets.

3. Focus on lifestyle and ingredient components created compelling and clearly defined product benefits per SKU.

• This messaging not only highlighted the brand’s wellbeing mission statement but also emphasized the essence and performance of the product experience in use.
• The ingredients and clinical claims were teased out and highlighted for consumers to visually evaluate product performance before purchase.

4. A strategic marketing calendar was crafted for “Elevate Well” to ensure consistent communication with users.

• By emphasizing clear and consistent communication going forward, the brand strengthened its connections with the audience. This approach also provided the marketing team with a clear snapshot of value-added opportunities for their customers throughout the year.

5. A revamp of the website and new visuals better highlighted the brand’s story and product offerings, improving user experience and driving engagement.

• Low-selling products were strategically removed from the site and the brand to streamline the product lineup and focus on core offerings, maximizing consumer appeal.
• A new brand icon was designed highlighting all of the benefits of the brand in one view and was utilized on the site offering a quick view image that communicates the brand positioning and product performance.

Learnings Case #2

Highlighting the challenges brands encounter in clearly communicating their unique value propositions amidst a crowded marketplace may require time and effort, but it is worthwhile.

Through meticulous research and strategic refinement, a brand with multiple messages can successfully streamline its communications, thereby enhancing credibility, trust, and targeted consumer appeal.

Both cases underscore the importance of prioritizing clarity, consistency, and differentiation in brand messaging and product development. By aligning these elements with consumer preferences and market trends, beauty brands can position themselves for long-term success and forge deeper connections with their target audience.

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Feeling inspired to see ingredients and trends in action?

Then why not visit one of the in-cosmetics events around the world?

BROWSE SHOWS

Did you know that a baby is born every 8 seconds? That’s more than 4 million babies per year! More babies born indicates a larger market for products created specifically for their unique and delicate skin needs.

Shiny baby eyes, smooth baby skin and soft baby hair is certainly a beautiful gift that nature has bestowed on us to cherish.  Parent’s and caregivers want the best for their baby’s skin which is 20 times thinner than our own and the first organ to respond to new ingredients and active technologies.

The baby skin care market includes a wide range of products such as lotions, creams, powders, wipes, oils, bathing products, and soaps. Parents and expectant parents want to nurture their children with the best ingredients and care. And, when taking care of baby, safety is just as important, as is keeping an infant’s skin soft and smooth.

Trends in Baby Care

According to Allied Market & Research, the global baby care products market size was valued at $38.0 billion in 2021, and is project to reach $58.8 billion by 2031, growing at a CAGR of 4.5% from 2022 to 2031.  Interests of performance mimics adult consumer beauty and wellness brands; parents want products that are safe, transparent in sourcing, effective, sustainable, and above all else gentle.

Kayla Villena, Industry Manager – Beauty and Personal Care for EuroMonitor International, states that “Baby and child-specific products see growth across all categories. Sustained demand for hygiene, new formulations, and product launches all contributed to the resilience of baby and child-specific products in 2021.

After heightened demand at the start of the pandemic, particularly in baby wipes and other hygiene-related categories, baby and child-specific products was expected to see a slight contraction in 2021. However, the category continued to experience growth following renewed interest in baby care, specifically due to investment in formulations.

Following trends from the adult beauty market, baby care brands introduced popular skin care ingredients in their reformulations, while celebrities looked to enter the baby market, leveraging their fan bases and dominant social media presence. With beauty enthusiast millennials and Gen Z consumers becoming new parents, there is clear demand for baby brands to offer the same variety of ingredients and claims as products in their own beauty regimen.”

Testing Methods

With baby’s skin being a bit more sensitive, how does the consumer determine the safety level of a baby care product?  Standard methods range from company to company, and if considering creating a baby care brand, be prepared to answer parents’ questions on safety measures taken during development.

Below are a few examples of resources and company testing standards for baby care products.

PERSONAL CARE REGULATORY

Dr. Modaresi, from personal care regulatory limited, states that “products’ safety for children under 3 years old is a very important factor while formulating the products.

This range of products should go under specific safety assessment considering the babies skin surface area over body weight, the potential differences in metabolism between newborns and infants up to six months, and adults.

Hence, just repeated patch testing on adults’ skin, which is mainly done for evaluating irritation, cannot substitute the overall products’ safety including ingredients safety assessment for baby products.

Safety assessments for baby products should be carried out by certain qualified professionals and must cover the finished product, all the ingredients, and how products will be used.”

DOVE

Source: Dove website

From baby wash to lotion, our scientists are there to make every Baby Dove formulation as gentle as possible. “All products undergo hypoallergenic testing, and all products are pediatrician and dermatologist-tested,” says Kimberly Day, a scientist on the Baby Dove Research and Development team. “Once we know the baby products are safe on skin, we ask parents to take the products home to evaluate them under normal-use conditions. We have a pediatrician involved to closely monitor the product safety during use.”

Our skincare experts understand the unique needs of babies’ skin. As well as carefully testing baby products in the lab, many – like Baby Dove scientist Carla – will try them out on themselves and their babies to make sure each one is effective, extra-mild and gentle enough to use. Another one of our scientists always keen to self-test is Evan, a dad of two.

MUSTELA

Source: Direct Response from Customer Service

Mustela’s testing methods are supreme requiring 450 measurements and testing requirements for their formulas.  And, once safety is ensured, Mustela tests the product’s harmlessness and effectiveness under real conditions of use: on a panel of babies and children (including infants under a month old) or pregnant women, depending on the product. This procedure always takes place under the supervision of dermatologists and/or pediatricians. Reference website for full disclosure.

Additionally, there is a specific assessment performed for cosmetic products intended for use on children under the age of three which includes the following:

• Toxicological profiles of ingredients
• Exposure assessment
• Targeted users (children of more and less than 36 months, from birth on including babies out of neonatal intensive care unit)
• Skin local compatibility of formulation
• Microbiological quality and preservation
• Stability
• Physico-chemical characteristics
• Experience from market surveillance

This evaluation is based on recommendations of SCSS (Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety).

The margin of safety is calculated considering the targeted population (children) and their age, since the ratio Skin Surface Area over Body Weight ratio changes according to the age.

Furthermore, as part of Mustela’s innovation and continuous improvement process, and because safety is their top priority, Mustela’s researchers have developed a unique patented model using reconstructed infant epidermis (Stelaskin) that allows the tolerance and the effectiveness of Mustela products to be tested in a laboratory without the need for animal testing.

Need help on where to extend your baby care brand?

With so many beautiful, healthy babies in the world, there’s no better time than now to develop a great baby skin care product or brand.  BeautyEdge LLC can help ensure your product and marketing strategies align with the latest research. Partner with BeautyEdge, we can help you identify and capitalize on the growth potential of this market segment today!

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Did you know that among busy lactating mothers and menopausal women there is an incredible bond of similar hair, face, and body skin concerns? It is the unspoken sisterhood of post-partum and post-menopausal women! And – the potential for new product development in these areas is exponential!

These groupings of women can relate to each other’s struggles and are seeking solutions to their common nettlesome matters. You may be surprised to learn that many of these shared concerns are not limited to just the face. A lot of similarities go on “down below” too!

Part of the changes are due to hormonal adjustments through the body and part are due to the life changing situation itself. Either way, below are a few interesting facts that the beauty industry can tune into and provide products to address these shared hormonal needs.

Cha-cha-cha-changes!

For women, pregnancy, and menopause can put their skin through the wringer. These hormonal changes affect collagen production which is essential for skin plumpness and elasticity. Pigment changes can make the face and parts of the body darker in colour. And a confused skin bouncing between being very dry and parched in some areas, then suddenly oily and acne flared overnight can be daunting.

Add hair changes and other body part concerns to the mix and one ends up a with a massive list of confusion on where and what to address first.

First, let’s start with similar skin conditions of the face that both post-partum and post-menopause can bring on:

• Dryness, flakiness, and itching
• Hyperpigmentation
• Acne breakouts

Second, the skin on the body has similar concerns as listed above and additional concerns as listed below:

• Connective tissue loss
• Loss of elasticity
• Loss of firmness

Third, hair changes:

• Post pregnancy can cause hair loss or a change of hair texture. For example, naturally curly hair can go straight in sections of the head and vice versa.
• Post menopause can cause hair loss as well, particularly on the top and crown of the head.

Fourth, down below (vulva/vaginal) experiences similar changes too. Did you know that women suffer from the same vaginal dryness during stages of breastfeeding as postmenopausal women? These symptoms are related to oestrogen levels. The lack of oestrogen in women’s bodies after menopause and during breastfeeding can provoke vaginal dryness. For menopausal women, this dryness is generally identified as “atrophic vaginitis.”

• Vaginal dryness is a common side effect of nursing and it is completely normal.
• Vulva dryness, burning, itching, soreness, and pain may be experienced in both life stages.
• Women who experience atrophic changes post menopause may experience symptoms including vaginal dryness and irritation, as well as increased susceptibility to vulvovaginal trauma, vulval dermatitis, and lichen sclerosis.

Where are her purchasing interests?

According to Business Wire  the global postpartum products market size is expected to reach USD 3.44 billion by 2028 and is expected to expand at a CAGR of 6.4% from 2021 to 2028. However, these products include items outside of formulated personal care applications. At this writing, there is limited market research that breaks down the personal care products she’d like to purchase. Mom and baby brands do exist, however, a deep dive into her more personal needs would be helpful.

Concerning postmenopausal women, The Benchmarking Company surveyed 2,023 U.S. women about their menopausal changes; how they’re seeking relief, which beauty brands are speaking their language by offering products that work for them, and what they want next from brands.

Below are excerpts from their research:

The Role of the Raw Material Supplier

What can suppliers do to help companies develop formulas that keep skin in optimum shape as women transition through these life stages?

1. Research the physiological changes that both demographics experience during these changes. As an industry, and even in the medical field, there is limited research to the specific needs of the body changes as they relate to personal care items that women desire. This is a perfect white space for further exploration!

   There are common skin concerns that happen in the post-partum and post-menopausal stages of life. It is important to know how women’s bodies function and what is normal, as well as what is not, in order to live as healthy a life as possible.

   Note: Not all treatments are created equal. As in all cases, it is important to consult with a dermatologist about skin concerns. Suppliers aligning with dermatologists and obstetrician/gynaecologist or menopause specialists collaboratively can be a new frontier for our industry!

2. Introduce raw materials for manufacturers and beauty product companies to incorporate technologies and ingredients into formulas to address the changes happening to their customer’s skin. It is a fantastic way to support women of all ages.
   
   
3. Educate your customer. Suppliers can help clients design formulas to keep skin in optimum shape as they plough through these stages of life. Be ready for these big life transitions with advice and products that clients can understand and trust.

Need help on where to extend your mom-care or menopausal care brand?

Mothers and post-menopausal women want results for their changing skin. Building awareness and embracing opportunities in these fast-growing markets for personal care products for postpartum or postmenopausal women is essential.

BeautyEdge LLC can help ensure your product and marketing strategies align with the latest research. Partner with BeautyEdge, we can help you identify and capitalize on the growth potential of this market segment today!

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Feeling inspired to see ingredients and trends in action?

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Feelings

In the formulation stages of marketing product development, do we ever think of the consumer’s “feelings” with product use?  Feelings – it’s that part of our inner emotional beingness where we experience sensations or moods like joy, comfort, thrill, sadness, happiness, etc.

Consumer well-being is trending in skincare and beauty products. How do we reach consumers’ emotionally in this new world of ours that is crammed with news, advertisements, protests, TikTok videos, and influencers grabbing for their attention?

Add daily interruptions from social media platforms or digital engagement and the expansion into the metaverse where it’s possible to lose connection of some of our senses altogether.

With brands tuning in to the latest beauty trends like mindfulness regimens, which incorporates observing being in the moment and our feelings, the opportunity to address emotions in beauty care development is truly holistic. Personal care raw material suppliers are happy to provide the exact ingredients to enhance the aesthetic product use experience that supports an emotional connection.

No longer are we inspired to only bring wholeness and healing to our physical bodies with products, now we consciously strive to heal our spirits and our inner selves along with the world around us through a multi-dimensional product experience.

It’s what I refer to as the “Sensoround” experience at BeautyEdge LLC. Sensoround brings your beauty brand vision to life.  It’s all about the product experience in today’s competitive beauty market. Visual and textural appeal… olfactory essences… an emotional and intellectual connection. BeautyEdge creates a specialized “sensoround” product experience appropriate to your brand.

The science behind sensory

Documented studies on the connection of sensory perceptions’ influence on consumer engagement and purchase abound. Neuroscience also plays a role in aesthetic appeal and product engagement. Brand and sensory experience leads to brand loyalty, translating into increased sales and revenues. Research shows that customers form their opinions about brands based on the perceptions formed by the sensory stimulation.

Below are sources for further exploration:

• In Aradhna Krishna paper “An integrative review of sensory marketing: Engaging the senses to affect perception, judgment, and behavior,” she reviews the consumer perception of product engagement with the five senses. Read more about her studies here:  https://aradhnakrishna.com/research/
• The American Journal of Industrial and Business Management highlights the Emotional Connect between Brand and Consumer through Sensory Branding
• The Journal of Product and Brand Management offers an abstract on the effect of sensory brand experience and involvement on brand equity directly and indirectly through cognitive, emotional and behavioral consumer brand engagement (CBE)
• An article in Science Focus highlights more than five (5) senses.

The brand to consumer connection

Let’s use a simple example that can offer powerful results considering sensory marketing and connecting emotionally to the consumer through product use. Perhaps you would like to launch a brand with the ingredient marketing story around “water.” It can be any type of water: mineral water, vitamin water, fruit water, etc.

When creating the aesthetic piece of the formula, identify what you would like the consumer to experience holistically, outside of the topical benefits of hydration, moisturization and protection. What are those inner experiential “feelings” that can be evoked that we cannot always identify as marketers?

For this “water” product story, a shower creates feelings of renewal and invigoration; a warm bath calms; and walking through summer rain brings inner peace.

These “feelings” are expressed through the product aesthetic itself. Given a “water fresh” brand story would mean for the most part that the aesthetic of the product/s may be a gel, gel cream, gelled souffle, a gelled-water – a lightweight texture with a luxurious cushion, and water wet feeling on application.

If you were to create this same product with an aesthetic texture that is buttery, or matte and draggy on skin, there would be a total disconnect to the consumer in the product experience. The use of the product would be kind of “flat” and that internal piece of “feeling good” in use would be confusing to the user.

The importance of aesthetic texture is higher than ever. Using it as the initial brand concept benchmark delivers uniqueness. Start brainstorming today and take the time to make sure your brand stands out from the crowd. Need advice getting started on new product or brand development? Reach out to us at BeautyEdge LLC

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Whenever a beauty product is being developed, there are few things more exciting and enjoyable than the ebb and flow of the creative development process between the formulator and product developer. With brands wanting to launch at rapid speed, it is almost like a lost art to align ideas carefully.  However, when the forces of the two creatives are aligned, and the relationship works well, a remarkable product is born.

Let’s explore the attributes needed for a successful relationship

Michele Duggan is a brilliant colleague and industry friend that also happens to be a formulator. Through our professional relationship, she provided me with a rigorous education about the technical components of formulation and manufacturing.  Together, we developed at least 150 products with one of them being first to market, and there are few first to market products these days. If a product is truly the first to market, a legal search must be conducted to verify that claim, it cannot be called “first to market” based on hearsay.

Like all things that work well, it starts with the relationship. It is powerful to respect each other’s roles, whether in R&D or in Product Development Marketing.  A product development marketer wants to communicate the experience of using the product to consumers through product use.  We need a story to help the consumer walk through that experience. As a Formulator, the goal is to deliver on performance and aesthetics. The end goal of the combined roles between PD Marketing & R&D is to develop a product that is aesthetically elegant, offers benefits, delivers an experience and a story all while meeting cost guidelines and in the end – sells well.

Marketing Insights that complement the Formulation

You’ve decided to create your own beauty brand. Congratulations! Next steps? Here are key thoughts to keep in mind.

Concept

This is the beginning. What is the story that you would like to tell about your product?  Will it help reduce lines and wrinkles? Will it help moisturise skin? Will it help even skin tone? If it’s a colour collection, what is the shade line up?  How well will it wear? What will the package look like? What is the size of the package? What is the bulk target price of the formula? Whatever the product story is, take the time to really think about how you can communicate your product in three words. Use your creative power and write out the look, the texture, how it will feel on the skin, the colour of the bulk, what the experience is that you want the final user to enjoy and benefit from. Write out the claims of how the product will benefit the end-user. Offer your formulator as much detail as possible on the product profile so that they can envision your product as well.

Note: When writing claims, you will need to ensure that they are viable through clinical studies.  Make sure that you have a budget set aside for testing. In the beginning, just start with a wish list of claims. This is the list that you’ll be turning over to your formulator so that he/she will know how the product should perform.

The takeaway: Create a profile for your product.

Benchmark

It’s best to start with a benchmark formula especially if you have never developed a product before. A benchmark can be a competitive product that you like for the aesthetic application, a product that you like for end benefits, or a starter formula from a chemist’s library. The reason to have a benchmark available is that the formulator will know exactly where you want to land aesthetically with the finished product, how you want it to look, how it should be dispensed, etc.  A benchmark will streamline the process and take out a lot of the guess-work along the way, which can turn into hours of lab time and added expenses. The formulator will also be able to look at the ingredient list to get a better idea of whether the performance that you have in mind will match up to some of the materials that are in your benchmark formula. You can always make tweaks to customise along the way, but if it’s your first time starting out with a product, it’s easier to stay in close range of your benchmark target.

The takeaway: Have a formula starting point.

Ingredients or technology

Do you have to have the next best innovation or high-end technology in your formula to see a difference on the skin? Well, actually, yes and no. You can have a compelling story and great product performance by being very clear about what you would like the final formula to do. Let the formulator decide the primary materials to use as your formula base, and then if there is a technology or ingredient that you are particularly interested in, have a conversation with the formulator to see if the material is compatible in the base, and inquire about the cost of the technology. At the end of development, the full product will be tested for the performance that you are looking for, so don’t be guided only on the active ingredient as the workhorse in the formula.

The takeaway: Trust your formulator for product performance.

Formulation insights that complement the marketing

Congratulations! Your product is about to be developed! Four critical areas need to be addressed during the development of your product:

• Aesthetics
  • Matching the marketer’s vision is for the entire product – formula and package

• Performance
  • Delivering the desired performance attributes and proving that they can be perceived by the consumer

• Safety
  • From microbiological to clinical safety

• Regulatory Compliance
  • Ensuring there are no regulations prohibiting the sale of your product in your intended market[s]). Some formulators offer all of these services while others concentrate solely on delivering the aesthetics and performance and you will need to find other partners to conduct the performance and safety testing along with the regulatory review.

Getting Started

Discuss the written profile with your Marketing Product Developer for a complete understanding of the concept, aesthetics and performance attributes.  If a benchmark has not been identified, work with the Marketing Product Developer to identify concrete aesthetic targets since there are many ways to interpret descriptions of aesthetics like non-greasy, medium slip, tight or lacey foam and many, many shades of a colour.

You may be able to offer a product that you previously formulated as a starting point Identify “Must Haves” for the project and assess the degree of difficulty in delivering a project so that you can accurately estimate the time and budget for the development.  Lastly, set a timeline along with the number of submissions that you and your Marketing Product Developer will work toward.  After 1-2 submissions, you should know if the original vision can be delivered or if some aspects will need to be modified.

The takeaway: Discuss Details with your Product Developer

Prototype development

There are two important pieces of advice during this phase of your project.

1) Plan for setbacks. We all hope that things will go smoothly.  However, unless you’re making minor adjustments to an existing product, there will be hiccups.  Include time in your schedule for setbacks. They may be minor, such as a delay in the delivery of a key ingredient to the formulator.  Or they may be major, such as a formula failing stability testing at the end of the study requiring the formulator to make major changes.

2) Keep to your plan.  There will be a temptation to make changes to the aesthetics or add new claims.  Before moving forward with changes, you should identify how the changes will impact the completion of the project. Some changes/additions may be easy to accomplish and can be accomplished with minimal time and cost, while others may result in dramatic delays and cost overruns.  If the changes are major, the Marketing Product Developer may want to consider if the changes will result in a significant improvement in their brand and/or sales that is worth the extra time and expense.

The takeaway: Plan for setbacks and stick to your plan

Testing and regulatory review

After the Marketing Product Developer has approved the aesthetic of your product, you enter this last phase of development.  You should conduct less expensive tests and the regulatory review first, before starting the expensive safety, clinical and consumer use testing.  There’s nothing worse than running an expensive test and finding out halfway through that one of your ingredients isn’t allowed in your key market, Fail fast. Consider using quick screening methods to identify any big issues, such as stability testing at high temperatures or exaggerated use conditions in clinical testing.

The takeaway: Test your product

Enjoy the Journey!  There’s nothing more satisfying than seeing a successful product, one that you created and nurtured, on the market. Take time to enjoy your success and then… it’s time to come up with the next great product!

As you read through these insights from a different role perspective, you can visualize what each person is looking for from the other.  It’s pretty much a two-sided conversation!

Bonus point:

Hire an expert to help you.

Can you guide the development of a cosmetic or skincare product on your own? Sure, yes, you can. However, like everything else, is this really the one more thing that you want to add to your plate? If you want to get your product launched in a timely fashion, don’t hesitate to bring on the extra help you’ll need to source vendors, finalize the technology, develop formulas, speak in chemist language, or to use as a second eye for design, copy, and marketing.

Are you in the process of developing a new product? Take a look at how in-cosmetics Discover can help you find the perfect ingredients.

Beauty and Wellbeing – In the New “After”

In our new normal, the “After” of living with COVID-19, individuals are placing a greater importance on products that enhance and promote mindfulness, mental health, and wellbeing. Consumers are now seeking out routines that bring a sense of connection and ritual into this new lifestyle. The marketing industry is keen to take advantage of this global shift with its vast potential for product development that encompasses overall wholeness through wellness.

The “New After” has brought us into a unique phase of daily living. As product developers, how do we maintain a sense of normalcy while keeping body, mind, and spirit in balance through this state of unrest?

New social norms like wearing masks, staying six feet apart, upping our hygiene, being conscious of our nutritional intake, and distancing ourselves wherever possible takes a toll on our entire beings. Additionally, working to stay connected with friends, family, and colleagues through digital forums can increase anxiety.

We find ourselves in an entirely new landscape, navigating an all-consuming lifestyle that is defined by being alone, and being digitally connected. This lack of three-dimensionality — physical, interpersonal, and spiritual components that are central to the human experience lead us to ask:

“How do we balance beauty and wellbeing?”

So, what can we do?

With our external world elevated with levels of stress, anxiety, and uncertainty, our mental wellbeing is affected on a conscious and subconscious level. The good and encouraging news is that many are finding resilience and regaining a sense of calm through mindfulness practices supported by personal care and home products.

As we collectively progress through this phase of life, we’ll be seeing more brands in beauty and wellness connecting to the consumer through ritual. At this point in time, consumers are looking for new products that promote energy, calmness, relaxation, and inner strength. Brands using products to enhance wellness with ingredients designed to promote physical wellbeing, positive feelings, and spiritual balance will come to the fore. Fortunately, as product developers, the potential is limitless.

Areas of Focus for New Product Development

The Body:

Body movement reduces stress. Although gyms continue to open, exercise habits have come home with an increase in Google searches for body conditioning and toning. Additionally, the WFH lifestyle (“work from home”) has reduced physical movement and created situations where there is less of getting up to chat at the water cooler or a brief walk to the next office meeting. This opens the door to mindfulness personal care products for pre-, during and post-workout sessions in the sanctuary of one’s private space.

The Mind:

Meditation calms the mind. Meditation has been in place for millennia with benefits that help to reduce stress, increase clarity of thought, relaxation and being able to enjoy moments of life lived more fully. There is great potential here in creating enhanced sensorial and textural products to enhance meditation and mindfulness practice experiences pre-, during and post-meditation, yoga, and mindfulness sessions.

Overall Wellbeing:

Breathing relaxes the soul. Deep breathing with guided imagery or prayer works well for many people to help with focus and to help calm their inner spirit. These breathing, prayer, or mindfulness practices can be as simple as five-minute pauses in the morning and midday. It offers a moment not only to “stop and smell the roses” but to be more present. This opens the door to scented wellness products that enhance a calming of our internal spirits, providing a sense of wholeness and centeredness.

Ingredients and Benefits to Look for When Developing Products for the New After

Calming

Stress can be detrimental to the skin and manifest itself in the forms of irritation, redness, and superficial dehydration. Look for ingredients from manufacturers that offer a calming effect to the skin and help reinforce the skin’s barrier. Storytelling ingredients like mimosa flowers, specially harvested lavenders, or clary sage are a few to consider. Because fragrance is so strongly linked to emotion, some fragrance houses actually work with neuroscientists to enhance the experience of product use.

Blue Light Protection

Remote work shifted overnight, while skincare, exercise and other regimens continue to be taught online. Blue light exposure from screens decreases the energetic development of cells, causing quicker cell ageing. To help combat the effects from digital LED light, look for combinations of antioxidant ingredients like tea extracts, fruit and seed oils, vitamins and the coenzyme Q10 that help counteract oxidative stress on the skin along with mineral sunscreens that provide a physical blocking of all wavelengths.

Energizing

We have become a world of “Zoomies” and being “Zoomed-out” from multiple online meetings that bring on fatigued and slacking skin tone. Plus, some of our diets may be “off” as we self-soothe with comfort and junk food that may not normally follow healthy guidelines. To help re-energize the skin, look for marine and seaweed materials that absorb nutrients from the ocean and are rigorous enough to survive through daily UVA/UVB exposure.

Immunity Protection

Protection is a key concern for everyone. Keeping the skin’s immunity protected and well functioning against internal and external stress is important to consumers. To help protect the skin’s immunity, look for bioactive nutrients that are antioxidants such as extracts and infusions from fruits, vegetables, nuts, oils, and whole grains. These naturally help restore the skin’s barrier and promote good skin health.

Want to find out more about the latest ingredient launches? Read Simon Pitman’s latest ingredients round-up

Wellness and the pursuit of a holistic, healthy lifestyle has changed modern perceptions of beauty. In turn, this change has driven demand for wellness-led, functional products that enable consumers to integrate wellness into their everyday lives. More than ever, consumers are stepping away from quick fixes and cover-ups and turning to holistic solutions in the ultimate pursuit for well being.

Cherie Buziak, Founder, BeautyEdge LLC and technical advisor for in-cosmetics North America reveals how beauty brands can meet consumer wellness needs, and what marketers need to know.

Wellness. What does it mean to the consumer today? And how do we, as marketers and product designers respond to the wants and desires of today’s consumer that seeks balance and overall good health in their lives?

First, let’s look at the past to understand where wellness is in the present.

The evolution of wellness

From 3,000 – 50 BC, ancient wellness included therapies like Ayurveda – one of the world’s oldest holistic healing systems – and traditional Chinese medicine, which combined more than 2,500 years of Chinese medical practice including various forms of herbal medicine, acupuncture, massage, exercise and dietary therapy.

Elsewhere in the world, the Greeks used diet to prevent sickness while the Romans did the same by combining diet with healthy living conditions.

In the 19^th Century, wellness practices evolved to incorporate spiritual philosophies. This can be seen more specifically in the U.S. and Europe where several alternative, holistic healthcare methods including self-healing and preventive care grew in popularity, including homoeopathy, osteopathy, chiropractic, and naturopathy.

By the 1650s, the use of the word “wellness” was incorporated into the English language – meaning the opposite of “illness” or the “state of being well or in good health”.

By the 20^th Century, the wellness movement had gained significant momentum.  Wellness institutes were born with more serious attention given to one’s overall well being. In the U.S., government-sponsored programs began to promote healthier lifestyles. By 1990, the modern concept of wellness spread to Europe, where the German Wellness Association (Deutscher Wellness Verband, DWV) and the European Wellness Union (Europäischen Wellness Union, EWU) were founded.

The wellness industry continues to gain momentum in the 21^st Century. The Global Wellness Institute revealed that in October 2018, the wellness economy grew from $3.7 trillion in 2015 to $4.2 trillion in 2017 – nearly twice the rate of the global economy (3.6 per cent annually). The report stated that wellness expenditures now equate to more than half of the total global health expenditures ($7.3 trillion), and the wellness industry represents 5.3 per cent of global economic output.

The report also outlined individual category values, with the personal care, beauty and anti-ageing sector topping the list with a total value of $1,083 billion; followed by healthy eating, nutrition and weight loss at $702 billion; wellness tourism at $639 billion; fitness and mind-body at $595 billion; and preventative and personalized medicine and public health at $575 billion.

Demonstrating the holistic approach

Clearly, wellness has come a long way since its inception, with the wellness economy continuing to mirror consumer priorities, with growing recognition of the critical impact of external environments on our health and well being. For example, well being can now also be seen in the buildings we live in, our social climates and the holistic benefits offered in the workplace.

According to Forbes, 89% of employees at companies that support well-being initiatives are more likely to recommend their company as a good place to work while 61% of employees agree that they have made healthier lifestyle choices because of their company’s wellness program.

No longer are we inspired to bring wholeness and healing to our physical bodies, now we consciously strive to heal our spirits, and our inner selves with the communities and world around us in a very mindful way.

With this information, what do consumers really want? It’s evident that they are seeking what we all strive to obtain; inner calm, positive behavioural change, a universal peace, togetherness and a sense of head to toe wellness that embodies healthy eating, healthy life choices and healthy minds. With this, consumers also want personal care and beauty products that complement a lifestyle focused on wellness.

Incorporating wellness

If a universal concept of wellness is defined, we as beauty marketers may need to change our thinking about how we create aspirational products to incorporate how our customers think, use and experience the products we develop. From fighting urban pollution, protecting skin from damaging blue lights or choosing toxin-free products, the quest for wellness and a healthier lifestyle is transforming consumer attitudes towards the beauty and personal care industries.

By increasing the crossover and collaboration with fitness and wellness companies, beauty and personal care brands can identify new distribution channels and expand their customer base.

Brands must factor in how the end-user interacts with the product and how it affects their home or work environment. Further to this, we must consider the types of work environments the consumer engages with in order to create products that enhance their well being and personal space – no matter the location.

If brands can focus on and streamline their products and messaging, they can stay relevant. It’s no longer enough for beauty brands to claim they are natural or enhance our well being. Modern consumers demand transparency and expect their favourite brands to accommodate their new wellness-minded attitudes. It’s time for the beauty industry and us as marketers to embrace this change and up our game.

Cherie Buziak, Founder, BeautyEdge LLC, will lead a session at in-cosmetics North America on ‘Beauty and beyond’ on Wednesday 23 October at 12:45 in the Marketing Trends Theater exploring product development opportunities in the age of gender neutral products and expressive beauty. For more information on the in-cosmetics North America 2019 education programme, visit: https://northamerica.in-cosmetics.com/en/education/cosmetics-marketing-trends/

Billed as the most interactive exhibition dedicated to personal care ingredients, in-cosmetics North America’s Formulation Lab, Sensory Bar, Focus on Marketing Tours and Speed Networking sessions put innovation in the spotlight, providing attendees with a unique opportunity to connect with the world’s leading suppliers.

Jean McCormack, Technology Manager at Vantage Speciality Ingredients, commented: “We found in-cosmetics North America to be brilliant for our needs and sourced great new potential from being present at the show. We also took part in the Speed Networking event, which was absolutely excellent. It revealed multiple business leads for us and we loved it – a great initiative from in-cosmetics.”

Not only that, in-cosmetics North America’s renowned education program brought together international experts who delivered exclusive information on the trends set to shape the North American beauty market. Conference attendees remarked that the show had its finger on the pulse, with more than 55 sessions dedicated to key topics such as the skin microbiome, sustainable cosmetics, J-beauty and vibrational cosmetics.

Varada Sulakhe, Formulation Chemist at Intercos America, said: “I have attended in-cosmetics North America three times and it is perfect for me, as a formulation chemist, to meet people and be introduced to new ideas. The show is amazing in its innovation and inspiration.”

A unique opportunity to interact with ingredients

Supported by the Independent Cosmetic Manufacturers and Distributors association (ICMAD) and Personal Care Products Council (PCPC), this year’s event – which returned to the Javits Center in New York City from 17-18 October – was designed to help cosmetic manufacturers identify the world’s most exciting ingredients. However, in-cosmetics North America went one step further than other traditional exhibitions, enabling marketers and chemists to get hands on with materials and uncover the stories behind the science.

A series of Focus on Marketing Tours, hosted by leading beauty consultant Cherie Buziak, ran throughout the event, with marketers and brand specialists battling for the limited places. In total, 74 participants were given an exclusive guided tour around the show, enabling them to identify new technologies and textures, designed specifically for product development.

Cherie Buziak, founder of Beauty Edge, commented: “This year we were inundated with requests to join the tours. Marketers play a pivotal role in the new product development process here in the US and it’s imperative that they are able to understand how new ingredients can create a more impactful marketing story. in-cosmetics North America has fully grasped that concept which is why the event is becoming so valuable to the region’s beauty industry.”

Demonstrating the show’s commitment to providing the premier platform for R&D professionals and indie brand owners to connect with suppliers, in-cosmetics North America featured a brand-new Speed Networking session. An air of excitement filled the room as dozens of suppliers braced themselves to meet representatives from some of the North America’s most innovative cosmetic/contract manufacturers. And with just five minutes to establish whether there was going to be a long-term relationship, the meetings were intense but hugely valuable.

Monica Lira, Chemist at indie brand Dermologica, said: “The sessions were extremely useful and I met with several different suppliers – many of whom I had not heard of before.”

The event’s Formulation Lab was another interactive area of in-cosmetics North America that was curated to inspire cosmetic chemists. Run by Belinda Carli, Director of the renowned Institute of Personal Care Science, leading ingredient suppliers – including Kobo Products, Sensient Cosmetic Technologies, Univar and EMD Performance Materials – gave exclusive practical advice to help brands develop unique products.

Over two days, 146 formulators and R&D professionals joined the lab sessions. One of the best attended this year was Sensient Cosmetic Technologies’ demonstration of how to create natural foundations. The company’s expert formulators explained how chemists can use natural surface treatments, such as HLC (Hydrogenated Lecithin), to easily formulate cold processed W/O foundations while decreasing development times and costs.

Belinda Carli said: “The Formulation Lab gives chemists a unique opportunity to learn about the intricacies of ingredients directly from the suppliers. This year’s sessions were incredibly well attended and focused on solving specific formulation challenges, such as enhancing the process of creating innovative, personalised beauty products.”

With it becoming increasingly important for beauty brands to incorporate multi-sensory experiences in their products, in-cosmetics North America also gave marketers and chemists the chance to get hands on with new formulations that will tease the senses of their customers. The Sensory Bar showcased innovations from nine suppliers that demonstrated new textures and sensations, symbolic fragrances and novel tastes for oral care products, all to help brands capture the consumer’s attention.

Alessia Pernarella, Cosmetics Chemist at Cosmo International, said: “I loved the Sensory Bar – It is so beneficial to be able to feel and experience the textures and smells, rather than simply read about them. It is a great initiative and an incredibly useful tool.”

The Sensory Bar was perfectly complemented by the show’s Make-Up Bar that allowed attendees to sample a diverse array of innovative pigments. And with the North American colour cosmetics market expected to grow by 8.1% CAGR between 2018-2024, there was no better place for beauty brands and contract manufacturers to get hands on with the technologies that will deliver captivating and trend-setting colour cosmetics products.

During the event’s Awards ceremony, a host of prizes were presented to the most innovative personal care ingredients suppliers. Picking up the Sensory Bar Award was Sumitomo Seika Chemicals for AQUPEC, while the Make-Up Bar Award went to Sandream Impact for its hydrating, plumping, brightening facial mist.

Helping indie brands thrive

As the status-quo of the beauty industry continues to be shaken by the inexorable rise of indie brands, in-cosmetics North America also introduced a program dedicated to helping niche, highly innovative businesses grab a piece of the action.

Indie brand owners were drawn to dedicated, valuable educational sessions, which provided founders with guidance on issues like marketing, establishing a brand and how to take a concept to inception. Hosted by Pam Busiek, President & CEO of ICMAD, the invaluable sessions concluded with speakers delivering up-to-date legal advice on FDA registration requirements, regulations and labelling.

Donna Pace, Owner of Jade Holistic Spa, said: “It was the focus on indie brands that attracted me the show. I attended many of the indie-focused sessions and found them to be really useful and informative.”

Innovation in the spotlight

The in-cosmetics North America Innovation Zone brought together 20 novel active and functional ingredients that have been launched in the last eight months, providing R&D teams with a time efficient way of identifying innovative solutions. Visitors poured over the area to learn more about the raw materials and technologies that will help inspire a new generation of beauty products.

Among the suppliers showcasing their products was Mibelle Biochemistry, who presented their incredible MossCellTec No.1 – an active to enhance the cell nucleus function to fortify the skin. With chemists paying particular attention to the ingredient, it was no surprise that the Swiss-based company scooped the in-cosmetics North America’s Innovation Zone Gold Award on the evening of the first day of the show.

Fred Zülli, Head of Business Unit at Mibelle Biochemistry, said: “We were very happy to receive this top award and a win here is highly regarded across the industry. I believe we won as our ingredient is unique and the result of much hard work!”

This year the Innovation Zone also featured unique formulations developed by ingredient suppliers, enabling visitors to test a product for its effectiveness, while leading trend forecaster Mintel ran regular Live Demonstrations that enabled marketers and chemists to touch and feel some of the world’s most innovative finished products.

The only place to expand your industry and technical knowledge
The in-cosmetics Group’s free-to-attend educational program saw trend forecasters, skincare experts, sustainability leaders and regulation gurus all came together to help R&D teams and brand owners grasp the opportunities and navigate the challenges presented by the ever-evolving beauty industry.

Christopher Chew, Product Manager at Modern Meadow, was one of the 2,700 industry professionals that attended the sessions. He said: “The content of the Marketing Trends sessions was great. Most valuable and interesting to me were the insights around market research – I will definitely attend the show next year.”

With sustainability very much in the spotlight, one of the most eagerly anticipated sessions at in-cosmetics North America focused on formulating and manufacturing natural cosmetics. One of the world’s leading commentators on sustainable cosmetics, Dr. Barbara Olioso, Founder of The Green Chemist Consultancy, urged chemists to make positive changes to their formulation processes, such as using more concentrated products to reduce water use; minimise waste and transport; and utilise solar and wind energy in their work.

Across the globe, skincare product claims focusing on skin microbiome are mushrooming and many beauty brands are attempting to develop innovative new products in this area. With a packed auditorium of 95 professional, one of the world’s leading authorities on skincare research, Nava Dayan Ph. D led a session on making use of skin microbiome research in cosmetic product development. The panel – including representatives from the National Advertising Division of the Advertising Self-Regulatory Council, Amway Corporation and Medler Ferro Woodhouse & Mills – gave invaluable advice on protecting the intellectual property of the skin microbiome and highlighted potential paths to market.

The show’s Asian influence was brought to life with a special spotlight on J-Beauty. With beauty rituals from Japan becoming increasingly popular in the west, Florence Bernardin, Founder of Information and Inspiration and a renowned expert on the Asian cosmetics industry, explained to a captivated audience of US-based manufacturers how they can tap into this growing trend.

Focusing on the importance of regulations, J M Ansell, PhD, DABT, Vice President of the Personal Care Products Council, reviewed the history of ISO, the standard writing process and offered insights into a number of key standards explicitly or implicitly referenced by regulatory authorities, including ISO 22716, ISO 24444 and ISO 16128. He told R&D teams that industry legislation is constantly evolving and, as the world becomes more accessible, he highlighted the importance of understanding the differences in regulation between countries.

Meanwhile, the Technical Seminars provided another exclusive opportunity for visitors to familiarise themselves new materials and technologies as suppliers shared insights on innovative concepts. Using ingredients to meet specific consumer demands was the overriding theme for sessions this year’s program, with Charles River consultant Donald English delving into new ways of conducting microbial testing and quality control. Howard Epstein, Ph.D, Director Technical Service Cosmetics at EMD Performance Materials, also gave a fascinating insight into the science behind antioxidants, while Alexander Lorestani, CEO of Geltor Inc, highlighted novel ways that animal-free collagen can be utilised in formulations.

The creative juices were flowing at in-cosmetics

Since it was first launched in 2016, the in-cosmetics North America Formulation Challenge has become a key date in the industry calendar as brands and contract manufacturers attempt to create a new beauty product from a mystery box of ingredients in just 90 minutes. And this year visitors to the show were able to watch the action unfold, with 145 people gathering to watch six teams battle to be crowned the region’s most creative R&D team.

This year, the Masterchef-esque challenge took a twist with judge Belinda Carli informing participants from Colgate-Palmolive, Johnson & Johnson, Unilever, Shiseido, Estee Lauder and Swiss American CDMO that they were not allowed to create a water-based product. Despite many of the teams practising in the lead up to the event, the announcement visibly raised the stress levels and placed the teams under even more pressure.

After an intense 90 minutes and a scrupulous judging process – conducted by Belinda Carli and Sarah Jindal from Mintel – team Shiseido were revealed as winners with a Triple P Primer wowing the judges with an impeccable technical process and marketing story. Unilever, runner up in the previous two years, again picked up second prize with its Urban Eco-defense Eco Mist product.

Belinda Carli commented: “We decided to shake up the Formulation Challenge a bit this year and put the teams under more pressure, and it worked! This challenge really tests a chemist’s technical ability and requires the formulators and marketers to work together to create a product that is market-ready. Shiseido was a clear winner, but ultimately we were astounded by the quality of the concepts, which demonstrated the fantastic creativity and expertise we have in this industry.”

Mohammad Aziz, an Associate Chemist for Shiseido, said: “When we first heard the challenge rules – no water-based formulations allowed – we thought it sounded really difficult, so we spent the first 10 minutes strategizing our game plan. It was very high pressure to begin with, but we all pulled together to create a winning formulation. We are a very happy team!”

Returning for 2019

With the curtains drawn on another successful edition of in-cosmetics North America, the dates for next year’s event have been announced. R&D professionals and marketers will be able to join the region’s most interactive personal care ingredients event from October 23-24 2019 at the Javits Center in New York City.

Daniel Zanetti, Exhibition Director of in-cosmetics North America, concluded: “We’ve already had lots of positive feedback that business was brisk for ingredients suppliers, while formulators have told us that they’ve filled their contacts books with the names of potential new suppliers to help them create the formulations of tomorrow. We are already looking forward to providing an even more interactive experience for our visitors in 2019.”

First Stop: Exhibitor pitch

We’ll visit up to six different vendors and hear first-hand from them about their latest technology, how it works, and how it’s applicable to different beauty concepts.  This is the perfect opportunity to maximise face-to-face interaction with suppliers who have launched innovative technologies dedicated to the latest industry trends. Participants will have one-on-one personalised access to suppliers and the chance to engage in conversation about the uniqueness of their ingredients, and will leave with specially created samples of the suppliers’ newest technologies incorporated into starter formulas along with informative literature.

Second Stop: The Sensory and Make-Up Bars

At the Sensory Bar, we’ll see, touch, smell and evaluate the latest sensorial skincare and personal care textures, while at the Make-Up Bar we’ll view the most recent technologies in colour cosmetics and explore the latest pigments, colour effects and applications designed for face, body and nails.

Third Stop: The Innovation Zone

We’ll take a closer look at global technologies that have been launched for the beauty industry in the last six months.

Content provided by Cherie Buziak, CEO of BeautyEdge LLC, who will be speaking on Fast Beauty:  Finding your fast track to beauty product development at in-cosmetics North America on Thursday 18^th October 2018 from 11.15-12.15.The post Focus on Marketing: The Story Behind the Science first appeared on in-cosmetics Connect.]]> https://connect.in-cosmetics.com/regions/northamerica/focus-on-marketing-the-story-behind-the-science/feed/ 1 6199