Clarins makes a new addition to its AromaPhytoCare range, with a new face care associating in a new packaging the Blue Orchid Oil with an emulsion from natural origin.

With the launch of Plant Gold / L’Or des Plantes, Clarins associates several innovative and challenging technologies to answer trendy needs of consumers. The formula is from natural origin. While the oil is an existing product, the emulsion is a new formula, made with natural origin emulsifiers, natural origin polymers, and apreservative system without phenoxyethanol or other questionned preservatives. Clarins chose the innovative Neomix from Aptar, a dual chamber pump dispenser, fitting with the idea to offer to consumer a product inspired from Clarins spa rituals. The mix is interesting, but the “reason why” is not at its full potential. If Clarins wanted to offer the same approach as in Clarins spa rituals and customization of skin care, it could have used the whole possibilities of Aptar Neomix. Indeed, Neomix was develop to work with several cartridges to insert in the main pack to finalize the customization of the formula. This was not the choice of Clarins, maybe to avoid complexity.

Claims & Communication

With Plant Gold / L’Or des Plantes Oil-Emulsion, Clarins is not looking for ultra-edgy efficacy but rather offer to the market a natural origin face care with reliable classic benefits, like nourishing, skin feel, radiance. Clarins Plant Gold / L’Or des Plantes is part of the Aromaphytocare range, a range of “face and body oils combining aromatic essential oils and plant extracts”. With new addition to the Aromaphytocare range, Clarins offer to its consumers a more classic product (a cream), while sticking to the “oil” concept thanks to the dual-chamber pack, highlighting the presence of the “blue orchid oil” in the product.

In terms of efficacy, the formula supports the following claims, based on satisfaction tests of 110 women, upon application (*) or after 15 days of application (**) :

  • 94% Skin is immediately nourished*
  • 92% Skin is immediately comfortable*
  • 92% Fine and lightweight texture**
  • 82% Radiant skin**
  • 82% More toned skin**
  • 81% Revitalized skin**
  • 81% Natural scent brings a feeling of well-being**

A satisfaction test is a questionnaire provided to a panel of people (here 110 women). Depending on their answers to this questionnaire, % of satisfaction are calculated to support claims. This way of supporting claims is very common in personal care, usually complemented with instrumental measurement (i.e. measures made on skin with machines), for evaluation the moisturizing or anti-wrinkle benefits of a cream.

Clarins also communicates on sustainability through the Aromaphytocare line up, but no highlight specifically related to Plant Gold launch. There is a communication, but not obviously embeded in the Plant Gold launch. Clarins lists some commitments they are taking :

  • chosing glass over plastic for recyclability reasons (unfortunately… L’Or des Plantes / Plant Gold is a pure plastic packaging…)
  • use of carton from responsible sourcing
  • As Clarins is all about plant extracts, they have several commitments to respect biodiversity and source responsibly their actives.

Technology

Formula

Here is the ingredient list of L’Or des Plantes / Plant Gold :

AQUA/WATER/EAU, CORYLUS AVELLANA (HAZEL) SEED OIL, COCO-CAPRYLATE/CAPRATE, MACAMIA INTERGRIFOLIA SEED OIL, PRUNUS AMYGDALUS DULCIS (SWEET ALMOND) OIL, PROPANEDIOL, POLYGLYCERYL-6 STEARATE, VITIS VINIFERA (GRAPE) SEED OIL, GLYCERYL STEARATE SE, POGOSTEMON CABLIN OIL, LEVULINIC ACID, XANTHAN GUM, CHONDRUS CRISPUS (CARRAGEENAN), GAULTHERIA PROCUMBENS (WINTERGREEN) LEAF EXTRACT, P-ANISIC ACID, SODIUM HYDROXIDE, TOCOPHEROL, POLYGLYCERYL-6 BEHENATE, LINALOOL, PARFUM/FRAGRANCE, GLYCERIN, SODIUM LEVULINATE, LIMONENE, HELIANTHUS ANNUUS (SUNFLOWER) SEED OIL, PHYTIC ACID, ROSMARINUS OFFICINALIS (ROSEMARY) LEAF EXTRACT, EUGENOL, COUMARIN, VANDA COERULEA EXTRACT.

As explained by Clarins, L’Or des Plantes / Plant Gold is a “2-in-1 Oil-Emulsion housed in an innovative dual-chamber bottle blends together the perfect balance of Clarins’ iconic Blue Orchid Face Treatment Oil and a melting lotion”. As the finished formula delivered by the packaging is a blend of both oil and emulsion, the INCI list is the sum of both.

The Oil

However, the oil within one of the chambers is the Blue Orchid Face Treatment Oil. Here is its ingredients list below. In yellow, the ingredients from the oil that appear in L’Or des Plantes / Plant Gold formula.

CORYLUS AVELLANA (HAZEL) SEED OIL, POGOSTEMON CABLIN OIL, LINALOOL, PARFUM/FRAGRANCE, LIMONENE, HELIANTHUS ANNUUS (SUNFLOWER) SEED OIL, EUGENOL, COUMARIN, CITRAL, TOCOPHEROL, VANDA COERULEA EXTRACT.

This oil is a blend of natural oils : Hazel oil, Patchouli (Pogostemon Cablin) oil and Sunflower oil, and an extract of Blue Orchid (Vanda Coerulea).

The Emulsion

As a consequence, the rest of the ingredients are used in the second formula of L’Or des Plantes : the emulsion.

More precisely, it is a O/W emulsion, based on Polyglyceryl-6 Stearate, Polyglyceryl-6 Behenate and Glyceryl Stearate SE as surfactants, supported as thickeners and stabilizer by Xanthan Gum and Carrageenan (Chondrus Crispus).

The association of Polyglyceryl-6 Stearate and Polyglyceryl-6 Behenate could correspond to Evonik Tegocare PBS 6, claimed to be “a versatile PEG-free O/W emulsifier based on fully renewable sources and is natural certified”.

The oil phase is made of Coco-caprylate/caprate, Macadamia oil (Macadamia Intergrifolia seed oil), Sweet Almond Oil (Prunus Amygdalus Dulcis Seed Oil), Grape seed oil (Vitis Vinifera Seed Oil).

The water phase contains Glycerin and two botanical extracts : an extract of Wintergreen leaf (Gaultheria Procumbens Leaf Extract) and an extract of Rosemary leaf (Rosmarinus Officinalis Leaf Extract).

The pH of the formula is adjusted with Sodium Hydroxide. The emulsion is protected against microbiological growth with Propanediol, Levulinic Acid / Sodium Levulinate, P-Anisic Acid and Phytic Acid.

Packaging

For the launch of Plant Gold / L’Or des Plantes, Clarins collaborated with Aptar, a supplier of packagings for personal care industry. Clarins used Aptar Neomix, a new dual chamber pump dispenser.

Clarins claims this choice was made to offer to consumers the same appoach of blending natural oils and creams as its spa aestheticians do in Clarins spas.

However, Clarins is not using the full potential of Neomix, and does not completely offer the Clarins customized spa experience with L’Or des Plantes. This would have been an added innovation to implement with this launch.

Indeed, L’Or des Plantes is sold “ready made” with a chamber with a cream, and a chamber with the Blue Orchid Oil. Neomix is designed and promoted by Aptar to offer customization to the consumer, through the possibility to click-in a cartridge chosen out of several :

By J.M.B.

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