The Chemical Show: Where Leaders Talk Business


Discover how the worlds of beauty and chemicals merge to drive innovation in the cosmetics and personal care industry from NYSCC Suppliers Day in New York City. Victoria Meyer takes you behind the scenes of this event, accompanied by industry experts Bob Jacobs from Hydrosome Labs, Jack Drawdy from SCT, Petia Tatarska from Innova BM, Dennis Abbeduto from Colonial Chemical, Yann Chilvers from Cavalo, and Daina Catanese of Integrity BioChem.


This week's episode of The Chemical Show is packed with firsthand insights from industry leaders at the forefront of the personal care landscape. They discuss trends in sustainable and clean technologies, the impact of AI and digital solutions on supply chain transparency, and the integration of biotech innovations that promise enhanced efficacy and environmental stewardship. Join us for thoughtful exploration into how today's trends are paving the way for tomorrow's consumer products.


Topics discussed in this week’s episode:
  • NYSCC Suppliers' Day Conference: the future of cosmetics & personal care
  • Key trends driving cosmetics
  • Sustainability and sustainable chemistries in cosmetics and personal care
  • Digital solutions for sustainability
  • Role of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Innovation

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Creators and Guests

Host
Victoria Meyer
Host of The Chemical Show; founder and President of Progressio Global

What is The Chemical Show: Where Leaders Talk Business?

Looking to lead, grow, and stay ahead in the trillion-dollar global chemical industry? The Chemical Show - the #1 business podcast for the chemical industry - is your go-to resource for leadership insights, business strategies, and real-world lessons from the executives shaping the future of chemicals. Grow your knowledge, your network, and your impact.

Each week, you'll hear from executives from across the industry - from Fortune 50 to midsize to startups. You’ll hear how they're tacking today's challenges and opportunities, their origin story (what got them here!), how you can take and apply these lessons and insights to your own business and career.

We talk:
- Business Transformation
- Innovation
- Digitization of business
- Strategy
- Supply Chain
- and so much more

Founder and host Victoria King Meyer is an expert interviewer - who brings out the best in each guest. She gained her industry experience at leading companies, including Shell, LyondellBasell and Clariant. Today, she is a high-performance coach and advisor to business leaders in chemicals and energy, as well as the host of The Chemical Show podcast, and founder of The Chemical Summit.

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Websites:
https://www.thechemicalshow.com
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voiceover: A key component of the
modern world economy, the chemical

industry delivers products and
innovations to enhance everyday life.

It is also an industry in transformation
where chemical executives and workers

are delivering growth and industry
changing advancements while responding

to pressures from investors, regulators,
and public opinion, discover how

leading companies are approaching these
challenges here on the chemical show.

Join Victoria Meyer, president
of Progressio Global and

host of the chemical show.

As she speaks with executives across the
industry and learns how they are leading

their companies to grow, transform, and
push industry boundaries on all frontiers.

Here's your host, Victoria Meyer.

Victoria: Hi, this is Victoria Meyer.

Welcome back to The Chemical Show,
where chemicals means business.

Today's episode focuses on the
cosmetics and personal care business.

If you're not in the industry,
you might be wondering what the

heck does chemicals have to do
with cosmetics and personal care?

And if you are in the industry, like many
of my listeners in our audience, then you

know the answer to that is everything.

This past week.

I attended the N Y S C C suppliers day.

That is the New York Society of
Cosmetic Chemists Suppliers Day, which

is held in New York city every year.

It is the biggest North American
conference and trade show where

the chemical industry intersects
and meets with the cosmetics

and personal care industry.

There are thousands of attendees and
thousands of booths and a lot of buzz.

Formulators and cosmetic chemists from big
brands and small brands are meeting with,

Ingredient suppliers, chemical companies,
packagers, all the service providers that

meet together to fulfill the requirements
for the personal care industry.

And at the event, you see some of the
same chemical companies that you see

at many other events, as well as a lot
of small niche boutique and specialty

chemical companies, innovators, raw
material suppliers, and other folks that

are there specifically to bring magic.

And in the many cases, it really is
magical to the personal care industry.

It was fun to walk the floor, to
see what was happening, to hear the

buzz, to see the new innovations,
to talk to people that are doing

some new and novel chemistries and
creating some really cool products.

That are eventually going
to end up on store shelves.

And what was really awesome was just to
witness the passion across that entire,

um, across the entire event and people
everywhere who are really passionate and

interested in personal care in delivering
products to real people, real consumers.

And in fact, it's something, you
know, We can all recognize, we touch

and we feel, and we interact with
on a very personal basis every day.

And so that makes this event
really unique and really important.

In today's episode, First of all, I
want to get a shout out to the NYSCC

organization and all the people that
work together to put on the event.

It was great.

I enjoyed being able to attend and
actually even got to do some behind the

scenes VIP media tour stuff, which was
really fun and saw some new indie brands.

I am not going to cover that today, but
if you head over to the blog, I'm going

to be writing um, a little bit about
my experience and about some of the

new things that are coming to market.

So stay tuned, watch
LinkedIn, watch our email.

You're going to be
hearing more about that.

So today's episode focuses in really
on the three key questions I asked

a variety of people in the industry,
and you're going to hear from each

one of them in their own words.

What I think is really interesting is
there's a lot of alignment and there's

also some opposing points of view.

You'll see that when it comes up.

I'm here with Bob Jacobs
from Hydrosome Labs in the

innovation space here at NYSCC.

What are the key trends that you see
driving cosmetics and personal care?

And then how do you guys fit into that?

Bob: Yeah.

So, you know, we've spent a lot of time
looking at this and we've walked the show.

I think clean beauty
is a really big trend.

Probably don't, no surprise to anybody.

Efficacy is another one, so really
driving performance, product performance,

and getting a little bit more out of
formulations of active ingredients.

And we tie into both of those.

So our technology is a clean technology,
and our technology is one that improves

the performance of active ingredients.

Victoria: I am here with
Jack Drawdy from SCT.

Jack, what do you see as the
trends that are really driving

cosmetics and personal care today?

Jack: Well, it's a great question.

As luck would have it, we are launching
a dry product today, this week.,

so one, one of the trends that we've
seen is this trend toward less plastic

and less water.

So we've created a product called
Sopal Zero, which is a dry soap.

Uh, it, it has the ability to be
used as a powder, or it has the

ability to be pressed into a bar.

But either way, we see trends
that are going more towards less

plastic, less water, less cost.

And that's the reason for us
to develop these types of eco

friendly products, dry products.

Microphone (3- Samson Q2U Microphone)-1:
Next.

I've got Petia Tartaska CEO of Innova, DM.

Petia: The big trends are
natural and sustainable.

But let me say that, as always,
women value mostly efficacy.

We want our cosmetics to work,
and this is priority number one.

But within the realm of cosmetics that
work, natural is big and I believe will

always be big because we prefer, we
are kind of natural, beautiful flowers

and we prefer to work with natural
ingredients and natural cosmetics.

Also, sustainability is getting better.

Deservedly more and more attention
because we realize we have to

be environment conscious and to
contribute to saving our planet.

Victoria: from Colonial Chemical..

So Dennis, let's talk a
little bit about the trends.

What trends do you see influencing and
shaping personal care cosmetics right now?

trends do you see influencing and shaping
personal care cosmetics right now?

Dennis: Yeah, I mean certainly, you
know, the discussion has been primarily

around sustainability, making sure that
there's less harm to the environment with

products that we're producing and that
goes, really all throughout the personal

care from ingredients to packaging to
transport and all the different things

that are interrelated in that regard.

So that's really, I think the
overarching, driving force behind.

What's happening new, you
know, within the industry.

Microphone (3- Samson Q2U Microphone)-6:
And then we turned our focus into

sustainability and sustainable chemistry.

Victoria: So I'm here with Yann
Chilvers from Cavalo, which is a digital

solution provider for Personal care and
cosmetics, among some other industries.

So, Yann, how do you see advancements
in sustainability and sustainable

chemistry shaping the future
of cosmetics and personal care?

Yann: So, we're in an age of a lot of
greenwashing, and so we see a big trend

toward, like, really being able to
substantiate the sustainability claims

that the suppliers and the brands have.

And that has a big link today with all the
traceability and the supply chain control.

And so being able to go all the way to
the person that picked up a plant, for

example, uh, through all the manufacturing
process and controlling that supply chain,

uh, will be like one big key that we see
in the, in that sustainability journey.

Victoria: Is that something that
you see your technology platform

helping with in the future?

Sure.

Yann: Absolutely.

Absolutely.

So we are trying to really offer like
full transparency on the ingredients.

Uh, we give the control to the suppliers
of course to control who access that data.

So we don't want, uh, having
data leakage to competitors.

Uh, on the other side, being able to share
that information with friends, uh, is key.

Uh, in Europe in particular, you have the,
uh, you have like some big push, uh, to

our like reliability and substantiation.

So by 2027.

Uh, with a green deal, all the
brands will need to be able to

prove the origin of the ingredients.

Uh, and therefore, like digital platform
will play a, a key role in this.

Microphone (3- Samson Q2U Microphone)-3:
Here's Petia with her perspective.

Petia: So sustainability is a big trend
and I believe will get bigger and bigger.

And I'm happy to say that Innova
BM is contributing greatly to the

choice of sustainable ingredients
in the cosmetics industry.

These are biotech products, biotech
ingredients that, um, cultivated

in the lab in this way we save
we don't do soil depletion.

We save from cultivation of the land,
pesticides, fertilizers, tractors,

energy, water great saving on this.

And also our patient technology
works with protected and rare

plants by producing protecting the
rare plants in a biotech factory.

We are able to help preserve biodiversity
and we are really proud of this.

And most importantly,
these ingredients work.

Microphone (3- Samson Q2U Microphone)-8:
Daina Cantanese of Integrity, Biochem.

I provided a perspective
on sustainable chemistries.

And really the importance of performance.

Along with sustainability.

Daina: I believe that the performance
aspect of sustainability is really what

makes these, um, sustainable materials
really credible and gives them the backing

to, to give customers what they're looking
for on top of their sustainability goals.

So when we say performance, we're
saying, what does it do in the product?

What is it adding and what
is it giving to our customers

that they so desperately need?

And so on top of the sustainability
goals that we have always reached with

our materials and with other materials
in the industry, we want to see the

performance increase on top of that.

Microphone (3- Samson Q2U Microphone)-4:
Jack also shared a perspective

on the role of sustainability
and sustainable chemistry.

Jack: Yeah, again, we, I think you've
got to go back to these things for

instance, the, the Dextera product, right?

It comes from a byproduct
of corn and wheat.

You're not impacting the food source.

These are things that are
byproducts of the food source.

But you're upcycling it, right?

And so it's a, it's a great
story in utilizing things that

were once being thrown away.

The same thing with the Sokal Zero.

You're not having to dispose of the
plastic once you start using these.

It's like you're going to hotels now.

You don't see the little bottles anymore.

Everybody's, it's all, it's in
the shower, on the wall, and

they're being filled by partners.

Bob: Yeah, so I think sustainability has
a couple different aspects, but one is on

the contents of the formulation, right?

Trying to reduce the chemicals that
are in the formulation, trying to

clean the formulation that way.

And, you know, from our standpoint,
there's really nothing cleaner than

water, especially ultra pure water.

And that's really the
basis of our technology.

The bubbles in our technology
become a delivery vehicle for the

ingredients that are in there and
allows people to cut back on that.

Another one is just the carbon footprint
of the manufacturing process, right?

And our technology has a very low
carbon footprint when it comes to

the energy to create the bubbles,
to create these formulations.

So we're checking those
boxes, both those cases.

Microphone (3- Samson Q2U Microphone)-11:
Our conversations also covered

the role of AI in innovation.

And it'll be no surprise.

That companies are at various points on
the maturity curve with their use of AI.

And of course, AI is still
in many ways in its infancy.

When we think about its application in
industry and with formulations and more.

Victoria: What about AI?

You know, AI is the buzz right now,
and when we think about AI and its

role in innovation, what do you see?

Yann: I mean, AI is a
definitely a buzzword.

You see it a bit everywhere.

Uh, I like to think that.

AI is not, it should not be
like a goal in itself, right?

You need to start with what is
the problem you want to solve.

Uh, and then AI can be one solution
among others and, and addressing it.

So where we can see AI really delivering
value is when you have a big data sets,

uh, that is structured or unstructured,
uh, and you want to understand trends,

uh, or if you want to automate certain
processes that can make a lot of sense.

Um, but there are other application
areas where AI ultimately

does not always justify the
investment that are, that we make.

Victoria: There's definitely a trend
towards AI across the industry.

How do you see that being used
to help foster innovation?

Jack: So as a company, we're just
now starting to formulate a plan

on how to use and what AI to use.

We're looking at a number of sources.

But I think that In terms of how our
technology grows, I don't think we've

found that right fit yet, but in terms
of how we approach our customers, we're

certainly using it to model what we
think fits our brands, what we're doing

fits the brands that are out there.

And that's how we're starting
to develop that process.

But we realize that if we're
not utilizing it, we're behind.

,
Victoria: Then let's talk
a little bit about AI.

Dennis: So, there's a lot of people
here as well talking about AI, be it for

formulating or de formulating there's all
sorts of new tools that are out there.

I think one of the most powerful
things that we're going to see out of

AI is the ability for companies like
ourselves, producing surfactants, it

to train models to predict, you how
we can produce new surfactants to fine

tune, certain performance parameters.

And these models are can be so well tuned
that they'll actually go through routine

production mechanisms and eliminates
potential chemical candidates that may

be not sustainable or too difficult or
not able to be produced at mass scale.

And so this is a sort of, I think, future
really of AI to be able to generate our

path forward for, for new chemistry.

Microphone (3- Samson Q2U Microphone)-13:
Of course, one of the reasons that

companies attend supplier's day
is to learn about new innovations.

And to be identifying those ingredients,
active ingredients technologies that

will help them move ahead rapidly,
um, to bring products to market.

Victoria: One of the things that
we're talking about is kind of just

emerging technologies and innovation.

What are the emerging technologies
that you see that could actually

revolutionize the space?

Bob: Yeah, I think, you know, the whole
bioprocessing and fermentation space

is huge because we can create things
that, nature's creating now, but in a

more sustainable and repeatable way.

And our technology actually has
a role in fermentation as well.

We're able to improve the output, the
yield, and the speed of fermentation

processes with our technology.

Daina: So, some ingredients and
technology I believe are going to be

changing the sustainability space of
personal care really is technologies that

marry performance and sustainability.

So on top of the sustainability goals
that we have always reached with our

materials and with other materials
in the industry, we want to see the

performance increase on top of that.

Victoria: And do you see customers and
the end consumers really wanting this

and being willing to pay for this?

Daina: Yes.

So we do see customers that really
want the high performance and the

sustainability aspect, but I think
there's a level to how much they're

willing to pay for these materials.

I think at the end of the day, that
merriment between performance and

sustainability is really the key
to the future for our consumers.

Dennis: So, certainly here at the show,
we're seeing a lot of the biotech.

People that are using microbes of all
different kinds, whether it be yeasts

or bacteria or sea algae to produce
novel materials be them peptides or

proteins, or even surfactants, which
interplays with You know, what we offer

from the manufactured surfactant side.

So we're seeing kind of all
these things coming around.

It's really exciting and then some of
these are using, wild strains of organisms

or, or wild algae, for example, but then
some are also doing genetic modification

in order to optimize different properties
of these materials to really hone in on

specific chemistries and, things like
the bio produced collagen or other types

of ingredients are really coming online
and you'll see a lot here at the show.

Victoria: It's interesting you
mentioned genetic modification

because obviously GMO.

It's a hot topic and it's considered
a no no of foods, let's say.

Dennis: Right, so there
are a couple things.

So, genetically modified organisms
have been used for a long time all

throughout foods and personal care,
produce maybe things we don't think

about too much, insulin is produced
by genetically modified organisms

citric acid, which is a commodity
chemical is produced by microorganisms.

A lot of times they're
genetically modified

but really, when we're producing
these high purity materials, all

the, GM proteins get removed as well.

I think people are more worried about
genetic modification of their food,

rather than genetic modification
of an organism that's used to

produce a commodity type chemical,

Victoria: so what did you think when
you listen to today's episode, when we

think about the trends that are driving
cosmetics and personal care today, when

you think about the role of sustainability
and sustainable chemistry, and there are

so many amazing innovations in this space.

You know, I talked to
just a sampling of folks.

There are so many more I'd love to hear
from you in terms of what are some of

those innovations that you see driving
cosmetics and personal care today?

What did you hear at the show?

What did you see?

Thanks for listening today.

Keep listening, keep following,
keep sharing, and we will

talk with you again soon.

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