Premium Beauty News - You have launched in quick succession several innovations in the field of lip applicators. Where do you find your inspiration from?
Maria Viegas - Our proactive approach that we had already explained on a previous occasion on your site, has confirmed being the right one and has even strengthened in recent months. Basically it consists in always staying tuned to the market and its trends. We systematically organize brainstorming sessions with consumer panels to feed our creativity. At the same time, we have developed partnerships with a network of designers, make-up artists, experts in various fields, and this, in all parts the world. These numerous sessions and the quality of the resulting feedback, confirm the necessity to meet the specific needs inherent to each country. Gone are the days where there was just one packaging on display, not to mention the universal applicator. Consumer expectations, for example, in South America are very different from those in China or in the Middle East.
Premium Beauty News - A true revolution! Because it is one thing to notice it, but it’s a completely different story when it comes to implementing it on a industrial scale!
Maria Viegas - Yes, but it’s our job! And we are already in battle order to take up these challenges with a very operational but also very flexible industrial tool, to support our customers in their growth projects. We are also aware that innovation does not focus only on products but it does also in processes. At Albéa, we also pay a lot of attention to all the developments on materials, surface treatments, new technologies sometimes coming from other areas and that may lead to new avenues in our domain.
Premium Beauty News - Any examples of this "flexibility" in terms of innovation and on the efficiency of the feedback from the field?
Maria Viegas - Yes, for instance the three rotating lipgloss applicators that we have just released! They enable a perfectly uniform application of the formula on the lips and maximum brightness in a single stroke. This applicator is actually part of the SpinArt™ family. The first one, called "Volume +" is a flocked applicator with a simple shape but which, thanks to its different options in terms of wipers and sizes of the stem, enables according to the needs to better control the amount of formula applied on the lips compared to a standard applicator. The second one, "Silhouette", with its design recalls unquestionably feminine curves. With its ergonomics it fits perfectly to the shape of lips. The "formula traps" located at the upper part and bottom part of the flocked tip make it possible to apply just the right amount of product as of the first application.
Finally the third applicator, "Mars", features a non-flocked tip with an extremely original shape. It clearly offers more definition and more hygiene thanks to its angled tip. Composed of "micro formula traps" it is ideal for pearly lipgloss formulas.
Premium Beauty News - Another feedback from your ’field’ sessions, the come back on the lips of the red colour and a demand for precision!
Maria Viegas - Absolutely! intense colours are back and ask for more technical applicators. And Néopro, the new range of lipgloss spatulas, epitomizes this trend perfectly. This new series of six innovative lip applicators ("Tulip", "Up&Down," "Fiber Sensation", "Feather," "Rose" and "Luxe Color") combines an eye-catching design, vibrant colours and a professional make-up result. They also come in a flocked or partly flocked version according to requirements.
Premium Beauty News - This indeed is all about "ultra" precision!
Maria Viegas - This is the result of our studies! We offer a complementary range: the "Tulip" Model with its flower-shaped spatula stands out thanks to its incredible fineness and extreme comfort, perfect for liquid gloss and lipstick formulas with strong and opaque colours. "Up&Down" has two different sides to make up the lower and upper lip. A single stroke is enough to achieve a very technical result, a real tool worthy of a professional make-up artist. "Fiber Sensation" mimics the gestures of the make-up artist with a brush for ultra shiny formulas and a wet effect. The feather tipped shape and its firmness allows for a precise lip contour. "Rose" has a thick base with large formulas traps to capture a large amount of gloss. "Lux Color" features on one side some grooves to load the applicator with formula and a flat side that enables to smoothly apply the gloss on the lips.
