While the most common personalization of beauty products is achieved through online quizzes, custom beauty is moving to more specific scientific methods such as DNA analysis. Today, many companies choose to obtain DNA information using tests on the mouth or even on the forehead to provide consumers with personalized products and skincare ingredients.
It may seem overly invasive for older consumers who worry about privacy, but young people who are keen on personalized beauty and are more accustomed to sharing data are embracing it.
According to an exclusive survey commissioned by YPulse by WWD Beauty Inc, 91% of 500 Gen Z and millennial women are very interested in personalized products that meet their needs, and about 76% are willing to take the quiz for more personalized product recommendations.
"67% of young women say they are interested in brands that offer personal skincare solutions through swab testing of hormones, microecology and DNA, and 55% are willing to share their biological samples for DNA analysis to obtain customized products, but privacy will also be a key factor in this." Mary Leigh Bliss, vice president of content at YPulse, said.
Jana Bobosikova, CEO of Los Angeles-based branding organization Epic Brands, found that in the past many beauty companies focused on front-end personalization (such as questionnaire testing) as a tool for customer acquisition and loyalty. But diagnostic tests taken from the healthcare industry ecosystem have now become a source of innovation for them to establish their core product positioning. "What we're seeing is synthetic biology and its ability to create truly personalized, innovative solutions for specific skin conditions." She said.
From hormones to skin microecology and DNA, beauty brands offer home tests that measure a range of biometrics and collect data to lay the groundwork for long-term innovation. According to Euromonitor, there is a growing interest in DNA-based personalization in the industry, although it is still in the exploratory phase.
"There are so many factors that determine the state of your skin, including your genes and the microecology of your skin," says Dr. Michelle Henry, a dermatologist in New York City. In applying DNA and genetic information, we are still in the Stone Age. ”
Vanessa Hudgens and Madison Beer saw the potential of DNA testing to give consumers a better understanding of their skin, launching DNA-based skincare brand Know Beauty in June. "Our focus is on in-depth study of genetic differences to open a new door for preventing skin problems and daily care," said Dr. Avnee Shah, Chief Medical Officer of Know Beauty. One possibility is that skincare formulations will be created specifically for each consumer, providing different concentrations of active ingredients depending on the specific skin needs. ”
Know Beauty founding team Vanessa Hudgens, Madison Beer and Dr. Avnee Shah
Know Beauty's tests have garnered 50,000 user participation since its launch. The test consists of two parts, first, the consumer will receive a GENotype-focused DNA test kit that includes a swab sampled on the cheek. When a sample is sent back and analyzed in the lab, consumers will conduct an online quiz that focuses on phenotype (a set of biometrics formed by the combination of genes and environmental effects) that takes into account other factors such as weather, stress, moisture, and diet to focus on current skin problems. Based on a combination of genotype and phenotype data, the results of the analysis will be sent back to the consumer within 10 to 14 days with the recommended Know Beauty skincare products.
Know Beauty DNA test kit
"You only need to have your DNA test once in your life because the DNA doesn't change." Avnee Shah says.
But while DNA doesn't change, hormones change, and hormone-based skin tests come into being. Veracity, a skincare brand that uses home hormone testing to collect data on skin condition and provide products on demand, was officially launched last summer. Brand founder and CEO Allie Egan said: "From mood to metabolism, from skin health to fertility, hormones are signals of changes in almost every important function of the body. ”
Veracity's Skin + Health test provides consumers with hormone values, personal biometric information, skincare products and ingredients tailored to hormone levels, and personalized diet and lifestyle recommendations. Egan's team includes a variety of medical experts, including obstetricians and gynecologists, endocrinologists, functional medicine physicians, and dietitians, to help decide which hormones are best to test — including estrogen, progesterone, testosterone, DHEA, cortisol, and more.
Veracity hormone test box
Each biological factor has a different effect on the skin. For example, low levels of estrogen can lead to dryness and wrinkles, while too much can lead to hyperpigmentation. For lower estrogen levels, the brand recommends ingredients such as ceramides, hyaluronic acid, vitamin A alcohol and copper gluconate, and to reduce estrogen levels, the brand recommends antioxidants such as vitamin C and vitamin E and acids such as glycolic acid.
"87 percent of the women we tested had at least one hormonal imbalance," Egan says, "and we wanted to create a targeted solution that focused on the hormonal imbalance problem and saw results quickly." ”
Veracity skincare products
These tests themselves are not new, and the innovation is the new way of testing brought about by technological advances. Dr Anna Gold, a practicing acupuncturist and East Asian medicine physician, said: "Swab tests for checking gut and hormones and stool tests that can be performed at home have been around since the 80s, and functional medicine doctors and integrative medicine doctors like me have been using them for decades. They are now more widely used thanks to the internet, and these companies have realized that by hiring several scientists or MDs in their staff, they can use algorithms and data to quickly locate consumer demands. ”
Dr. Elsa Jungman, a Scientist from France and based in San Francisco, recently launched her Skin Microecology Test Kit, which uses a forehead swab that identifies the 10 most common bacteria and fungi on the skin and presents an overview of the consumer's skin microbiome, then provides personalized skincare, ingredients and nutritional advice. "We collected more than 10,000 data in the survey, and we can see that more than 75% of people have sensitive skin, and the number one reason that affects skin sensitivity is not skin care products, but mental health," Jungman said. This shows that personalization requires holistic thinking and providing advice beyond skincare products, where skincare is just a touchpoint. ”
Elsa Jungman Skin Microecology Test Kit
Bobosikova told WWD: "What has not yet been achieved but is highly anticipated is true end-to-end personalization based on bioinformatics – monitoring data on the one hand and configuring precisely controlled products on the other." ”
According to Euromonitor's analysis, the personalization of beauty in the future will be automated through sensor or implant integration, or predicted using daily monitoring and real-time tracking, but one thing is clear anyway – the future of beauty will be personalized.
"The quality of information depends on those who interpret it," says Dr. Michelle Henry, "and I'm excited to get more information and data and see it used in valuable ways." I'm very excited about the trend of testing evolving and becoming more reliable, but I still recommend that people leave clinical diagnosis to a professional. ”WWD
Written by Jayme Cyk
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