Forever Young : The future of anti-aging products rests on new technologies and ingredients that deliver age-minimizing effects. 

Author/s: Regina Molaro
Issue: Global Cosmetic Industry, March, 2001

IN A SOCIETY enamored by youth and beauty, thanks in part to TV and Hollywood, it comes as no surprise that creating new anti-aging products is at the top of marketers' R&D lists. Selling hope in a jar is an easy task. Most consumers, particularly Baby Boomers and senior citizens, are constantly searching for the Fountain of Youth. The anti-age trend has skin-care suppliers, formulators, R&D, and marketing departments busily working to challenge the effects of time.

Anti-aging products have appeared on the shelves of mass drug and department stores for years now, but there have been significant breakthroughs in terms of innovative products, new technologies, and ingredients. Due to the significance of this market, magic ingredients such as Retinol, Glycolic Acid, and AHAs, formerly "industry-only" terms, now have become part of the average consumer's common language.

A combination of the effects of aging and atmospheric stresses, such as sun, smoke, and pollution, may begin to become visible even before age 30. However, it's not too late to reverse the effects. With a little help from these magic potions, consumers can minimize the appearance of wrinkles, age spots, and stretch marks, or improve makeup's performance.

"We're all in the game of imagery and good-feeling products," says Jon Packer, corporate vice president at Centerchem, a Norwalk, distributor of naturally derived specialty ingredients. "Consumers want highly aesthetic, attractive products that bring immediate perceivable results. Technology is an important aspect, but marketing must launch 'claim' ideas. Marketing is what truly drives the business."

As for technology, "We're clearly entering a post-AHA era," says Packer. "AHAs are still heavily available in the marketplace, but consumers aren't as excited about them." Milder alternatives, such as new non-acid technologies are big news. For example, Estee Lauder's Idealist Skin Refinisher offers a "new non-acid" technology that claims to "take care of flakiness, redness, fine lines, and pores." Suggested retail is $42.50 for a 1-oz. bottle.

Skin lighteners also are becoming very popular. They help reduce the appearance of brown marks, freckles, and skin discoloration. It usually takes about five to six weeks for results to appear. A 2-oz. jar has a suggested retail of $32.

Robanda Company offers other anti-aging treatments, such as Rejuvenating Serum, Hydrating Toner Mist, and Anti-Aging Hand Cream. There is a huge demand for products like this--ones that will protect and lighten dark spots.

Not all age remedies come in the form of creams, tonics, and serums. Skin Support System, a dietary supplement of vitamin C, comes in cablets. Taken twice daily, the caplets aim to protect and maintain youthful-looking skin while working with the body's natural functions. Further, the caplets provide the body and skin with nutrients that are scientifically acknowledged to reduce the visible effects of aging. "There has been a move back to vitamins, particularly vitamin C, and more recently, vitamin A. Broad functionality and consumer recognition make vitamins an ideal ingredient.

"When the body is exposed to stress, smoking, or other health-related traumas, it often is stripped of the essential elements required for collagen synthesis and speedy wound healing. The Skin Support System is ideal for replacing essential nutrients that are needed to facilitate the body's requirements for inner health and well-being," says Meagan McLellan, president of Cellex-C International. Results usually appear after 12 to 16 weeks of use; a jar of 60 caplets carries a suggested retail of $45.

Long Island City, NY-based Mana Products introduces Make[TM], a skin-care collection that creates a new concept in applying makeup. "Ingenious tricks-of-the-trade treatments" transform skin into a smooth, even canvas by manipulating surface texture and easing fine lines and wrinkles. The collection features an Eye Transformer to offset dark circles and soften and resurface lids. Suggested retails range from approximately $15 to $22.50.

In recent years the market has been inundated with under-eye creams but lacked a product that treated stretchmarks, which result from pregnancy, weight gain, body building, and hormonal fluctuations. The "wonder cream" contains the patented active ingredient, Regenetrol Complex, a natural compound derived from purified botanicals. It promotes collagen growth, and results are usually visible after two to eight weeks of use. A 4-oz. jar carries a suggested retail of $30.

Avon's Anew Luminosity Brightening Complex contains a combination of potent antioxidants and a sunscreen that provides broad-spectrum UVA/UVB protection. It evens out skin tone, improves texture, and counteracts dullness, while blocking harmful rays. It also diminishes the appearance of freckles, age spots, and skin discolorations. Suggested retail is $20 for 1 oz.

RELATED ARTICLE: Men: An Untapped Market
Anti-age products traditionally have been targeted at women, as society tends to perceive a woman's beauty fades as she ages. On the flip side, when men age, they're perceived to be more mature, debonair, worldly, and rugged. "But the male certainly has vanity--we are a youth-oriented society," says Centerchem's Jon Packer. "Some men have even gone the plastic surgery route. More marketers are trying to enter into men's skin care, but it has mostly been an elusive market."

"The men's market is the fastest-growing segment of the skin-care category, especially for Baby Boomers who want to retain a youthful appearance," says Robanda's David Leib, whose core audience includes women ages 28 and above. "However, more men are beginning to use the line because it's not gender specific," he adds. The products are as effective on men as they are on women, and men are comfortable using the line because the packaging is not too feminine. The bottom line, Packer says, is "the men's market remains a great untapped opportunity." 

COPYRIGHT 2001 Advanstar Communications, Inc.
COPYRIGHT 2001 Gale Group