Product Development

Each and every natural skin care product starts as an idea

It happens while out walking, seeing a plant, meeting a client or before choir practice: An idea sows its seed. Annette Greco, Head of Development, firmly believes that this is the way things should be; ideas cannot be forced in the laboratory.

The pharmacist values the exchange of ideas, the creative input and the various biographies, professions and nationalities at WALA. Creating a new product always involves many people from across all departments. “And suddenly, there is something in the air!” says Annette Greco, describing the point at which her team retreats to the laboratory to transform the ideas into recipes. The process of developing a product’s formulation, including how each individual ingredient will be processed (known as galenic development)  is combined with pharmaceutical expertise and years of experience to form the basis for a new product and its ideal fragrance. Other groups are responsible for other development tasks: They check whether the raw materials selected are available as organically-farmed produce; they examine whether material quality can be analytically guaranteed and complies with the legal framework conditions; they consider how the finished product can be manufactured, packaged and marketed to the customer. These many different stages of product development are coordinated by the product management department.

The art of combining harmony and effect

It is the task of the galenic developer to create harmonious-yet-effective recipes for the selected ingredients and the intended product use.

These recipes must not only produce a balanced composition but also explain the ideal method of processing each of the raw materials. “It is not enough to simply say that the product contains roses,” explained Greco. The galenic developer must also explain how. Sometimes she uses rose essential oil, sometimes extracts from the fruits. At other times, she reverts to the use of rose water or even a basic substance from the petals. “In the same way that you can use tomatoes to make a salad, soup or juice, the manner in which a plant is processed depends on how it is to be used and its desired effect.”

When working on a formulation, Annette Greco and her team keep a constant eye on the materials and the processes, as well as on the basic nature of people and plants. This is the only way to ensure that the finished product has a holistic character with consumer appeal.

“WALA is one of the few companies whose products enjoy global popularity. This is because we develop them for people and not markets.” 
—Annette Greco

In realizing the finalized formulation, the developers devise and reject up to two-hundred approaches. The effectiveness and skin compatibility of the new product is then tested by independent institutes without the use of animal testing.

The formulations created by the developers depend on the high quality of the natural raw materials—and on the specific methods in which they are grown and processed. Throughout the entire line of our natural skin care and make-up, the product comes together to form a complex composition that is much more than the sum of its individual ingredients. Only when the developer explores the ways the ingredients interact and are supported by the rhythmic manufacturing procedure do our products take on the unique qualities that enable them to stimulate and guide the skin toward its natural balance.