INTERVIEW Tim Probert – Editor, Personal Care Global
Isabel Almiro do Vale is global marketing and strategy director for personal care at Dow. Based in Horgen, Switzerland, Isabel joined Dow four years ago having previously worked for L’Oréal and Procter & Gamble. Here, she talks to editor Tim Probert about the US giant’s strategy, sustainability and the latest global trends
TIM PROBERT (TP): Tell me about your role at Dow. ISABEL ALMIRO DO VALE (IA): I am the global marketing and strategy director for personal care, which means I have the responsibility to look after our innovation strategy for the next five to ten years. I work very closely with the R&D and the regional marketing teams to implement those ideas.
TP: What is your strategy? IA: Dow is a company that’s been prioritising innovation in new material science, application expertise, and safety for people and the planet. Since 2020, the challenge has been how we communicate that outwards. We became more intentional
about how we talk not only about performance but also about the sustainability dimensions, such as carbon footprint, biodegradability and the lifecycle of our products. We have a really strong internal ethos on performance and safety for the planet, but we were not proactively communicating that and there was a need for people to see Dow as a more sustainable company. In recent years, there has been
a lot of noise about certification and clean beauty. We saw the
need to remove the confusion from the consumer side and aligning with manufacturers. We understood our customers want to be perceived as more sustainable, as they have new corporate sustainable goals - they could only achieve that if we provide them the right ingredients. So, we are in this beautiful
ecosystem in personal care where we all have to work hand in hand to really transform the industry. And that has been one of the great things we have been actively doing.
TP: Could you give me some concrete examples? IA: We have launched more than seven new sustainable products over the past few years. In the past six months we have launched MaizeCare™ Clarity Polymer, which is one of our bio-based, bio-degradable hair fixatives. It gives a unique transparency and in performance it can match heritage fossil based styling polymers. We have also recently launched EcoSmooth™ Rice Husk Cosmetic Powder, which comes from an upcycling feedstock. Other aspects where you’ll
see Dow modernising and innovating around sustainability is our ECOllaboration Concepts
INTERVIEW
Moving with the times
Collection, which showcases our expertise both in ingredients and in how to combine them to create high-performing formulations. And we’re not doing this just
because we are Dow Personal Care. As many other players in the industry, we have been very active in advocating for our planet and our people and our industry. We are very lucky that we can tap into Dow’s know-how on climate protection, circularity and safer materials.
TP: Does Dow’s move towards sustainability mean a move away from silicones? IA: Silicones are one of the longest-standing safe chemistries used in personal care. They have unique benefits, and from a safety perspective they are hypoallogenic, which is one of the things you need for safe skin care. They are non-comedogenic and non-irritating, which is what you need for really nice make-up finishings, looks and feels. They have all the sensorality
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attributes of being non-tacky, and they give shine and vibrancy to colours. If you remove silicone from the industry, make-up will start looking very dull and there’s a lot of consumers out there who desire high performance.
TP: Do you think silicones get an unfair press in some quarters? IA: There’s always a lot of opinions. We try to look at our role in the industry as offering products that answer the challenges of formulators. At the end of the day, consumers like their face creams, their make-up and their hair products. We partner with other silicone
manufacturers to explain to consumers and brand owners the power of silicone and the safety of the chemistry. It’s also about explaining degradation mechanisms that happen in nature to really demonstrate why we believe that specific groups within silicone chemistry are safe materials.
March 2023 PERSONAL CARE
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