At Neiman Marcus, Joaquin Serra shows Nora Kennerly some of Natura Bisse's skin-care products.
Sunny Hawaii ideal
for skin product intro
A visit to the Natura Bisse counter at Neiman Marcus can be a wake-up call -- the kind that you'd rather sleep through. It's much more pleasant to keep dreaming that 40 is the new 30, and you look much younger than your age.
But with the experience of seeing hundreds of faces a week, Kristil Sun, business counter manager for Natura Bisse, can see the roots of aging in those "cute" freckles and dry patches, and rattle off any number of products to help stave off the inevitable.
Joaquin Serra, from the family-owned, Barcelona-based company, describes the products as nutrition for the face. He's in town with Natura Bisse's national trainer, Begona, to host the worldwide launch today and tomorrow for Natura Bisse's newest product, Inhibit-Dermafill, which is billed as an "alternative to the 'injection' approach to diminishing wrinkles," addressing deep expression lines (like Botox injections) and filler for finer lines (like Restylane injections).
The product's predecessor, Inhibit, was developed three years ago as an option to Botox, that was banned in Europe.
Hawaii was selected for the launch because, with our daily doses of sunshine, we've become the nation's No. 1 market for the company's skin-protection products, he said.
The criticism of anti-aging products by consumer advocates is that topical treatments do not penetrate the dermis to reverse the aging process. They can only improve the skin's surface appearance, and for many who want to avoid surgical procedures, that is enough.
"Skin treatment is like diet," Serra said. "If you're consistent, and if you have balance in your skin regimen, it's going to improve. You need to listen to your skin."
He said Americans within the last three to five years have begun to catch up to Europeans in appreciation of proper skin care. "When we came to the states, the thinking was more of nails and hair. Now it's changing very quickly. People are seeing that taking care of the skin is as important."
The difference may be that Baby Boomers may have assumed earlier that money and surgery could combat any evil they unleashed on their skin. After initial denial, more are beginning to realize that prevention may be the best medicine.
Toward that end, Natura Bisse offers a number of sun-protective products. Its best seller is Diamond Cream that hydrates and combats hyperpigmentation, sun damage and other aging concerns.
The products do not come cheap. Inhibit-Dermafill, for instance, is presented in a 1-ounce pump format for $385.
"We try to be focused on results, using the best ingredients, the best emulsions, so there is no cost limit to producing our products," Serra said. "In a week people see results -- more elasticity, wrinkles disappear -- not many companies can show that, so we have very loyal customers.
"Unfortunately, you have to keep using it. It's like your diet. You can't stop eating."
Natura Bisse classes will take place at 10:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. today and tomorrow. Call 948-7581 to reserve a seat.
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