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That the female intimate area is becoming less and less intimate and more visible was demonstrated by
Gwyneth Paltrow
's controversial
vagina-scented
candle in 2021 or, more recently, the dress that
Gillian Anderson
wore at the Golden Globes, carefully embroidered
with vulvas
by
Gabriela Hearst,
former Chloé designer and friend of the actress.
And, if we talk about beauty, this is also corroborated by the launch made by the Spanish cosmetics firm
Lico
last summer,
a serum
that specifically treats the skin in this area.
Yes, that's right, it is not a typo, we repeat, a serum that, instead of preventing the aging of the skin on the face, does so on the vagina.
The creator of this rather curious product, at least in our country, is
Estefanía Ferrer,
the founder of the brand, who has a professional career as curious as her product.
Because it was not until she was well into her thirties when this woman from Granada who had lived in Seville since she was very young,
a Chemical Engineer from the Higher School of Engineers
at the University of Seville, decided to leave everything and dedicate her efforts
to creating her own cosmetic line, Lico.
Efforts that, until then, had been focused
on other very different paths...
From Airbus to cosmetics made in Spain with a chemical engineering guarantee
"After finishing my degree I began to work in multinationals, ending up
in the aeronautical sector,
where I spent more than 10 years. I began being responsible for implementing REACH - a European directive that ensures chemical safety in member countries - at the
Airbus DS level.
Spain,
so I gained a lot of knowledge about CRM substances - carcinogenic, mutagenic and toxic for reproduction -", related Estefanía Ferrer.
This detail was decisive for her, who confesses to be
"a great consumer of cosmetics",
to analyze which active ingredients she wanted to put on her skin and which ones she didn't.
That, along with his initial passion to study the career he chose, "because I am passionate about formulation and I love studying the reactions between ingredients and seeing how they converge into another substance", meant that in the middle of the pandemic, in those months of "forced rest ", weighed his professional reality, the security of a position in quality control
at the airline giant,
against his dream, a business project that would allow him to dedicate himself
to using chemical engineering to produce quality products and that really worked.
And who won the fight?
Passion, of course. 10,000 euros of investment and the support of a friend made Lico a reality, who immediately began to grow at a rate of 10% per month, closed 2022 with two million euros in turnover and expects to have surpassed the five million, in part, although not only, by far, thanks to that product that attracts so much attention, at least a priori,
the V-Serum vaginal serum.
Part of the success of the Spanish firm founded by Ferrer also comes from another part of its creator's past.
"I played and competed for years
in badminton,
becoming a
pre-Olympian for Sydney 2000,"
recalls the Grenadian.
Sport at the highest level has taught him a lot
about sacrifice, perseverance and discipline.
The secrets of success a cosmetic engineering brand
To understand how a brand so new on the market is growing year after year to the point of deciding to launch a very niche cosmetic after just three years of life, such as the vaginal serum, there is nothing like knowing its pillars.
How did it occur to you to get into a cosmetics company, such a saturated market, if I may say so? Lico was born out of necessity.
Currently there are two major trend lines in the market, the one that
is positioned with natural products,
which always require some chemistry, by law you are required to comply with microbiological parameters that require preservatives, you also need emulsifiers, although what is you can control is the quality and origin of these.
And on the other hand there are
the very laboratory brands,
but when you read the list of ingredients there are things that I don't want to put on my skin, many of them already limited by the REACH regulation itself.
So my project was born
to respond to my problem and that of my environment.
One of the characteristics of your brand is that it is 100% digital, but with a purchasing experience based on personalized attention, from pre-purchase advice via WhatsApp... How is this achieved? We like to call it
the engineering of the small details,
which are what really make the difference.
All our logistics are internal, our colleagues take great care of every detail in the orders, and when you receive it it shows.
In addition, we are very close, just one click away.
We listen to you and help you find the best for your skin,
we love talking to our clients, whom we refer to as feminine because our audience is 97% feminine (but we love talking to everyone, eh?) .
Estefanía Ferrer has a mantra: "take care of the skin on your body like your face."
An example?
Lico's anti-cellulite cream with retinol, its brand.LICO.
From the general to the particular, from the body to the vagina
From this active listening and their ability to react, the vaginal serum we have had our eye on was born.
In fact, Ferrer confirms,
"it was a challenge posed by our clients,
it is one more product that is offered for
skin care,
it depends on each one if they want to take care of that area or not, such as
taking care of feet or hands."
"The skin of the body deserves the same active ingredients as that of the face,
it is the most forgotten, and yet it is equally exposed to the effects of the passage of time,
appearing sagging, spots and lack of luminosity."
From those powders, these muds, the skin of the vagina is also the body... "Extending cosmetic care to the vaginal area
comes from active listening;
they, our clients, have posed this challenge to us, since
they want to see themselves that improved skin area.
'Skinification' and vaginal rejuvenation, an increasing trend
'Skinification'
is a term that has been used in hair cosmetics in the last couple of years, when we talk about
caring for the hair and scalp
in the same way and with the
same care with which we treat the skin of the face.
They now talk about the 'skinification' of the vaginal area, because, Estefanía Ferrer emphasizes,
"the skin of the vaginal area is, as we say, skin,
and yet it does not usually receive any type of care, not even with respect to hydration , this leads us to the passage of time in that area becoming evident. If, for whatever reasons, you want that skin to look beautiful, you need to provide it with
active ingredients focused on taking care of it in a specific way,
which is also especially sensitive. One thing It is important that when we talk about the vaginal area we are referring
to the pubis and labia majora,
since caring for the area in contact with the mucosa is another type of care."
In fact, V-Serum is not the first cosmetic intended for this area.
In 2014, another Spanish laboratory,
Sesderma,
launched a complete range for intimate care, Nanocare Intimate.
Going a little further, and as Ferrer points out,
"we increasingly like to take care of ourselves in general,
and it is effectively spreading to other areas of the skin, there is a large public interested in improving the vaginal area, in fact
the rejuvenation laser
"In this area it is
an increasing trend.
In Spain we are among the first, but in other countries it is a normal product that is offered as part of skin care."
Cosmetics, lasers and more
surround the aesthetics of the vagina.
In 2022, Mesoestetic
launched innovative
hyaluronic acid
'
fillers'
(for medical-aesthetic infiltrations in the area, like the face), developed in collaboration with specialist gynecologists to
restore the functionality, comfort and appearance of the female intimate area
.
Radiofrequency has also reached the vagina, as detailed by the experts in aesthetic technologies at
InMode,
when in 2021 they observed that 40% of women underwent and requested
gynecological treatments.
From this brand, they also expect
the global vaginal rejuvenation market
to grow at an annual rate of around 12.43% during the forecast period from 2019 to 2026.
They add that according to the
American Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery,
vaginal rejuvenation is gaining more popularity every day and is
the latest cosmetic trend
in the beauty market.
If we talk about Europe, InMode experts estimate that it has the second largest share of the global vaginal rejuvenation market due to the developed healthcare infrastructure.
Lico V-Serum.
X-ray of vaginal serum
This serum
firms the skin in the intimate area, evens out skin tone and increases hydration,
according to Estefanía Ferrer.
It is used once a day (in the morning or at night), applying a button to the clean and dry skin of the intimate area (pubis and outer lips), avoiding the mucosa, and massaging until completely absorbed.
Because, does the vagina age?
And how do we find out?
Because of course, we see our faces more, let's be honest. Just as we have memorized the pores, pimples, spots or wrinkles that we have on our face and how they evolve, why aren't we going to do it in that area?
We have noticed that
it is a taboo subject, and we don't really know why, it's skin, it's nature.
It is indicated for anyone who wants and wants to give that area an extra cosmetic touch, the truth is that, as with the rest of the skin, from a certain age onwards is when we begin to see the effects of the passage of time. A product like this It would have been unthinkable perhaps a few years ago, why today, what has changed? We are increasingly normalizing topics that were previously taboo, especially
around women,
this is a reality, and the passage of time is noticeable in the vaginal area too.
You may not care and we think it's great, but maybe because of your lifestyle you want to
take care of that area just like you take care of your face,
paint your nails or go to the hairdresser, and we are there, to offer you
the best. of engineering and nature.
And is there a target audience? We were surprised by the variety,
we thought it was a product perhaps more focused on a more niche audience
and yet absolutely everyone has shown interest, from
older people to younger girls
and all marital statuses.
It has been a great surprise,
even our male audience has asked us for something specific for them.
beauty