Skincare Advancement on demand: Webinar panelists answer your burning questions

On October 2, CosmeticsDesign’s recent webinar, Skincare Advancement, brought together industry leaders and experts to share valuable insights into some of this year’s most significant developments in the skin care space. From the rise of "cleanical beauty" and skin cycling to the integration of artificial intelligence in product formulations, the session delved deep into what’s driving change and how these advancements are reshaping consumer expectations.

With seasonal shifts influencing consumer behavior, this is a critical time for manufacturers and suppliers to re-examine their product offerings, especially as skin care routines are being reconsidered to align with emerging trends. During the webinar, panelists Eleonora Mazzilli, Trend Localization & Business Development Director at BEAUTYSTREAMS, Lena Park, Co-Founder of Mixikskin, Barbara Green, Rph, MS, Head of Global Upstream Research & Innovation, Skin Health & Beauty at Kenvue for Neutrogena, and Rita Silva, Science Communications Manager at Deciem’s The Ordinary addressed a wide range of topics, offering expert opinions and answering burning questions from the audience.

For those who missed the live broadcast, the on-demand session​ is now available, offering a chance to gain key insights into the future of skin care.

We followed up with two of our esteemed panelists, Eleonora Mazzilli and Barbara Green to answer some of the most pressing questions raised during the session.

Question: Do you have any opinions on sourcing formulas from Korea? Any insight into the current buzz around Korean Skincare would be very appreciated. ​

Eleonora Mazzilli​: With social media, especially TikTok, K-beauty is regaining popularity with young consumers worldwide and especially in the USA. K-pop culture has become omnipresent and K-pop stars are becoming luxury brands ambassadors. Korean beauty trends, holistic rituals and tools, sensorial textures, and traditional ingredients are all relevant elements that brands need to consider when sourcing k-beauty formulas.

We are seeing that “Multi-Balms” are a K-beauty trend gaining traction globally. While not a not an entirely new phenomenon, multi-balm sticks are gaining renewed traction and are seeing a second phase of popularity thanks to product developments led by the latest K-beauty innovations. Consumers are turning to multi-balm sticks for many reasons. Among them is product placement marketing in K-drama series, while another is hygiene concerns driven by the pandemic.

Multi-balm sticks have now gained viral status beyond Korea, with celebrities such as Doja Cat, Ava Max, and Lil Nas X promoting them in their music videos. This new generation of multi-use and multi-benefit balm sticks is emblematic of the rise of skin care that offers efficiency, simplicity, and convenience. These balm sticks are intended to be used on the whole face and even on different parts of the body such as eyebrows, under eyes, neck, elbows, or cuticles, without having to use the fingers to apply the product.

With formulas inspired by serums, essences, moisturizers, and ampoules, the latest skin care sticks boast results-driven and advanced benefits. Their formulations offer everything from long-lasting hydration, to preventing premature aging, promoting radiance, protecting and calming skin affected by environmental aggressors, or preventing make-up from caking.

And like their liquid counterparts, these multi-balm products are enriched with performance-based ingredients such as collagen, probiotics, fermented oils, and mushroom extracts alongside astaxanthin, bakuchiol, cica, and vitamin C, enhancing the effectiveness of this skin care-in-a-stick format.

We are seeing that spicule technology powers topical skin care delivery systems in South Korea. Upon application, spicules are said to physically penetrate the top layers of the skin, assisting in the delivery of active ingredients deeper into the skin’s layers in an efficient and controlled manner. By stimulating the skin, spicule skin care products are said to increase collagen and elastin production, helping to reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles and promote younger-looking skin.

By gently exfoliating the skin, spicules help to remove dead skin cells and promote a smoother and brighter complexion. They also promote healing and help to treat dark spots and acne scars.

Spicule-powered skin care is one of the latest trends in South Korea. From essences and serums to creams and masks, to peeling formulations, beauty brands are exploring the use of spicules to provide gentle skin care alternatives to in-office treatments such as microneedling and derma-rolling. Spicules are a fairly new skin care ingredient into which research is limited. This means further studies will have to be conducted to verify how effective spicules are at actually improving the skin’s appearance as well as their safety.

Question: Can you discuss the use of fermented extracts (not single molecules) in cosmetics?​

Barbara Green:​ There are many sources of innovative, performance-ingredient blends in skincare including plant extracts and fermentation derived extracts.  We are not limited to single-molecule benefit ingredients and the choice depends on the intended use of the formulation, overall claim/benefit territory, as well as the level of safety and efficacy data to support the ingredient.

Question: We speak to trends and launches with respect to these trends, but how are consumers actually responding, and how are these materials selling in the market?​

Barbara Green’s answer​: Innovation is always geared toward meeting a consumer need.  Pioneers of a new claim space or ingredient technology may find, however, that they need to actively build consumer awareness. 

Our goal is to provide innovation that is interesting, impactful and meaningful to drive product usage and provide the opportunity to delight and perform. 

Question: I'm curious to know how much of time and effort goes in packaging when a new product is prepared for launch? As a chemist, what contributions you can make in these sustainable formats of packaging?   ​

Barbara Green (with contributions from David Lickstein, Global Head of Packaging Sustainability, Innovation and Experience for Kenvue):​ Packaging is a critical component to holistic innovation and total product experience. It’s the first moment of truth our consumer’s experience to communicate the product perception and formula proposition. 

At Kenvue (Neutrogena), we take a multi-pronged approach to design packaging for a circular economy by innovating to reduce, replace, refill/reuse, and recover.  The pathway to sustainability is multi-faceted and in large part depends on the resources of local communities and regions to process novel formats and materials.   

For certain, the use of post-consumer recycled plastic is on the rise which means the plastic we are recycling is being put to good use.  In addition, we can help reduce carbon footprint through unique packaging innovations that support reduced water content formulas.  Full lifecycle analysis helps us understand where we are making progress across the many elements of sustainability: plastic reduction/recycling, carbon footprint, sustainable sourcing, etc. 

With innovation driving new consumer expectations and demands, trends continue to are shape the way consumers engage with skin care products, offering exciting opportunities for manufacturers and suppliers. By staying informed on these advancements, businesses in the personal care space can better adapt to the evolving market and provide products that resonate with consumers' desire for both efficacy and sustainability.

If you’re eager to dive deeper into these trends, we encourage you to watch the full on-demand webinar​, where our expert panelists explore the future of skincare and share actionable insights for industry professionals.