Stem cell science is increasingly likely to power the future of luxury skin care.
One signal is Angela Caglia Skincare’s recent success with its product Cell Forte Serum, which launched in October 2023, driving 437% annual sales growth and retail expansion to Nordstrom. . The serum has accounted for 90% of the brand’s growth over the past 12 months, which founder Angela Caglia outlined on the Glossy Beauty Podcast.
This serum uses something called “human-derived adipose mesenchymal stem cell conditioned medium.” Caglia discovered the technology while researching treatment options for her mother’s ongoing dementia treatment.
MSC conditioned media is sourced from human fat, called adipose tissue, and is provided by young, healthy plastic surgery patients and processed in a laboratory. Stem cells are removed from tissues and placed in a human-like environment, where they secrete growth factors, cytokines, and proteins, which are used as serum. Stem cells carrying the patient’s DNA are removed before the culture enters the serum.
“We’re on track to do $500,000 in sales this month; $300,000 in direct-to-consumer (sales) and $200,000 wholesale,” Caglia told Glossy. “It’s going to be the biggest month in (the company’s) history.”
She told Glossy that the company’s new consumer base represents 1% and that consumers will order multiple bottles after finishing the first one. After seven years in business, the brand is having a hockey stick moment, with DTC customer subscriptions reaching 51%. Angela Caglia Skincare customers can “subscribe” to monthly shipping and receive 20% off a 1-ounce serum retailing for $395.
FactorFive has seen similar growth in human-derived products. The $195 Regenerating Serum, also sold in 1-ounce bottles, is packed with similar growth factors.
John Ailworth, a California-based researcher turned CEO and founder of FactorFive, founded the company in 2015. The aim was to provide a regenerative solution for diabetic patients who cannot heal their lower body pain. However, he soon discovered the effectiveness of cosmetics and added topicals to his business model.
He currently sells 90% of his branded products wholesale to estheticians and clinics, and 10% directly to consumers online. He told Glossy that consumer demand is strong in the Middle East and South America, and the opportunities overseas are impressive. He primarily reaches out to these consumers through agents. “Our brand has exploded in the Dubai and UAE markets much better than we expected,” he told Glossy.
Aylworth operates its own vertically integrated operations in California. FactorFive is a product of Xytogen Biotech, of which Aylworth is founder and chairman. Like Angela Caglia Skincare, the company sources stem cells from plastic surgery patients through its network of doctors.
Caglia, for his part, declined to identify his facility, but told The Glossy that it is a major stem cell research institute based in Texas. He said the company is CGMP certified and primarily specializes in stem cell banks and FDA-approved clinical trials.
These products, along with a growing number of competitors’ products, are some of the most expensive skin care products on the market today. But unlike the retinols, rare extracts, and fermented ingredients that have become popular in luxury products over the past 30 years, consumers can benefit more by using growth factors.
Caglia told Glossy that Cell Forté’s value proposition is that it replaces all other products. She recommends her clients replace antioxidants like vitamin C, moisturizers like hyaluronic acid, and exfoliants like retinol with a single growth factor serum.
“Once you understand (alternatives to) retinol, vitamin C, peel pads, peptides, Botox, laser treatments, you understand,” Kalia said.
This is part of a growing trend where consumers are rejecting products that can disrupt the skin’s barrier, also known as the microbiome, and moving away from the complex 12-step routines that were mainstream in the 2010s.
According to Krupa Koestline, clean cosmetics chemist and founder of KKT Labs, today’s consumers are looking for simplicity.
“Current trends in luxury skin care are all about versatility and personalization,” she told Glossy. “Consumers are looking for products that can address multiple skin concerns simultaneously, such as hydration, anti-aging, and barrier repair, in one formula.” said that these are the most expensive ingredients used in beauty today.
Yarden Horwitz, co-founder of market research firm Spate, said consumers searching for information about growth factors in skin care are trending on TikTok and across Google Search.
Google searches for the terms “skincare” and “growth factors” averaged over 32,000 searches per month over the past year, an increase of 202.7% year-over-year. Meanwhile, the same keywords are searched an average of more than 215,000 times a week on TikTok.
“[Growth factors]are trending upward in search, with notable increases in Google searches alongside ‘skin care.’ Additionally, TikTok content about growth factors in skin care, such as platelet-rich fibrin treatment for under-eye bags (performed in the clinic), is sparking curiosity about personalized, cutting-edge skin care solutions,” said Spurt’s Horwitz. told Glossy.
Fortunately for consumers and brands who are averse to human-derived products, opportunities for biomimicry, or the use of biologically identical ingredients, are also increasing. In other words, these are synthetic copies of stem cell excreta made in the lab.
For example, French skin care company Biologique Recherche sells a serum called Isoplacenta Serum, which contains a biomimetic placenta that mimics the composition of the human placenta. Until recently, Biologique Recherche products were primarily sold through estheticians and spas, but earlier this month the brand also expanded to Bergdorf Goodman. The retailer sells 0.3 ounces of Isoplacenta Serum for $76, as well as the rest of its products.
Another standout product is a line of biomimetic stem cell-based skin care products from double board-certified Beverly Hills facial surgeon Jason B. Diamond, MD. He launched his own line, Dr. Diamond’s Metacin, in May 2023 and quickly found success with a two-step hero system called the Instafacial Collection, which includes a $550 serum and cream. Ta. This duo lasts for 4 weeks with daily use. The system’s rapid success has allowed the brand to expand into Moda Operandi, Goop, Blue Mercury, Nordstrom, Saks Fifth Avenue, and Dermstore since its launch in May 2023.
Eighth Day is another premium brand that utilizes bioidentical growth factors. Dr. Anthony Nakula, a board-certified dermatologist, skin surgeon, and clinical researcher in Southern California, weighed the pros and cons of using biomimetic and human-derived ingredients to launch his product.
“The science behind human-derived ingredients is interesting and promising. I also experimented with them early in my career as a dermatologist,” he told Glossy. “(But) as far as results are concerned, we formulate our products with bioidentical synthetic ingredients for safety, efficacy, reliability, and predictability.”
That means the growth factors in a bottle of a given human-derived product may vary from donor to donor, he told Glossy. The bioidentical growth factor could also be distributed in the European Union, one of his target markets.
By the way, although human-derived ingredients are currently available for sale in most markets, they are prohibited in the EU and cannot be patented.
“From a commercial perspective, we appreciate the reliable nature of synthetic active substances that allows us to ensure that our products offer the highest level of efficacy to consumers around the world,” said Dr. Nakula.
Regulatory compliance should be a top concern for brands looking to leverage the science that will drive this sea change in skin care, says K&L Gates, managing partner at the law firm specializing in FDA regulations and pharmaceutical compliance. said Michael H. Hinkle of Esquire.
He told Glossy that HCTP (the legal term for products based on human cells and tissues) is partially regulated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, and the regulations are very nuanced. However, when used in cosmetics, this technique is fairly new and results in blurred lines.
“There is an entire regulatory scheme for human products of these tissue types,” he said. “We need to make sure that companies that are considering using something like this have looked at it[critically]so that they can demonstrate that they have confirmed the safety of including these types of ingredients in their cosmetics (products). We hope that the documentation is in place.” He recommended that lawyers advise that procurement, manufacturing and marketing are done properly and that all legal requirements and risks are considered accordingly.
In terms of overall market saturation, human-derived products remain undervalued compared to lab-created copies.
“Bioidentical or biomimetic ingredients, or ingredients that mimic natural skin components, are particularly trending because they improve compatibility with the skin,” says Kestline, a clean cosmetics chemist.
At the moment, both Angela Caglia Skincare and FactorFive are also working on biomimetic products to bring non-human-derived options to market, with one goal of gaining access to the European Union.
