Happi recently spoke with Corinne Morley, in-house beauty expert at New Zealand natural skincare brand Trilogy, about trends in skin care and the unique ingredients in the brand’s Rosapene Radiance Serum and other skin-saving SKUs that are stocked at Whole Foods Market, Credo Beauty and Beautorium.com.
 
HAPPI: Rosapene Radiance Serum has some unique ingredients—can you please explain the benefit of the Rosapene and the sea algae specifically and how they drive the efficacy of the product?
 
Corinne Morley: Certified organic Rosapene is a unique trademarked Trilogy formulation which harnesses all the benefits of rosehip oil and addspotent antioxidants lycopene from tomato and phytosterol from açai to help protect against environmental free radical damage, nourishing essential fatty acids from cranberry and rosehip to moisturize and repair, and mineral and vitamin-rich oat extract for a soothing, luxurious feel on this skin. Free radicals initiate the deterioration of the skin's structural support, damaging collagen and elastin fibers resulting in loss of elasticity, resilience and suppleness. Lycopene, with the ability to quench free radicals twice as efficiently as beta-carotene, is one of the most powerful antioxidants used in skin care. Independent clinical studies show Rosapene helps to significantly improve skin tone, brightness, wrinkles and elasticity.
 
We’re always researching innovations in natural ingredient technology and looking for opportunities to incorporate them into our product development. Marine ingredients were not something we’d used before but they’re known to have excellent skin benefits. We looked for those with proven radiance-boosting properties and found Juvenessence, which is the trademarked name of the sea algae extract in Trilogy Rosapene Radiance Serum. It comes from Alaria Escentula, known as the Arctic Winged Kelp, which can grow up to 2 meters long and lives in extreme conditions in the waters of Bréhat Archipelago, where sea pressure can exceed 6T/m². It’s made up of a web of elastic fibers which preserve tissue integrity against compression and ensure cohesion and firmness of the cell architecture (similar to the role that protein and elastin fibers play in the skin).
 
We supplemented our unique Rosapene formulation with a sea algae extract which acts to preserve skin tissues from accelerated aging, providing hydration, firmness and improved skin radiance. It also stimulates the detoxification of skin cells, an important biological function in combatting the effects of environmental pollution.
 
HAPPI: How important was the development of the aesthetic aspect of the serum as well as the Rosehip Oil Light Blend?
 
Morley: Extremely important! Consumers select beauty products for their performance, look, feel and smell. We live in a world of ‘I want it all’ and this is true for our industry too!At Trilogy, we have always prided ourselves on creating products that perform as well as if not better than our synthetic counterparts and this is true for the aesthetics too. Modern chemistry has created new aesthetics that can be difficult to replicate with natural materials, but with new developments there are now natural emollient oils that are close to the highly desirable synthetics like silicones. Trilogy has been at the forefront of embracing this new technology and both Trilogy Rosapene Radiance Serum and Trilogy Rosehip Oil Light have been developed to provide a beautiful silky, luxurious feel.
 
HAPPI: What are some of the major consumer trends driving skin care today? What are some of the science-based factors impacting the category? Do these two areas butt heads or do they mesh?
 
Morley: We’ll continue to see a trend toward natural products—recent research published by Grandview Research estimates the global organic personal care market will reach $15.98 billion by 2020, driven largely by growing demand for organic and natural skin care, hair care and cosmetic products.
 
While not new, pure plant oils are one of the hottest trends in skin care, and with good reason. Many of the oils extracted from seeds, nuts and fruit are beneficial and completely compatible with the skin; they deeply nourish and hydrate, while providing a protective yet invisible barrier which helps prevent moisture loss and guards against the drying effects of the environment. Natural oils have been used to care for skin for thousands of years and I believe they’ll remain the hero ingredient in top quality natural beauty products.
 
Oil based products are also becoming a hot trend due to water becoming an increasingly precious resource in some parts of the world. ‘Waterless products’ use only pure and potent botanical extracts or oils as a base, ensuring hero ingredients aren’t diluted, which is widely regarded as better for the environment and your skin.
 
There’s a huge and growing demand for skin care, which is non-GMO and free from petrochemicals, silicone oils, parabens and other nasties. People are becoming concerned about the chemical overload inherent in our modern world and are looking for simpler, more natural alternatives to their favorite products. 
 
As a result, we’re seeing increasing demand from customers for end-to-end transparency, from ingredient sourcing and packaging through to marketing of the finished product. They’re much savvier about greenwashing and dubious ‘natural’ claims around ingredients in particular.
 
There’s an entire generation of millennials who truly care about the impact we’re having on our planet. They’re demanding more accountability and transparency from brands and making purchasing decisions based on it.
 
With a growing awareness of indoor and outdoor pollution and the damaging effect on our skin, antioxidants are highly sought-after. Our skin plays an important role of acting as a barrier including protecting against pollution in the environment. Air pollutants rob the skin cells of oxygen and encourage free radicals to form. Free radicals initiate the deterioration of the skin's structural support, increasing skin sensitivity and damaging collagen and elastin fibers, resulting in loss of elasticity and suppleness.  They are often implicated as a cause of dullness, uneven skin tone and hyper pigmentation (age spots). According to the US Environmental Protection Agency, air pollutants can sometimes be higher indoors than outdoors so it is important to protect skin even if you are indoors.
 
Antioxidants are a vital component of modern skin care to help protect against aging and tissue damage caused by environmental free radicals. Antioxidants protect the skin by binding with free radicals, preventing them from attaching to healthy skin cells in a process termed ‘quenching’. This helps ensure the integrity of these cells, promoting healthier, younger-looking skin.