Nivea spotlights charcoal as innovative sheet mask ingredient
17 Jun 2021 --- Charcoal is a key ingredient in face care launches in 2021, with beauty brands opting for the novel beauty formulation favorite. To find out more about its popularity and presence in the market, BPC Insights spoke to Beiersdorf, which recently launched its Nivea Urban Skin Detox Mask.
The recently-unveiled mask contains charcoal powder, a sought-after ingredient that has come under the spotlight as an in-demand formulation must-have for facial care launches. Nivea’s Urban Skin Detox Green Tea And Charcoal 10 Minute Sheet Mask is described as a deep cleansing sheet mask that gently cleanses the skin in depth, providing a clean and refreshed result.
“For our Nivea Urban Skin Detox Mask we were looking for ingredients with a deep cleansing effect,” says a speaker of personal care product manufacturer and retailer, Beiersdorf AG.
Suitable for sensitive skin, the Nivea Urban Skin Detox Mask cleanses and detoxifies skin from environmental stressors that we experience in our daily lives. The product’s aim is to refresh, relax and destress the skin.
New product launch
Click to EnlargeThe Nivea development team chose activated charcoal for its deep cleansing properties. Source: Beiersdorf.Detailing why the household name chose charcoal to feature in its new product, a spokesperson from Beiersdorf reveals: “Activated charcoal is a natural ingredient and an ideal powerful cleansing agent as it works like a dirt magnet, being able to bind many times its own weight.”
“At the same time, it is a gentle exfoliant which helps to remove dead skin cells from the surface of the skin,” the spokesperson for the beauty group continues.
In recent years, consumers are increasingly seeking ingredients in mask formulations that enhance their overall wellbeing when selecting mask products. Ingredients that help to protect beauty users from external influences are also popular, with brands striving to achieve this by providing detoxing and deep cleansing solutions.
Proven and popular ingredients
“Consumers look for familiar ingredients that are tried and tested,” highlights a speaker of Beiersdorf. During the pandemic, facial care treatments have not been available in beauty salons, so people have been happy to make a mask at home.
However, despite COVID-19 and the interest in at-home mask treatments, a speaker of Beiersdorf reveals: “The pandemic had no influence on the use of certain ingredients.”
“In general, facial masks that provide a heightened sensory experience while delivering advanced skin benefits beyond hydration are gaining interest,” says Beiersdorf’s spokesperson.
A natural choice
Typically used on the face in skin care products, activated charcoal is known for removing toxins and impurities from the user’s skin.
Natural and organic ingredients that have become synonymous with the green trend towards environmentally-friendly and eco-conscious beauty and personal care (BPC) products continue to influence launches. “Consumers particularly opt for naturally derived, sustainable mask solutions,” the speaker of Beiersdorf AG reveals.
Describing what attracts consumers to charcoal, the Beiersdorf’s spokesperson suggests: “Charcoal is a natural ingredient consumers know and trust for centuries. Activated charcoal is traditionally used as medical treatment for oral poisoning or as natural water filtration agent.” Its long-standing history is helpful in attracting BPC buyers who are looking for familiar ingredients in the products they purchase. Nivea’s new charcoal launch comes in a readily biodegradable fiber mask, in a further bid to appeal to consumers’ calls for sustainable beauty products.
Why charcoal?
Click to EnlargeCharcoal was chosen for its strong absorption action. Source: Beiersdorf.Charcoal is a natural powder that when treated with oxygen, becomes highly porous and has strong absorption power. “Therefore, we use charcoal in our detox sheet mask as it is able to bind all kinds of toxins and impurities,” says the Beiersdorf spokesperson.
The Nivea Urban Detox Face Sheet Mask with charcoal strives to cleanse the skin intensively and detoxify it from environmental stressors. It is also designed to refresh and mattify the skin, resulting in a healthy look and a clean skin feel.
There are specific considerations for formulating with charcoal, Beiersdorf reveals: “As charcoal is also a natural colorant, being able to leave stains on towels and clothes, the amount used in cosmetic formulations needs to be carefully chosen to have maximum effects without undesired staining.”
Charcoal-based launches by other big brands
It is not just Beiersdorf-owned Nivea that is tapping into the potential of charcoal in its facial formulations, as other multinational brands are getting in on the action too, hoping to get a piece of the charcoal beauty pie.
The leading cosmetics and personal care brand, L'Oréal, brought its Paris Men Expert Pure Charcoal Anti Blackhead Daily Face Scrub to the market in December 2020. The scrub, which is targeted at the male beauty market, aims to gently exfoliate the skin, remove dead skin cells and cleanse the skin.
Multinational BPC retailer, Sephora, also showcases the innovative and popular beauty ingredient by aptly naming its facial skin care release, The Charcoal Mask. Launched in November 2020, the Charcoal Mask is a purifying mask that comes in black carbon fiber fabric and aims to effectively tighten the pores.
By Natasha Spencer-Jolliffe, BPC Insights Senior Editor
