Nutricosmetics is an emerging field that focuses on improving the beauty and health of individuals from within. In the Nutricosmetics 2030 Podcast Season 3, Meet the Brands with Deanna Utroske, brand leaders and specialists discuss the advancements in this global movement. The second podcast of the live event, “Beautiful Inside and Outside: Pairing Topical & Ingestible Cosmetics,” featured speakers Boris Oak, CEO & Founder at EVOLVh; Sarah A. Fotis, CEO & Co-founder at Collective Laboratories; and Uroš Gotar, CIO at TOSLA Nutricosmetics.
The conversation started with Boris Oak discussing his company’s approach to creating effective and sustainable hair loss solutions. “We live at the intersection of being at the cutting edge of sustainable ingredient sourcing, product safety, and then most importantly, product performance and trying to find the very best of all worlds when it comes to the three things I just mentioned,” he said. Hair loss impacts over 90% of the world’s population at some point. It affects people’s lives. It is very personal to everybody, agreed to the speakers, that is why this topic is of such great importance, and the issue should be addressed holistically.
Further, Uroš Gotar discussed his involvement in the development of liquid nutricosmetic products and his current role as the chief innovation officer, overseeing the industry of nutritional cosmetics. “I am hopefully fostering a culture of innovation in our company and developing new partnerships that would make sense for the future of our company,” he said.
The power of combining ingestible actives with topical products for optimal results
And talking about making sense, no doubt combining ingestible actives in combination with topical products can bring the best results. It makes sense for brands to take a holistic, 360 approach to problem-solving, to target the issues from inside and out perspectives, which is becoming the norm for beauty routines and health routines in general.
Sarah A. Fotis and her brand, tapping into the nutricosmetics world, was responding to customers’ demand for a more holistic approach to hair care, “a natural step in the evolution. The customers are asking for more of a holistic approach. And as a brand, we needed to answer that question,” she said.
Introducing new cosmetics to their portfolio should be a natural progression for beauty brands. The COVID-19 pandemic has also propelled this growing consumer demand for ingestible products. The brands staying behind are usually the ones afraid of the regulatory part of the business because it’s very different from topical cosmetics; nutricosmetics products are actually dietary supplements or food supplements, and they have a different registration process.
Different doesn’t necessarily mean harder
Despite the regulatory challenges, Boris argued that supplements are actually easier to navigate in terms of regulation because the rules are clear, which makes it much easier to manage. Whereas on the topical side, it’s not nearly as regulated. It is more challenging, and your brand will more likely expose you to possible risks on that side of the equation.
The speakers also discussed the importance of ensuring that products are safe and effective and that any claims made are backed by clinical data. To avoid any recalls or even shutdowns after successfully launching a new brand or product, brands must look for manufacturers with specific certifications and clinical studies to ensure the safety and efficacy of the products, pointed out Uroš.
Is there a difference in using the same ingredients in topical vs. edible cosmetics?
Was on discussion next. Does it make sense to match ingredients in topical and ingestible cosmetics? There is no meaningful correlation between using the same ingredient topically and internally, says Sarah. When the matching ingredients in topical and ingestible cosmetics were discussed, the speakers agreed that this is not a requirement for better performance.
The requirement, however, is to listen to your consumers. Brands must position themselves to meet the growing demand for a more holistic approach to beauty and tap into innovation. And with nutricosmetics gaining popularity, the industry is expected to grow in the future.