11 April 2023: in-cosmetics Global came to a successful close in Barcelona, Spain on March 30, 2023. 10,799 unique attendees from all five continents, a 33% increase on last year, descended on the Fira Barcelona Gran Via for three days of immersive networking, sourcing and learning opportunities.

Roziani Zulkifli, Event Director, in-cosmetics Global, said: “We are delighted that in-cosmetics Global returned to such widespread, international support, once again demonstrating why it is the world’s leading personal care ingredients show. Innovation could be found in abundance across the halls of the Fira Barcelona Gran Via, while the high-level, international audience in attendance demonstrated not only the importance of networking and sourcing at the show, but the industry’s willingness to invest in the future of the cosmetics and personal care industry.”

An abundance of innovation

Returning after a seven-year hiatus from the Catalonia capital, in-cosmetics Global welcomed more than 900 leading personal care ingredient suppliers, from over 50 countries, looking to connect with manufacturers and brands on the lookout for the next big ingredient trend.

Further highlighting the international reach of the show, 72% of attendees joined the event from abroad – up from 57% in 2022 – from over 118 countries. 12% of the international delegation travelled from Asia Pacific – compared to 6% in 2022 – with visitors hailing from South Korea, China, India and Japan.

For many attendees, this represented the first international personal care event they’ve attended following three years of lockdowns and subsequent travel restrictions.

And, with an abundance of innovation on the show floor, attendees were keen to make the most of every minute at the show, with visitors returning for day two and three, driving repeat attendee numbers up to 20,902 – an almost 50% increase on 2022.

Among the innovations on display by this year’s exhibitors, the event’s premium sponsor, KSM-66 Ashwagandha, showcased its branded, full-spectrum ashwagandha extract. Produced using a unique proprietary extraction process based on ‘green chemistry’ principles, attendees were able to discover how the company holistically extracts all of the root essence while preserving its natural healing potency. The calming adaptogen is renowned for its calming, de-stressing properties, making it a popular ingredient for skincare formulations.

Across the show floor, natural cosmetic active ingredient manufacturer, NORMACTIVE™ launched its TRI-MEA™ natural, upcycled and biodegradable active ingredient that repairs and protects the hair shaft, completing the hair care puzzle by upgrading hair quality to a healthy state.

While Sensient Beauty, a developer of high-purity colours and surface treatments, revealed its Aloe Surface Treatment. Extracted and upcycled from discarded aloe leaves and infused with coconut oil, the treatment is 100% natural, hydrophobic, easy to disperse, has a high-pigment load and excellent spreadability.

Meanwhile, one year after announcing its first product launch at in-cosmetics Global in Paris, Global Bioenergies returned with its second launch: Isonaturane® 16 – a sixteen-carbon molecule that is widely used in cosmetics.

Ichimaru Pharcos launched its natural cosmetic ingredient, HyaluGuard to inhibit the degradation of hyaluronic acid (HA) in fibroblasts to reduce skin sagging and wrinkles, while Stephenson, continued the success of its solid format shampoo and body bars, with the launch of its Syndopal Solid Hair Conditioner (SHC) 600-MB, the only extruded solid conditioning base available on the personal care market.

Bringing its latest product launches to life in the form of an immersive fashion show, Ashland took attendees on a journey from crocus to coconuts, and rosewood to raspberries. The novel approach transformed the stand into a fashion runway, where models showcased visual representations of the company’s most vital, naturally derived, nature-friendly materials. This included its newest, dynamic biofunctional, Liftyl, which uses upcycled rosewood chips; Saffragyl, a biofunctional upcycled from crocus flowers; Phyteq, which is based on a raspberry ketone and a preservative potentiator; and Softhance conditioner, which harnesses the power of soy and glycerine to provide moisture retention.

Speaking about the event, Sandra Meister, Business & Relationship Manager, Mibelle Biochemistry, said: “in-cosmetics Global is the single most important show of the year due to the great opportunities it offers. We have been able to meet with all our distributors from over 50 countries, as well as connect with new customers. The quality of these contacts has been great, and it has been wonderful to see the show back in full swing.”

An international crowd-pleaser

Among the attractions at this year’s show, the event’s first-ever Indonesian Natural Ingredients Pavilion brought together seven unique suppliers of essential oils, aromas and plant extracts, including PT Aroma Atsiri Indonesia, Javagri, MB Plus Agro, PT Mignon Sista International, PT Merpati Mahardika, Pemalang Agro Wangi, and Rumah Atsiri Indonesia. The pavilion, one of nine at this year’s event, enabled attendees to easily connect with niche suppliers from specific regions, as well as bringing to life local Indonesian culture with a live Gamelan musical performance on day one of the show.

Demonstrating insights into the local Spanish market, Beauty Cluster – the largest Spanish cosmetics, perfumery, and personal care cluster in the country – led the event’s Spanish pavilion, bringing together seven Spanish suppliers, including Lluch Essence, IBSINA, EG Active Cosmetics, Global Fragrances Lab, Amita HC, Neftis Laboratorios, and Aitex.

Speaking about the relationship with Beauty Cluster, Roziani Zulkifli added: “The Spanish market will always be important to the global personal care and cosmetics community. Our relationship with Beauty Cluster brings together the country’s leading suppliers. It enables visitors interested in the local market to learn and seek business opportunities with Spanish suppliers.”

Industry leaders share thought-provoking insights

In addition to a packed show floor, the event’s seven dedicated conference theatres and labs offered attendees an enviable opportunity to get hands-on with the latest formulation techniques, gain exclusive access to the latest market intelligence, and find inspiration for new product innovations.

Opening the Marketing Trends Theatre, Conor Spicer, Senior Research Analyst – Beauty & Health, Euromonitor explored the transformation of haircare in the post-pandemic world. He detailed three notable trends and the drivers behind them, including ‘Less is More’ – a trend leading the way as a result of consumers being more selective with their haircare routines, driven by the impact of COVID-19 and subsequent inflationary pressures. They are becoming more selective, opting for fewer but higher quality items with attributes that focus on efficacy and multifunctionality.

The pandemic was also noted for its influence on the ‘Skinification of Hair,’ where an increased focus on health and safety has prompted the emergence of ‘skintellectuals’ who strive to better understand their skin and beauty needs. As a result, “skinification” within hair has grown in prominence, with more brands adopting skincare ingredients and formulations, with the scalp acting as an extension of the skin.

The final trend reflects the maturity of the hair care market and the importance of ‘Purpose over Profit,’ where value growth is often stimulated by premiumisation. Here, as consumer desire evolves, and the purchasing power of Gen Z increases, areas such as ingredient transparency and inclusivity are recognised as key opportunities for growth among brands.

The Marketing Trends Theatre also welcomed Emma Fishwick, Senior Account Manager, NPD Group who took attendees through the latest fragrance innovations. Highlighting the opportunities within the sector, she revealed that the fragrance market was in double-digit growth across Europe, with Spain peaking at 22%. Meanwhile, Italy (20%), Germany (17%), France (12%) and the UK (13%) all noted significant market increases. She noted that within the category, interest in refillable options grew by 23%, while gift sets saw a decline of 2%.

Technology was also a pertinent trend of interest, as covered by Adrià Martínez Noveleta, Strategic Project Manager, Beauty Cluster. He warned attendees that a ‘deep tech tsunami’ would follow, detailing how technology trends including Artificial Intelligence (AI), blockchain, and industry 5.0 (spanning automation, big data and cyber security) would enhance and personalise the customer experience, improve business opportunities and efficiency, and aid expansion into new markets. Highlighting the challenges from data privacy, legal and regulatory risks and the growing dependence on data, Adrià concluded that for success, the collaboration between brands and tech experts will be critical.

The topic of technology was also covered during this year’s popular R&D Tours, which saw hundreds of attendees join expert consultant, Rouah Al-Wakeel, as she guided participants to selected stands linked to three highly topical subjects: Microbiome, sponsored by Symrise; Skinification, sponsored by CODIF; and Biotech, sponsored by Michelle Biochemistry.

Putting ingredients under the microscope

Elsewhere on the show floor, a series of Technical Seminars offered inspiration for new product formulations, delivered by professionals from raw material suppliers, including Stephenson, Active Concepts, Solvay, Sharon Personal Care, LipoTrue, Univar Solutions, ROELMI HPC, and Innospec.

Dr Emmanuel Coste, Scientific Marketing Manager, EXSYMOL presented a technical seminar on the importance of body confidence, highlighting how the company’s new range of cosmetic active ingredients offer solutions for silhouette shaping, body firming and/or cellulite reduction while improving skin texture. Meanwhile, Rene Schmitz, Technical Sales & Marketing Manager, bitop shared insights on the company’s multifunctional bioactives: Ectoin® natural and Glycoin® natural, and why they are well placed to help brands formulate highly effective, “clean beauty” formulations, which meet the latest market and consumer trends.

Sustainability takes the lead

The newly expanded Sustainability Zone, sponsored by AAK and Farmforce, showcased the latest developments and achievements in sustainable beauty. Among the speakers headlining the educational programme within the Zone, Sami Selkälä, Founder and CEO, Innomost demonstrated how it is using upcycled birch for cosmetics, describing trees as the ‘ultimate choice for raw materials.’ She reflected on the nutrient-rich birch and its wide-ranging benefits, from improving preservation to offering antimicrobial, wound healing, anti-inflammatory and antiseptic qualities.

Addressing how brands can connect with the eco-conscious shopper and achieve sustainability without greenwashing, Phil Verey, Managing Director, Provenance spoke about the importance of future-proofing sustainability marketing and how to avoid greenwashing with simple, jargon-free information at the point of sale. He highlighted how, with nearly 80% of beauty shoppers expressing doubts on whether to trust the industry’s sustainability claims, transparency is key in communicating a brand’s positive impact.

Elsewhere, Eric Leroy, Global Marketing Director, Beauty Care and Caroline Mabille, Global Marketing Manager Beauty Cleansing Solutions, Solvay demonstrated the sustainable attributes of fermentation techniques, while Jordi Ayats, Marketing Manager, ALGAKTIV detailed how the company’s state-of-the-art biotechnology is harnessing the power of microalgae to create vegan active ingredients for skincare.

Sophie Moisden, Global Marketing Director, Cargill NV, said: “The past three days have been a real success as we have launched new products and upgraded our sustainability value proposition. Our highlight of the show was our talk at the Sustainability Zone theatre where it was fantastic to see over 70 people come and join the discussion on putting sustainability into action. It isn’t easy to be sustainable, however, seeing brands and companies eager to learn and play their part is inspiring.”

Also making its debut at the show was in-cosmetics Discover, the brand new in-cosmetics digital initiative powered by Covalo. This state-of-the-art ingredients search engine allows users to browse and match a voluminous number of ingredients by certification, performance claims, chemical groups and applications. The Discover team of consultants were also on hand to share market insights into what formulators are searching for on the platform. A case in point is actives currently generating 3 times more searches than any other function, which proves how brands and formulators are responding to a growing audience of end users keen on efficacious and science-backed ingredients.

Finally, the popular Formulation Lab® returned, sponsored by Brenntag, to offer formulators and R&D specialists a carefully curated, practical programme that explored the very latest formulation techniques. From lipsticks and repairing hairsprays, to mineral sunscreens and scalp and hair masks, delegates were invited to formulate live on the show floor, with guidance from ingredient suppliers including Brenntag, Innospec, IMCD France, Ashland, BASF Personal Care and Nutrition GmbH and Evonik.

While formulators and R&D specialists were hands-on in the Formulation Lab®, the show’s immersive product areas enabled visitors to get up close and personal with the latest ingredients.

From the newest ingredients to hit the market in the Innovation Zone, invigorating sensations in the Sensory Bar, and the most innovative pigments and hues at the Make-Up Bar, visitors were inundated with opportunities to test, try, and discover ingredients to inspire the next product formulation.

Across the show’s interactive product displays, attendees actively collected product information through the digital Colleqt QR service – which enabled visitors to collect product information using their default camera app – generating more than 50,000 leads for participating exhibitors.

These popular show features also formed the entries in this year’s in-cosmetics Global Awards. In what was a record-breaking year, the awards attracted more than 250 entries, with exhibitors and visitors coming together to celebrate the industry’s most forward-thinking suppliers.

Closing the first day of the show, the winners of the Innovation Zone: Active and Functional Ingredient Awards, Green Ingredient Award, Rising Star Award and Sensory and Make-Up Bar Awards were all announced at a highly anticipated in-person ceremony. The full list of this year’s winners is available here.

Following two award wins – Silver in the Innovation Zone Best Ingredient – Functional Category for its Aristoflex Eco T, and Gold in the Green Ingredient category for its Rootness Awake, Thomas Lukowicz – Technical Key Account Manager, Clariant said: “We’re very proud to win these awards because it fulfils our purpose as a brand. We started ten years ago and it’s very challenging as a company to bring something new to the market which combines biodegradability and high performance, so we’re extremely happy to be recognised and rewarded for our efforts.”

in-cosmetics Global returns to Paris, France from 16-18 April 2024.  Register your interest to attend now.

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