Dowsil EL-TIPS is formulated in a renewable carrier derived from sustainable sugar cane sources.
“We wanted to come up with a sensory additive that would allow customers to develop cosmetic product with high naturality content, without compromising on the sensory experience. The idea was really to offer an exceptional sensory experience as well as naturality through this technology,” said Fabienne Bizeray, marketing manager skin and sun care, Dow Personal Care.
Bizeray noted that this product was aligned with the growing trend of minimalism in beauty.
She explained that the minimalist beauty trend began in South Korea, where consumers were tiring of the multi-step skin care routines made famous by K-beauty.
“We saw the minimalist beauty trend start in South Korea with the skip care trend, which basically means trying to minimise your skin care routine.”
She elaborated that this trend is especially prevalent in urban areas where stress levels are high.
“You can imagine people who live in urban areas are super stressed and have not much time for skin care, which is why they may want to simplify their beauty routines for the busy mornings.”
The industry has responded to this trend by creating multipurpose cosmetic products, such as K-beauty brand Laneige’s Cream Skin Refiner, which claims to be both a moisturiser and toner.
“Consumers have the desire to pare down the number of products they use. They want to focus on multifunctional products to simplify their routine and focus on what matters. It’s really going to back to the basics,” said Bizeray.
Bizeray expects the trend to continue growing, accelerated by the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
“With COVID-19, you can say there was a kind of wake-up call for consumers that they should simplify routine and focus on what matters by going back to the basics and essentials.”
According to Bizeray, Dowsil EL-TIPS can support this trend by enabling the development of formulations with as little ingredients as possible.
“We used a high solid silicone elastomer as compared to other silicone elastomers; you need very little in your formulation. It has great weight efficiency, so you use much less than other silicone elastomers.”
No compromise
Furthermore, there is an ever-increasing demand for natural and sustainable cosmetic products on the market.
“In the last months, we have seen that people are really focusing on sustainability, like in Japan. Recently, Shiseido announced their new sustainability initiative and we are really seeing it everywhere within the cosmetic industry. You can say sustainability is at the forefront,” said Bizeray.
While the consumer may demand more simple, natural and sustainable products, Bizeray highlighted that they are more demanding than ever in terms sensorial experiences.
“Consumers really want to pare down the number of products you use for their face and focus on the essential ingredients. On the other hand, they still want a pleasant product to apply on their face – this is super important,” said Bizeray.
According to Dow, Dowsil EL-TIPS enables formulators to create products with 90% or more natural ingredients.
Bizeray highlighted that the firm utilised Dowsil EL-TIPS to formulate an oil-in-water facial cream with 94% naturally-derived ingredients.
“This was formulated around the essentials while delivering very good after-feel and experience for your facial care routine. A minimum number of five ingredients were used.”
