The UK’s beauty industry contributed a total of £28.4 billion in 2018 to the nation’s economy; resulting in a valuation of the UK’s consumption of beauty products and services in 2018 at £27.2 billion. Exploring the economic impact of the beauty industry, The Oxford Economics Report highlighted how the mega-billion figure was comprised. The largest proportion of this share was generated from care and maintenance product buys, which stood at £10.4 billion. Personal enhancement products comprised

Staples of the British high street, Boots and Superdrug, have tactically placed themselves at the heart of the shopping experience for 170 and 54 years, respectively. As the digital era arrived — bringing with it the rise of e-commerce, convenience and personalised shopping — the big household names on the high street have struggled. As such, the likes of physical beauty names like Boots and Superdrug are now diversifying their retail channel and distribution strategies to increase engagement

On 17th July 2019, UK-headquartered ingredient supplier Croda revealed its acquisition of German Rewitec in a move that will support the company’s dedication to sustainability. Rewitec, which stands for Repair and Restoration Technology (Reparatur und Wiederherstellungstechnologie), will apply their patented additives to optimise wind turbine and moving machinery efficiency and longevity. As part of its ongoing sustainability commitment, Rewitec will join Croda’s Energy Technologies arm, which

Our reporter, Natasha Spencer, took the opportunity to speak to David at the sidelines of the event, where he was a featured speaker and also a panelist for the roundtable discussion. The Cosmetics Design Summit on Microbiome Skin Care Innovation took place in Amsterdam, Netherlands, from June 24th to 25th, including a two-day conference programme that brought together the leading players in the market. What microbiome skin care is all about​ In this interview, David focuses in on what microb

Speaking to reporter Natasha Spencer at the sidelines of the recently held Cosmetics Design Summit on Microbiome Skin Care Innovation, Ingmar, in this video interview Ingmar reveals more about the part that science is playing in the growth and development of this trend. Environmental hazards and chemicals such as antibacterial ingredients and emulsifiers are threatening the natural health of the skin microbiome, which is leading to skin sensitivity and the growing importance of maintaining the

Here we bring you some of the highlights of that coverage, which now amount to a significant volume on the topic, highlighted by dedicated skin microbiome and protection hot topic category​ in our news archive. While not forgetting to take a look at the many articles that make up this hot topic, we also thought we would bring you some of the most read and interesting highlights, by grouping them in this article. This dedicated contents was built around the coverage for our inaugural Cosmetics

The whole customer journey is beauty logistics for me. The customer journey is from the moment consumers land on your website, all the way through to when they receive their delivery, and potentially when they want to return an item. Often, we think of logistics as just delivering, but actually it is so much bigger than that. It is about how you are making consumers feel on your website, how you are helping them navigate your range and what advice you are able to give them at that point. Every

Speaking to reporter Natsaha Spencer on the sidelines of the Cosmetics Design Summit on Microbiome Skin Care Innovation, we found out more about Chris's involvement with the event's programme and how his team's research is helping to shape the evolution of this fast growing category. Chris and his team wanted to find out how modern day environmental hazards such as pollution, as well as every day products we use on our skin, impact the microbiome, ​and ultimately skin health. Researching nativ

Following Oliver’s observations of the gut and how these can be applied to the skin at Cosmetics Design’s inaugural summit, we look at his key observations and takeaways on how genomic tools can be used to personalise skin care. Following skin microbiome sequencing and shortlisting important markets for skin health over the past two years, Sequential has produced a proprietary face mask. Based on their skin type (genetics) and environment (microbiome), the company provides comprehensive skin pr

The whole customer journey is beauty logistics for me. The customer journey is from the moment consumers land on your website, all the way through to when they receive their delivery, and potentially when they want to return an item. Often, we think of logistics as just delivering, but actually it is so much bigger than that. It is about how you are making consumers feel on your website, how you are helping them navigate your range and what advice you are able to give them at that point. Every

Our reporter Natasha Spencer quizzed Jasmina about what it takes to build up this kind of brand, the challenges she has faced and what she sees for the future.

What are the five top ways that brands can harness data to increase return on investment (ROI) in beauty? 1. Inject data in a machine learning model and use artificial intelligence (AI) to predict what a customer is most likely to buy based on user persona. It is not just a conversational decision tree, bot or selfie-driven recommendation. The beauty specific data driven solution works for every beauty category from hair to skin care to makeup and allows the brands and retailers to continuously

What are the current attitudes towards silicones?​ A lot of consumers mistakenly think they are comedogenic (pore clogging), create non-breathable films on the skin, and are non-biodegradable. There is also a big trend towards ‘natural’ as so many consumers think ‘natural is safer’ and ‘synthetic is bad for you’ — this is not actually correct but is the widely-held perception. As a result, this of course has led some consumers to avoid silicones. How do silicones appeal to corporate responsib

At the Microsoft Inspire 2019 conference, Dave Penrith, Chief Engineer at Unilever PLC shared how it has enlisted the support of global tech giant, Microsoft, and tech innovation company, The Marsden Group, to help its transformation path. The Marsden Group has supported Unilever with its approach to both innovation and technology by providing a customised digital twin solution. The virtual build is the first to be deployed in Unilever’s factories. With the support of Microsoft, Unilever’s pus

We take a look at how lifestyle stressors are influencing new product launches and how the beauty industry is responding with the use of technologies and innovations. For consumers, mental health and happiness are a fundamental part of what it means to be healthy, market research provider, Euromonitor International provides in its Healthy Living​: Prevention and Self Care as a Lifestyle report. Consumers’ health perceptions indicate that mental health, feeling “good” and getting a sufficient a

The company’s latest additions will see Alexandra Palt, Chief Corporate Responsibility Officer and Executive Vice President of the Foundation L’Oréal, and Vincent Boinay, General Manager for Travel Retail Worldwide, join L'Oréal’s Executive Committee on 1st September. L’Oréal also welcomed Fabrice Megabrane, President L’Oréal China, to its Executive Committee on 1st July. Looking ahead, corporate responsibility, travel retail and China account for three of the French personal care leader’s core

Focusing on cosmetics products regulations and associated risks with nanomaterials in the European personal care sector, the SCCS reached a concluding position on the solubility of materials assessed. The EU has said that none of the SAS materials examined can be considered as soluble under the nanomaterial definition of the cosmetics Regulation. The conclusion reached applies regardless of whether these materials are hydrophilic or hydrophobic. In March 2018, the EU Commission sought an opini

What are silicones as a class of chemicals?​ Silicones as a class of chemicals is actually as diverse as asking me to describe hydrocarbons used in personal care — it is a huge class that uses the chemical element silicone (Si). Silicone, like carbon, can bond four times (chemically speaking) — which means it is incredibly versatile and can be chemically modified and manipulated into many different types of materials to serve a variety of performance and functional needs. 2. What is consumer

The global company will continue to focus on growing its premium skin care and pursuing its strategy to enter higher-margin oral care, personal care and pet nutrition companies through its latest purchase of Filorga. Colgate — which has a broad portfolio of brands including Palmolive, elmex, Tom's of Maine, Sorriso, Protex and Sanex — bought the French skin care business on an equity purchase price of €1,495.5 million. Filorga focuses on the facial care market through providing and promoting h

As make up, fragrance and skin care powerhouse, Lancôme prepares to roll-out its latest fragrance, the global brand has enlisted US actress, Zendaya Coleman, as its new ambassador. The scent, named Idôle, is expected to reach customers through its official launch on 22nd August, a report by ​said — revealing sales are expected to reach $300 million (€266.8 mn) in its first year. The name of the perfume itself, Idôle, takes inspiration from the female millennial generation and has been designed