When I set foot in the first formulation laboratory where I studied in Ferrara, I was dazzled not so much by the emulsifier we used to make prototypes but by the collection of raw materials. That expanse of jars that contained almost identical powders concealed the mystery that makes the difference between a basic formula and true high-tech cosmetics.

Little by little I began to know them by name, but above all, I began to understand their origin. The world of producers of these substances gathers at the European In-Cosmetics trade show, where the most innovative molecules that will be part of the most effective and safest formulas of the following years parade every year on a sort of metaphorical red carpet.

As I explain to my friends that they know nothing about cosmetics but everything they want to know, it is in the quality of the substances we use that the value of a cosmetic is at stake. As with a piece of clothing or an ultra-technological object, its components can belong to a premium or low-cost range and it is the ability to choose and match them that determines the overall level of the product.

At MyCli, I am fortunate to be able to use very high-quality ingredients dosed at a high percentage, that is to say in concentrations used by manufacturers in the effectiveness tests. As our product cartons say: active at the recommended functional dose.

How do we choose them? Primarily by determining the purpose of the formula very well. MyCli cosmeceuticals have specific action targets to stimulate cell rejuvenation processes. So our first screening is given by the type of action we want to obtain. Defend collagen? Stimulate the activity of the fibroblast? Redefine the architecture of the dermis? Seal the skin barrier?

For each purpose, there are many raw materials available, but there is not an endless amount of choices. There are not very many materials that truly perform in excellent ways and come from development centers with very high skills in organic chemistry.

Among our most prestigious partners I would like to mention:

  • Exsymol
  • Shin Etsu
  • Symrise
  • Showa Denko
  • BASF
  • Gattefossé
  • Merck

We can’t name them all because the list is very long, but I would like to thank each of the researchers for their collaboration and generosity in sharing technical tricks and vital information for the success of our products.

Finally, the answer to a question that we often asked our teachers in the Master of Cosmetology program: “Is a good raw material enough to make a series A product?” The words of my teacher and now my director, Anna Chiara Cortese, forever illuminated my vocation: you are the engineers of the formula and the secrets of a cosmetic Ferrari will be your most important professional heritage.

At MyCli, we combine the opportunity to teach and be able to give the right arguments, what my marketing colleagues call “reason to believe”, with a strong promise: to defend and stimulate the youth of the skin, at any age!

Dr. Maria Cimmino
Pharmaceutical Chemist and Cosmetologist