Just a few short years ago, Alpha Hydroxy Acids were introduced to the cosmetic industry.  Practically overnight, the cosmetics industry was transformed to an age of truly active, therapeutic skin care treatments.
Savvy consumers demand products that deliver significant results.  To gain the truly competitive edge, products must have integrity.  Products must be able to deliver more of the active ingredients, achieve greater permeation and extend their effectiveness over a long period of time.  And with today's hectic lifestyles, products must provide a multitude of functions, utilizing quick-absorbing, timesaving formulations.
We are witnessing a merging of the promises of the cosmetic companies with the efficacy and "down to business" products of the pharmaceutical companies.  We are entering the age of active, state-of-the-art cosmeceuticals.
Skin care has become an extremely competitive and serious business.  The global skin care and sun care markets grew 25% between 1991 and 2000, reaching $47.7 billion, according to industry publications.
In response, cosmetic companies are racing to develop a new level of products.  Products that deliver results and appeal to today's consumer.
 

EFFECTIVE, NATURALLY
Natural ingredients are being employed more and more, from the highest priced brands to the most affordable drug store brand.  By combining the latest discoveries in science with the traditions of natural botanical extracts, companies are removing the "folklore" and discovering dramatic results.  

 What to look for:
• Green Tea is utilized as a powerful anti-oxidant, reported to be more potent than Vitamin E

• Ginseng and Kola Nut are being utilized to improve circulation

• Chamomile, elder flower, cucumber and aloe all provide various types of soothing properties...excellent for sensitive skin products or products  used exclusively around the eyes

• Balsam Copaiba (a renewable resource from the Rain Forest in Brazil) and Monoi Oil (the miracle resource from Tahiti) both have demonstrated tremendous abilities to soothe and nourish sensitive skin, while providing benefits to the overall performance of a skin care formulation

The skin naturally defends itself from foreign effects.  Sea kelp, fortified with vital nutrients, has a structure that works as a catalyst to help "trick" the skin to absorb active complexes in a formulation.  Additionally, select types of sea kelp are employed to act as a magnet, drawing dead skin cells to the surface, causing new cells to replace them.  The end results are an increased turnover of skin cells and a reduction in wrinkles.
 

VITAMINS
The latest trend is to focus on new derivatives of vitamins and improved methods of delivering the active materials.  Esteem Lauder at the department store level and Neutrogena and L'Oreal at the mass market level are promoting Vitamin A (Retinol A and Retinol Palmitate) to fight the signs of fine lines and wrinkles and Vitamin E (Tocopheryl Acetate) as the active ingredient to help fight free radicals.
Lauder's new Diminish, a Retinol (Vitamin A) treatment, claims to reduce the appearance of deep facial lines, age spots and decolonization.  When working with pure forms of any Vitamins there is the problem of skin irritation.  Lauder claims to have solved this problem with a new type of delivery system, which encapsulates the Vitamin.
For generations, Vitamin C has been a part of our everyday diet.  Today, dermatologists are discovering that Vitamin C  is a truly active ingredient that acts as a collagen booster, anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory.  According to the American Academy of Dermatology, new techniques for stabilizing forms of Vitamin C in topical form are permitting permeation of concentration 20 - 40 times what can be consumed internally.  major consumer magazines are reporting Vitamin C as the truly miracle ingredient and the hottest additive in the skin care industry.  It is reported that Vitamin C has been demonstrated to penetrate the skin and increase the production of collagen, a key element in a more youthful appearance.  As Alpha Hydroxy Acids have become a staple in skin care formulation, so, too, will Vitamin C.
 

WHAT DETERMINES THE NEXT TREND
Typically, break-through therapeutic technology is introduced through the dermatological market, then high priced department stores. Once these channels of distribution have been maximized, similar types of products are introduced in to the drug store chains and mass market.
For example, Cellex-C™ is a product line, which seized this trend by introducing to the professional market an ascorbic acid (one type of Vitamin C) based product.  At $75 per ounce, Cellex-C™ sold $1.6 million in 1994 and has grown to a reported $28 million in 1997.
In the drug store chains and mass market, Hydrox-C™ broke the trend by launching a complete line of Triple Action Vitamin C and Alpha Hydroxy Acid based skin care for under $10.
 

NEW DELIVERY SYSTEMS
Traditionally, creams and lotions that provided any type of benefit were heavy and slow to absorb.  With today's active lifestyles, consumers are looking for faster absorption.  No more waiting for creams or lotions to be absorbed, no more white residue and no more waiting to put on make-up.
Quick-Break™ technology is a new method of formulating lotions and creams, which allow faster absorption, and enhances the permeation of active ingredients, improving the end result experienced by the consumer.  This new technology employs advancements that give the appearance of the traditional lotion or cream, while the application gives the feel and absorption of a gel.
Another type of technology was introduced by Biore™ and Pond's™, with the cleansing strips, which actually pull the impurities away from the skin.  But, for delivering actives, several companies are working with "patch" technology.  Patches allow a concentrated level of active material to be released over a period of time.  Companies have already begun introducing Vitamin C patches that are worn for many hours, throughout the night.
 

KEEPING THE CUTTING EDGE
With so many new products, it is difficult to decide which products will maximize sales per square foot, help build consumer loyalty and generate a repeat customer.  The answer may not be in the latest buzz, but in discovering which brands focus on development of cutting-edge products that deliver results - products that take a therapeutic approach.
Whether a new product from a proven vendor or a completely new launch of a brand, it is important that there is a clear understanding of how the product will address the needs of the drug store and the mass market consumer.  Fabulous packaging that graphically tells a story will generate the initial sale, but the delivering of a therapeutic, truly efficacious product will generate the repeat customer needed for success.