The synergies between professional and mainstream skin care

By Imogen Matthews, In-Cosmetics

Many of the technologies found in skin care today can be traced to the professional skin care market. This is unsurprising, given that brands such as Clarins and Decleor have a strong presence in each of these growth categories. Like mainstream skin care, the professional skin care sector has emerged from the economic downturn in good shape with above average growth in many countries.

According to Kline Group, the professional skin care market was valued at $9.3 billion in 2012 at retail and was expected to grow by 5.4% in 2013.

“The Chinese economy has rebounded, so Asia is fairly strong,” said Karen Doskow, industry manager, consumer products, Kline. “We are also seeing a resurgence in the US, while Brazil and Eastern Europe, especially Russia and Poland, are coming through strongly.”

She noted that while professional skin care is not as fast moving as skin care, good technology has trickled down into the mainstream. For example, many major skin care companies own professional brands, such as P&G’s DDF and L’Oréal with SkinCeuticals,La Roche Posay, Decleor and Carita.

The distribution of professional skin care varies by region. In the US, it is sold in medical channels, such as through physician’s offices, whereas elsewhere it is available in pharmacies or in specialist department store distribution. For example, in the UK, Selfridges sells Dermalogica in its Beauty Workshop area.

As in retail skin care, anti-aging is a very strong trend in the professional skin care sector and most brands now have anti-aging serums in their portfolio. Sun care products are also growing fast from a small base. At the recent International Spa Association’s (ISPA) annual conference inLas Vegas, there was a big emphasis on peels and innovative at-home beauty devices.

“Consumers will mix and match and will happily buy a SkinCeuticals serum and a cleanser from Sephora,” stated Doskow.

Professional Peels

Leading professional skin care brand Dermalogica has tapped into the trend for peels with its Active Resurface 35 treatment that launched last year. It is a professional treatment that is customizable to individual skin requirements, using Dermalogica’s Face Mapping skin analysis along with a thorough consultation. The hero formulation within the treatment is the Exfoliant Accelerator 35, an AHA-BHA concentrate containing active skin smoothing lactic acid and salicylic acid, along with proteolytic enzymes and peptides to boost exfoliation for ultra smooth skin. A key claim of the treatment is the lack of inflammation, tissue damage and peeling generally associated with intense resurfacing treatments.

Spa brand Jan Marini offers so-called “lunch-time” glycolic peels that are quick treatments and makeup that can be applied immediately after the peel. The AHA Glycolic Peel is derived from sugar cane and is said to be more effective at penetrating the skinWomens Running Shoes