Our Editor Mary-Jane got to chat her favourite topic, skin, with Dr Goddertz from cult brand Nivea. He gave her some fascinating insights into the world of the iconic brand that is known and loved all over the world.
What ignited your spark for skincare?
When I was a child my mom used many NIVEA products like the NIVEA cream for my face and body or the sun lotion at the beach. The brand NIVEA always meant family, high quality and trust to me. After 8 years working for NIVEA I can tell it is really like that. I enjoy working with my team and all the other highly engaged colleagues on new innovative products every day.
To be honest, it makes me really proud to find the final products in the stores after you have worked so long and hard on them and show them to your family.
What was your mission at the outset of developing this line?
From the age of 25, collagen, the most abundant protein that contributes to skin’s firmness decreases by 1% per year. Further, the production of new collagen fibres also slows down. As a result, skin loses elasticity and becomes much thinner – cue fine lines and wrinkles.
In the fight to maintain your natural youthful skin, NIVEA scientists had started intensive research to find the right partner for Q10 and to make the products even better than before.
How long did this skincare line take to develop?
Beiersdorf scientists came across Coenzyme Q10 already in the early 1990s and investigating its essential role in the energy metabolism of human skin cells was one of the mayor topics at Beiersdorf RnD. In 1998 Beiersdorf RnD Team succeeded in making skins own Coenzyme Q10 for the first time available for human skin by topical application. Since that time various new findings about Q10 and its regulation of the cellular energy metabolism led to continuous improvement of our Q10 skincare range. Today Coenzyme Q10 offers the ideal platform to enhance cellular energy metabolism by combining it with e.g. other beneficial active ingredients like creatine and will be continuously be improved.
We all know that we should wear a high-quality SPF daily to help prevent wrinkles, but there are lots of other factors that can contribute to skin ageing too. What factors did you consider when developing this range? – could you explain it further?
Facial skin has a visibly different structure and different needs compared to body skin. Its epidermis is much thinner and more sensitive than body skin. Facial skin is more individual – some people tend to get very oily skin, others suffer from dry skin. It is put under high mechanical stress as we use our face a lot to communicate and express our feelings, what results in laughter lines and eye wrinkles. And of course, our facial skin is always exposed to external influences like heat, cold, and especially sunlight. The UVA rays from the sun have a long wavelength and go deep into the skin. These rays damage the skin’s collagen which results in wrinkles – about 85% of the wrinkles which appear in the face are caused in this way. Therefore, we offer our Q10 Power Day Products with sufficient sun protection. Its comprehensive UVA/UVB protection with SPF 15 guards your skin from the damaging effects of sunlight, which cause premature skin aging. NIVEA Q10 POWER + Firming Day Cream is also available with SPF 30 for those who want a higher sun protection.
Aside from the sun, there are also other contributing factors: When you are stressed, ill, tired or lead a rather unhealthy lifestyle, your body consumes more nutrients than usual to repair itself and fight the short-term obstacle in its path. With all the Q10 being used up, your body has a greater need for CoQ10. This lack of CoQ10 can have serious effects on your skin, as you’re not getting all the nutrients and energy you so badly need.
The use of NIVEA Q10 Power products will help you to replenish the needed Q10 level.
For Mum’s by the end of the day it’s almost impossible to follow an extensive skincare routine. What products would you recommend for a quick and effective routine?
If your kids are crying and knocking on your bathroom door (my experience every day) you need to go for the most important care. In the morning you should apply the Q10 Power Daycream as it effectively helps your skin counteract the effects of ageing. Its UVA/UVB protection with SPF 15 guards your skin from the damaging effects of sunlight, which cause premature skin aging.
If there is a bit of time left I recommend using the Q10 Power Eye Cream: It’s specially developed for the delicate eye area to visibly reduce wrinkles and diminish the appearance of dark circles. For a smoother and younger looking complexion.
In the evening, when your kids are sleeping you deserve a relaxing moment: Apply the new NIVEA Q10 Power Sleeping Melt-In Mask in the evening on freshly cleansed face, neck and décolleté. Give yourself a gentle face massage and relax for 5-10 minutes as the formula absorbs. It will pamper and nourish the skin overnight for a smoother and firmer skin feeling for the face, neck and décolleté.
Who is the skincare line developed for?
The Q10 woman wants to age in the best possible way, enhancing her own natural beauty. She looks for anti-wrinkle care that works in harmony with her skin for a heathy, naturally beautiful skin.
She loves her family & friends, enjoys her work & hobbies and loves travelling. Her look is important to her and she wants to support her skin, do something good for it to keep it healthy and continue to feel good.
How do you generate innovative ideas?
(Source Beiersdorf.com)
Science
Natural science knowledge has been growing at a rate of around 200% every 8 years, so today, we know 5,000 times more than we did 100 years ago. At Beiersdorf, we have contributed to this wealth of knowledge and our research into skin’s biology and the basic biological, chemical and physical principles of optimal skin treatment has led to a huge increase in product and ingredient innovations.
The basis for progress and innovation at Beiersdorf is the continual search for new biological opportunities to target the specific skin-related needs of different skin types and age groups. At our Hamburg research center, our multidisciplinary team of human, cell, and molecular biologists, immunologists, and biochemists uses its research to find new, active principles that support the skin in its metabolic processes – as naturally as possible.
Open Innovation
Additionally our door is always open for innovation – and involving external expertise is increasingly becoming a core element in our efforts. For this reason, we integrate business partners strategically in our work, with the goal of developing highly innovative product ideas together through regular intensive dialogue.
Closeness to consumers
Being close to consumers is fundamental to our product development. In fact, since 2009 we have significantly expanded our product evaluation and consumer research department to understand their needs at an even deeper level.
At our research centre in Hamburg as well as in our global regions, we regularly speak to, survey and monitor consumers regarding their usage habits and expectations. For example, we have specially designed bathrooms at the centre where we can observe how consumers use our products. By staying close to our consumers, we can glean valuable information about how we can improve our products and packaging and how our products can be designed for tactility, ease and pleasure of use.
To what do you attribute your success?
NIVEA offers high-quality products which always deliver reliable and perfect results – but we have never rested on these good results. We are continuously improving the formulas to guarantee a state of the art formula and high efficacy. Furthermore, we set extremely high standards to ensure the safety and quality of our consumer products which is why, as well as using recognized and reliable procedures to demonstrate the specific effects of each product, our team of physicists, engineers and medical technicians are continuously working on finding and developing new testing methods and technologies. We place great emphasis on being close to consumers so conduct ongoing consumer research at regional as well as international levels.
Is there something in the range for each type of ageing skin?
The day cream is available in three different versions: one for normal skin with SPF 15 or SPF 30 and one for combination skin with SPF 15. The range also contains a night cream, a serum, an eye cream and an overnight melt-in mask.
Mary- Jane O’Regan, editor of Hi Style.