The notion of Wellness and search for natural origins continue to be one of the dominant topics in the concept of beauty.
Discussion on the negative impacts of daily stress, pollution, daily exposure to sun, hectic modern lifestyles on visual appearance, and the direct influence of the emotional wellbeing on the way we look and perceive our appearance influences the high number of NPD projects in the cosmetic industry.
In high demand are products that work hard to protect against the external and internal environments of day-to-day life, but are also free of harsh chemicals and reduce the impact on the environment, often called as ‘Green Chemicals’.
Consumers understand that skin appearance is highly impacted by exposure to daily environment and various aspects of modern lifestyles. We at Brenntag have started the narrative for Wellness for Beauty story in the beginning of 2017 launching the concept at in-Cosmetics Global in April in London.
A number of topics were discussed such as Sleep and Restore, Active Beauty, as well as Inspired By Wellness in Food – the cosmetics, nutraceuticals and cosmeceuticals concepts continue to draw closer.
Since then we have continued the research into the area, bringing fresh new formulations to share with the industry colleagues at SCS Formulate (UK) and Making Cosmetics Italy. Our Concept for these two leading industry events is called Protect, Repair, Supercharge: Protect against pollution nanoparticles, Repair the defence, Elastine & Procollagen-1 production, and Supercharge by boosting blood microcirculation.
Consumers are becoming increasingly aware and concerned about the damages the polluted environment can cause to our skin and hair, which leads to high opportunities for the cosmetics companies looking to offer solution to customer demand for anti-pollution cosmetic and personal care products (NPD Group, Beauty Market Research and Business Solutions).
The damaging impact of the pollution is now widely recognised. Fumes released from vehicles and factories combine to wage war on skin and hair with DNA-mutating free radicals, causing irreparable damage to cells whilst also having a detrimental effect to their regeneration capabilities.
The skin’s protective barrier is altered, causing increased sensitivity, inflammation and redness, furthermore constant subjection to pollution particulates leads to dullness and premature ageing of the skin – ‘polluaging’ (Stokes, 2017, www.cosmeticsbusiness.com). Urbanisation is increasing: the UN 2016 study of World’s Cities stated that 54.5% of the world’s population live in urban areas, and this number is due to rise to an estimated 60% by 2030.
However the pollution is not only restricted to highly populated urban areas. European market launches positioned as “anti-pollution” are on the rise, both with anti-pollution as a claim and in sub-categories (Mintel, 2017).
The search for natural, “green”, sustainably sourced products that started a while back shows no signs of subsiding. Whether an awareness of a negative impact of the production practices of some cosmetics and personal care products on the environment, or a desire to understand in detail which ingredients are present in their products of choice– this consumer drive continues to push on the demand for innovation.
The demand for environmentally safe ingredients, derived from all-natural and renewable sources, that will help a formulator to develop a range of differentiated successful consumer products has never been greater.
As our lives get more hectic, consumers are constantly searching for innovative products that give not only better results but are easier and faster to use, this has resulted in the desire for a ‘one product does all’ solution, thus presenting an ambitious challenge for formulators and cosmetic scientists alike. For instance, more is expected from a colour cosmetics/ make-up range: it must help not only to look better, but to last all day.
Heavy make-up combined with pollution particulates requires a cleanser that removes even the toughest make-up, including waterproof mascara, whilst cleansing the face from daily pollution. We have developed an innovative Make Up Remover Stick, which when applied directly to face and afterwards washed off with warm water reveals beautifully cleansed, luxuriously soft skin, and were delighted to have the formulation shortlisted as one of the finalists for the Laura Marshall Memorial Award at this year’s SCS Formulate, UK.
All formulations mentioned in the article are available from Brenntag EMEA Cosmetics & Pharmaceutical, please visit www.brenntag.com
