Latest / Skin Anarchy / Diane Goostree, President and CEO of ALASTIN Skincare

Transcript

Diane Goostree, President and CEO of ALASTIN Skincare · Skin Anarchy

• 0:34
  SPEAKER_03: Hi guys, welcome back to Sculpture Earl F.
• 0:36
  SPEAKER_03: This is your hostile.
• 0:37
  SPEAKER_03: I'm so excited about today's guest because this is one of the best um medical grades in care lines I've ever ever seen.
• 0:44
  SPEAKER_03: So without further ado, I want to introduce you guys to Diane Gustri.
• 0:48
  SPEAKER_03: She is the CEO and president of Alastin.
• 0:50
  SPEAKER_03: Welcome, Diane.
• 0:51
  SPEAKER_03: Thank you so much for making the time to come onto our show and talk to us today.
• 0:58
  SPEAKER_01: And I really appreciate the chance to be here today, Ekta.
• 1:01
  SPEAKER_04: It's truly my pleasure to host you.
• 1:03
  SPEAKER_04: I I'm so excited to talk to you about the line and really understand the science behind it.
• 1:08
  SPEAKER_04: So can you but uh first I want you to tell us all about um how you came to this, um, you know, the background, the journey um to Alastin.
• 1:16
  SPEAKER_01: Sure.
• 1:17
  SPEAKER_01: Sure.
• 1:17
  SPEAKER_01: I'd love to do that because it's it's been an interesting journey and I'm excited that uh Alastin is where I am today.
• 1:24
  SPEAKER_01: So um my background is kind of a mixed science and business background.
• 1:29
  SPEAKER_01: Um I have an undergraduate degree in chemical engineering and then an MBA.
• 1:34
  SPEAKER_01: So um I started out uh my career working in the pharmaceutical industry, working on a number of different therapeutic areas, but I worked in research and development, and I also worked in marketing, and then I also worked in business development.
• 1:50
  SPEAKER_01: So I have a chance to really understand what needs to be looked at when you're trying to consider where is there an unmet need in the market, where is there white space, and what types of products uh are needed to address that.
• 2:05
  SPEAKER_01: So one of the last uh therapeutic areas I worked in in the pharma area was uh medical dermatology, and um there was a transition in the company I was in, and some of the senior executives had decided to go to a startup company, and I heard about it, and it was actually one of the first companies starting up in the physician skincare industry, and that was Skin Medica back in 2001.
• 2:34
  SPEAKER_01: So I was there from the very, very early days with um Dr.
• 2:40
  SPEAKER_01: Richard Fitzpatrick, and what what really happened um to some extent with Skin Medica, and we've really amplified it at Alastan was um a number of us joined uh Skin Medica when it was first starting up.
• 2:53
  SPEAKER_01: Um we brought in venture capital and we brought in a lot of people with pharmaceutical backgrounds like myself and several of the board members.
• 3:01
  SPEAKER_01: So that was a great opportunity for me to learn how to build a company and uh learn how to take products and get them out to the market.
• 3:11
  SPEAKER_01: Um but that was you know that started back in 2001.
• 3:15
  SPEAKER_01: So I moved on to some other areas in more back into the medical dermatology area.
• 3:22
  SPEAKER_01: And then about 2015, um, some of the other um executives that I had worked with at uh Skin Medica and had been on the board there came to me and said that they were they were seeing um some changes in the industry, and I had been noticing this too in um in medical grade skincare, is that a lot of the uh the larger companies would would get acquired by um by an even larger company.
• 3:50
  SPEAKER_01: So um, you know, Skin Medica was acquired by um Allergan and um It's like pharma, it's like big pharma, right?
• 3:58
  SPEAKER_01: Almost Pharma.
• 3:59
  SPEAKER_01: About you was acquired by Valiant, and you know, it sometimes what happens when that's the case is it's tough to keep the focus on the original product line, and uh sometimes management is is looking at a lot of different areas.
• 4:14
  SPEAKER_01: So we said, let's start a new medical-grade skincare company, let's focus just on medical-grade skincare, and let's before we even start, let's figure out where there's some white space, where there's some unmet need in the market.
• 4:29
  SPEAKER_01: And so we spent some time looking at um the trends in uh the aesthetic space, particularly for uh patients and consumers who are going to visit their physician and they want medical-grade skincare, but they're also doing a lot of different aesthetic treatments.
• 4:46
  SPEAKER_01: And what we found is that um while people were still interested in having plastic surgery, that there were a number of new devices that were coming to the market, and there was really a great expansion of what we call minimally invasive procedures.
• 5:04
  SPEAKER_01: So that would be something like um a laser resurfacing.
• 5:08
  SPEAKER_01: Um you know, you you hear you hear of um, you know, uh clear and brilliant or fractal, things like that.
• 5:15
  SPEAKER_01: Um, so 20 years ago, a lot of those lasers were were very, very ablative, and it could take you know a month or so to recover, and not very many people wanted to do that.
• 5:25
  SPEAKER_01: But some of the newer procedures um have less downtime, and um we're using new techniques.
• 5:32
  SPEAKER_01: So you've got the lasers, and then we started to get things like ultrasound and radio frequency and microneedling and cold with you know, cold sculpting.
• 5:43
  SPEAKER_01: You've or cool sculpting, you've heard of freeze the fat and that sort of thing.
• 5:46
  SPEAKER_04: Yeah, no, you're right though.
• 5:47
  SPEAKER_04: I actually before uh we spoke just now, I hadn't really thought about how there was this huge uh like bang of like, you know, skincare, like just just um tools.
• 5:57
  SPEAKER_04: You know, there was a lot more um uh technology in the in the non-invasive sector.
• 6:02
  SPEAKER_04: I hadn't even considered that.
• 6:03
  SPEAKER_01: That's right, that's right.
• 6:05
  SPEAKER_01: Because you know, 20, 25 years ago it was mostly surgery if you're talking about an aesthetic procedure, but now the other procedures are growing, and those include injectables like Botox and dermal fillers, and um, and again, all these device-based procedures.
• 6:21
  SPEAKER_01: So what we saw is that there was there was a huge growth in these device-based procedures, but there there weren't any skincare products that were designed to work with them.
• 6:32
  SPEAKER_01: Because when we started talking to both physicians and and patients who were who were undergoing these procedures, they told us two things.
• 6:40
  SPEAKER_01: They said, you know, I like the results, but I don't really like having to spend the downtime and their recovery time.
• 6:48
  SPEAKER_01: Um so if there's anything to speed up the recovery, that would be great.
• 6:52
  SPEAKER_01: And they also said, well, I do like the results, but you know, they're not quite as good as you would get with surgery.
• 6:58
  SPEAKER_01: So is there any way that there could be a topical skincare line that could slow down or that could actually reduce the downtime, um speed the recovery, make it um a better experience, and then give you a better outcome?
• 7:14
  SPEAKER_01: And that's when we said, okay, that's what we want to do when we get started with elastin, and that's how we got started with our concept of really providing these complementary, synergistic, topical products to be used in a variety of procedures.
• 7:29
  SPEAKER_04: I it's just so interesting because um, you know, no one talks about uh this this this idea of you know, even though you're getting a non-invasive procedure done, there's still you your skin still needs help and the area that's being treated still needs to be cared for, right?
• 7:44
  SPEAKER_04: Just like any post-op uh, you know, thing.
• 7:47
  SPEAKER_04: Like I after you do something, you need to take care of the area.
• 7:51
  SPEAKER_04: So I want to talk about the formulas of elastin.
• 7:54
  SPEAKER_04: So, like, you know, does it for everybody in the term that anyone can pick it up and use it, or is it really you you have to have like, I don't want to say damaged, but I guess a treated area for it to really work?
• 8:06
  SPEAKER_04: Can you tell us more about that?
• 8:08
  SPEAKER_01: Yes, so that's a great question.
• 8:10
  SPEAKER_01: And um, you know, I'll I'll answer it first and then I'll explain why.
• 8:13
  SPEAKER_01: So um our technology um is applicable to virtually everyone.
• 8:19
  SPEAKER_01: Um about half of our sales and our line is focused on the procedure, post pre- and post-procedure treatment, but about half of it is daily skincare use.
• 8:29
  SPEAKER_01: And the reason for that is that our technology is called trihex technology.
• 8:34
  SPEAKER_01: And what we did when we developed that is we looked at what would be needed to help someone recover from a procedure.
• 8:44
  SPEAKER_01: And and what a procedure does, as you know, you might imagine, is typically if you think about let's say a laser resurfacing, the laser is is essentially damaging or wounding your skin, it's it's denaturing collagen and elastin.
• 9:00
  SPEAKER_01: And because as you as you age, you get old collagen and elastin that gets um uh gets damaged and it breaks off, and it it's very difficult for your skin to naturally repair itself because as uh throughout our lives, I mean, you think anytime you you get a cut, you get a scar, your skin's gonna repair itself.
• 9:19
  SPEAKER_01: So the do that is just that as we get a little bit older, we need more help with that.
• 9:25
  SPEAKER_01: So when we have a procedure, they're deliberately wounding the skin to stimulate the body to make more collagen and elastin.
• 9:33
  SPEAKER_01: And what our trihex technology does is it steps in and it helps the body do that even faster.
• 9:39
  SPEAKER_01: But if you think about daily skin care, you think about what's happening to your skin.
• 9:45
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 9:45
  SPEAKER_01: Well, as we as we get older, our skin is impacted by really two different factors, sort of intrinsic factors.
• 9:52
  SPEAKER_01: So just you know, you're you're getting older and the collagen elastin is getting older and more damaged.
• 9:58
  SPEAKER_01: But secondly, and really even a bigger aspect in many cases is external factors.
• 10:04
  SPEAKER_01: So it's sun damage, it's it's it's blue light.
• 10:08
  SPEAKER_01: And so your skin is being injured every day, no matter what you do.
• 10:13
  SPEAKER_01: And your body is always trying to repair it and refresh it, and and you know, your skin turns over on the top, and it's turning over down deep in the dermis.
• 10:22
  SPEAKER_01: And so we realize that our tri-hex technology that's designed to help people heal after a procedure also helps people heal on a daily basis from all of those daily sort of external insults, the the sun exposure, the uh the pollution, the blue light.
• 10:40
  SPEAKER_01: So that's why our products can be used.
• 10:43
  SPEAKER_01: Some of them are designed more for in conjunction with the procedure, but we use that same platform science and put it into daily skincare that basically stimulates the natural processes already there in your skin as it's working to rebuild itself.
• 10:59
  SPEAKER_04: Yeah, so natural regeneration.
• 11:00
  SPEAKER_04: Now I want to talk more about the Tri-Ax technology.
• 11:03
  SPEAKER_04: Um, are you, you know, are you able to tell us some more details in the science side of it?
• 11:07
  SPEAKER_04: Like really, what were the pillars that you were um you know, really looking at?
• 11:11
  SPEAKER_04: I know you you talked about you know, sun exposure and blue light exposure, but um, I'm always interested from a molecular standpoint, you know, when you're crafting something like this, um, how that came about, you know, the the idea of the technology.
• 11:24
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, absolutely.
• 11:26
  SPEAKER_01: That's that's a great question.
• 11:27
  SPEAKER_01: So uh one of the things we did, and we have some we have some incredible scientists at OAST, and we have a a uh chemist who has been in the industry for many, many years, has multiple patents, and is known as one of the the best you know cosmetic chemist gurus in in the country, if not the world.
• 11:45
  SPEAKER_01: And then we have um our chief medical officer also is something that goes along with um the whole concept of elastin, which is incorporating a higher level of science into all of our products and to all of our studies around our products.
• 12:01
  SPEAKER_01: So our chief medical officer is actually a plastic surgeon, um, a basic research scientist that runs a skin tissue laboratory.
• 12:11
  SPEAKER_01: So he really understands what happens in the skin.
• 12:14
  SPEAKER_01: And so he came together with our chemists, and some of the things they looked at was okay, if we want to stimulate the body to help regenerate itself naturally, um we know where that happens.
• 12:28
  SPEAKER_01: It happens in a cell called the fibroblast, and we know that we really want elastin and collagen, and so let's find some small molecules.
• 12:37
  SPEAKER_01: Now, some ingredients that are used are large molecules like growth factors.
• 12:42
  SPEAKER_01: They're very difficult to penetrate the skin.
• 12:44
  SPEAKER_01: We didn't want to have that visual barrier, so we either use uh small molecules or peptides which are small enough to penetrate the skin easily, and we started testing those to say which ones can stimulate collagen, which ones can stimulate elastin, and which ones can help with what's essentially a wound healing or a natural regeneration process.
• 13:08
  SPEAKER_01: And what we did was we took many, many different ingredients, we took them to the laboratory, and we just took this to a level again that that you may see in pharmaceuticals, but you don't typically see in skincare.
• 13:22
  SPEAKER_01: And we did um what's called, and you may be familiar with it, called gene expression studies.
• 13:27
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, yeah.
• 13:28
  SPEAKER_01: Yes, so we took all these different ingredients and we'd say, if we put these two together, how much collagen and elastin do we stimulate, and how much of the wound healing genes are turned on?
• 13:38
  SPEAKER_01: And then we put in different types of combinations, and finally we came up with the combination of four main ingredients that provide energy together and provided more collagen, more elastin, and more natural regeneration.
• 13:53
  SPEAKER_01: And that's what we patented, and we have already five patents that have issued and multiple patents pending all around our trihex technology.
• 14:02
  SPEAKER_01: So that's really the basis.
• 14:03
  SPEAKER_01: It's it's two peptides, two small molecules, and they all have different activities along collagen elastin and you know, natural regeneration and wound healing.
• 14:14
  SPEAKER_04: That's phenomenal.
• 14:16
  SPEAKER_04: Wow.
• 14:16
  SPEAKER_04: Thank you so much for uh actually explaining that.
• 14:18
  SPEAKER_04: That's and I think that's um I think the first time I've heard someone actually go into um saying that you you did the the lab benchwork, you know, you looked at gene expression, you looked at you know, real change.
• 14:30
  SPEAKER_04: That's amazing.
• 14:31
  SPEAKER_04: That's really amazing.
• 14:33
  SPEAKER_01: Well, that's something that's really important to us, that um we not only conduct very robust clinical trying uh studies and use the the most uh the newest technologies.
• 14:45
  SPEAKER_01: Like, for example, we use um photography technologies that are it's software validated by the vendor that can actually calculate volume changes, it can calculate the depth of a wrinkle and compare to baseline.
• 14:59
  SPEAKER_01: So we do that in our clinical trials, but we also do it when we're developing the concept of a product when we test all the ingredients, both in traditional gene testing, but then we also develop new types of uh laboratory tests that have never been done before.
• 15:16
  SPEAKER_01: So, for example, um we developed a new product uh called enhance that can be used after a dermal filler injection or any injection that causes bruising.
• 15:26
  SPEAKER_01: And we developed um a lab test where we could actually tell which ingredients were helping the body to remove the blood from the bruise.
• 15:37
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 15:37
  SPEAKER_01: And so that could allow us to choose the right ingredients.
• 15:40
  SPEAKER_01: So there's many different ways that we've woven our focus on science and innovation into our um our development of products and our marketing of products.
• 15:52
  SPEAKER_01: And I think that's really what has allowed us to raise the bar in our industry for science in our products.
• 15:59
  SPEAKER_01: And I think it's it's a big part of the reason, along with the incredible team that we have, that we've been the fastest growing company in the medical practitioners skincare space in 2020.
• 16:12
  SPEAKER_01: And over the last four years, we have grown at a keger of over 100%.
• 16:18
  SPEAKER_01: So we have essentially doubled the sales every year.
• 16:21
  SPEAKER_04: Umgratulations, that is truly amazing.
• 16:24
  SPEAKER_04: Wow.
• 16:25
  SPEAKER_04: It's very, very well deserved as well.
• 16:27
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, thank you.
• 16:27
  SPEAKER_01: It's been so exciting, and and we just have an incredible team that that makes it all happen.
• 16:32
  SPEAKER_01: And you know, we we really hire people that have the same mindset.
• 16:37
  SPEAKER_01: Um, we have a focus, we have core values, we have a focus on innovation, customer focus, you know, shared success within the team and with our customers, our physicians, and the consumer customers who are who are, of course, the the you know end users of the products.
• 16:54
  SPEAKER_01: We want everyone to be a winner, and that's really the philosophy.
• 16:58
  SPEAKER_04: Now, one thing, um, Diane, I'm really curious, and I want you to walk us through this because um, you know, the the products that you guys have in the line are truly amazing.
• 17:06
  SPEAKER_04: And I know when um just normally general consumers are looking at products, it's very hard to figure out what we need to use versus not.
• 17:14
  SPEAKER_04: So is there something that Alastin is working on in terms of you know customizing the skincare that we need?
• 17:20
  SPEAKER_04: Because I know if you're in a doctor's office, you know, uh a plastic surgery office, you can obviously ask right there, you know, what do I need and what's really going to benefit me?
• 17:28
  SPEAKER_04: But in terms of just like, you know, just sitting at home and ordering something or wanting to just, you know, pick out something you think you need, um, is there a guide or a protocol that you think people should follow?
• 17:39
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, so that's a good question.
• 17:41
  SPEAKER_01: And you know, we always feel that where possible, it's it's great to get uh physicians input into the choice of skincare.
• 17:50
  SPEAKER_01: Um but we also are are very committed to educating um consumers who are interested in skincare.
• 17:58
  SPEAKER_01: So uh, for example, on our site, we've um recently uh expanded it and we're in the process of it, and we're actually explaining the different types of procedures and then the different types of products that you might want to use with them and why.
• 18:13
  SPEAKER_01: So, why, for example, with a laser procedure, you might need our nectar product, which is a basic uh very soothing product you can use for healing, but that if it's a very uh aggressive laser treatment, you might also need an ointment.
• 18:30
  SPEAKER_01: So we have a soothe and protect ointment.
• 18:32
  SPEAKER_01: Whereas someone who is uh maybe undergoing either fat reduction, whether it's um cool sculpting or chibella or it's a body tightening, skin tightening type of procedure, then we'll talk about how our body product called transform body, how that can help speed up the results of the procedure, and how it also helps, particularly with the collagen and elastin, to tighten the skin.
• 19:03
  SPEAKER_01: So we have that, and then we also have uh information that we hope will be very helpful to consumers on our daily skincare products.
• 19:12
  SPEAKER_01: So, for example, um if if you want to use a retinol because you know that you need some, everybody most likely can benefit from some turnover in your outer skin cells.
• 19:24
  SPEAKER_01: You should start with the lower dose or start with the higher dose.
• 19:28
  SPEAKER_01: How do you decide and how often should you use it, and what should you do if you get a little bit of redness?
• 19:34
  SPEAKER_01: So a lot of that is is is on our website.
• 19:37
  SPEAKER_01: Um, the other thing we do a lot is we work um with so many of the leading physicians in the aesthetic space.
• 19:45
  SPEAKER_01: Um many of them are very active, whether it's on Instagram or Facebook or even in interviews with some of the beauty magazines and some of the beauty editors.
• 20:00
  SPEAKER_01: We work very closely with these opinion leaders when maybe the question is um, I'm interested in a sunscreen.
• 20:08
  SPEAKER_01: Why is a mineral sunscreen better and who should use one?
• 20:12
  SPEAKER_01: So we'll partner with um one of our physicians to go as they're explaining it to um perhaps a beauty editor who might write an article and then we'll incorporate some of that guidance into our website so that people can have access to that.
• 20:27
  SPEAKER_04: That's amazing.
• 20:28
  SPEAKER_04: I really like that.
• 20:29
  SPEAKER_04: I would and you know, this actually um it's interesting to me because I know that every time you know scientists and and researchers and doctors are involved, um, I feel like there should be this um level of transparency in terms of the clinical research and the numbers and the the real facts, right?
• 20:46
  SPEAKER_04: So I I just wonder um how you feel about you know companies publishing like you know clinical data more and making it more readily available.
• 20:55
  SPEAKER_04: I mean, what what has Alastin done in terms of your clinical um information that you found, have you know, in terms of relaying that to consumers?
• 21:04
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, so that that's a good question.
• 21:06
  SPEAKER_01: So, you know, every every consumer is different, and some of them like to have more technical data to look at than others.
• 21:14
  SPEAKER_01: So what we try to do is we try to provide the results from our studies in sort of two different formats.
• 21:22
  SPEAKER_01: Um, one of the things we do is we conduct an extensive number of clinical studies, but then we not only conduct them, um we have them published in a peer-reviewed journal.
• 21:34
  SPEAKER_01: So, what that means is there have been multiple physicians and scientists who've reviewed the study, made sure it's designed properly to be a fair study that compares them to placebo or to a comparative product.
• 21:47
  SPEAKER_01: They've checked the statistics, they've checked the conclusions.
• 21:51
  SPEAKER_01: And so we have right now over 20 papers published on many different types of our products and different types of.
• 22:00
  SPEAKER_01: Procedures as well as daily skin care.
• 22:02
  SPEAKER_01: Virtually all of those are with an outside physician who is the lead investigator and typically blinded.
• 22:09
  SPEAKER_01: So that data is now all available publicly.
• 22:13
  SPEAKER_01: It's available on our website to click click through a link and look at it.
• 22:17
  SPEAKER_01: And it's available, particularly, I think it's important to physicians to read that.
• 22:21
  SPEAKER_01: But then what we try to do on our website is we try to take those detailed scientific studies and boil them down into something that is understandable to the average consumer.
• 22:58
  SPEAKER_01: So that's what they want to see.
• 23:00
  SPEAKER_01: They don't want to, you know, see perhaps all the detail behind the study.
• 23:03
  SPEAKER_01: So we do we really do our best to try to boil it the final results down to something that is meaningful to the typical consumer and put that on our website, but also have the robust clinical trial out there in a publication.
• 23:19
  SPEAKER_01: And I think that again puts us beyond a number of other companies who simply put a footnote.
• 23:25
  SPEAKER_01: You you've probably seen it, it'll say data on so that means they they have some data at the company, but it's never been peer-reviewed or published or shared.
• 23:36
  SPEAKER_01: And you know, that's really the the gold standard to be able to do that.
• 23:40
  SPEAKER_01: And so that's something that we really focus on.
• 23:42
  SPEAKER_04: I completely agree with you.
• 23:43
  SPEAKER_04: I think if you're not um publishing your results in a peer-reviewed journal, it's it's kind of baseless to me, you know.
• 23:49
  SPEAKER_04: So I it it I completely agree with you, and I really commend your company for going that extra mile and making sure that the science community is properly involved in this process.
• 23:58
  SPEAKER_04: You know what I mean?
• 23:58
  SPEAKER_04: Like I I think that's a lot, that's a huge step in clinical grade skincare.
• 24:04
  SPEAKER_04: Um, and you the fact that you guys are just doing it, you know, um fundamentally is is absolutely wonderful.
• 24:10
  SPEAKER_04: So I really commend your company for that.
• 24:12
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, thank you so much.
• 24:14
  SPEAKER_01: Thank you.
• 24:14
  SPEAKER_01: I appreciate it.
• 24:15
  SPEAKER_01: And it's really part of our our overall concept of bringing pharmaceutical science to the medical skincare industry.
• 24:24
  SPEAKER_01: Because years ago, perhaps, or you know, perhaps there are some lines who have products that are on the market that just don't have a lot of data behind them.
• 24:34
  SPEAKER_01: And I think the average consumer nowadays is much more sophisticated, and they really expect to be able to look at the data if they want and to know that data is out there and either themselves or hear a physician talk about it who has actually seen the data or maybe even conducted the study.
• 24:53
  SPEAKER_04: Well, I'm not gonna lie to you, Diane.
• 24:55
  SPEAKER_04: I, you know, I would love going into papers and you know, like looking at the numbers myself and being like, oh, okay, this makes sense.
• 25:02
  SPEAKER_04: And I I know it's like, you know, some people don't have the science background or they're just not interested in that.
• 25:07
  SPEAKER_04: But I think there's a whole um I it attaches you more to the line and the products you're using if you use look up this information, you know what I mean?
• 25:15
  SPEAKER_04: So I think that like just by you publishing it and putting it out there, I think that is a huge step.
• 25:21
  SPEAKER_04: And, you know, something I'm uh hearing from a lot more people now is like, yeah, I love going on to PubMed, you know, I love looking up, um, well, you know, how does collagen get produced in our bodies?
• 25:30
  SPEAKER_04: You know, like reading a medical paper.
• 25:33
  SPEAKER_04: So um I I think I think it's a really the next step.
• 25:36
  SPEAKER_04: Now, one thing I do want to ask you, and I keep hearing about this, and I just want to know your thoughts, is this idea of um, you know, 3D imaging of the face, and then using that or some sort of imaging of the face before we start using skincare.
• 25:50
  SPEAKER_04: Is that something um elastin's thought about or something along those lines?
• 25:53
  SPEAKER_04: Or how do you feel about that concept?
• 25:56
  SPEAKER_01: Um, yeah, that's that's a great question.
• 25:58
  SPEAKER_01: And and it's interesting, just like all of the um rejuvenating devices, the lasers and radio frequency devices are becoming more sophisticated, and there's second and third and fourth generation of them.
• 26:11
  SPEAKER_01: It's the same thing with medical imaging and the cameras and the software that are available.
• 26:18
  SPEAKER_01: And again, this is uh again, I think in part due to our pharmaceutical heritage, we're very focused on having quantitative data to analyze and to share.
• 26:29
  SPEAKER_01: So you you can take a before picture and an after picture and have someone say, Oh, I think this person looks 20% better.
• 26:37
  SPEAKER_01: And that's one way to assess it.
• 26:39
  SPEAKER_01: But uh what we've done is we have um searched for the types of imaging camera equipment and the software packages that actually allow us to calculate the difference, and we have done that in our studies, and the cameras are incredibly sophisticated.
• 26:57
  SPEAKER_01: You may have seen some of them.
• 26:58
  SPEAKER_01: There are some physicians' offices you can go into and kind of get a skin analysis photography, and they will look at things like um you know, the percent of red spots on your face, they will use a certain um wavelength of light, and they'll be able to tell not only how many uh sort of brown spots you might have on your face, but how many are in the the layer below the surface that are ready to come out.
• 27:25
  SPEAKER_01: Um they can look at um the depth of the wrinkles and the the surface area of the wrinkles.
• 27:32
  SPEAKER_01: So um that's the type of equipment that we use in our clinical trials where we're measuring perhaps results of our daily skincare product, restorative uh skin complex is our number one uh hero product for daily skin care.
• 27:49
  SPEAKER_01: We've done studies that actually calculate the reduction in number of wrinkles and percent of wrinkles and depth of wrinkles.
• 27:57
  SPEAKER_01: Um the 3D views are also very helpful when we do our body studies.
• 28:04
  SPEAKER_01: Um, we've done studies again with the looking at skin tightening or uh fat reduction studies, and then utilizing our um our topical uh body product, Transform Body, uh, and we can take pictures at baseline and then take pictures at four, eight, and twelve weeks, and the camera can actually look at a 3D, it creates a 3D image that you can rotate, and that the camera software can actually calculate the volume difference.
• 28:35
  SPEAKER_01: So becoming more and more sophisticated with what we can do in clinical trials, and what I think you know the company should be doing to incorporate into their research as they're developing new products to really demonstrate that that they do make a difference.
• 28:51
  SPEAKER_01: And you know, we we hear about this even with some of the the apps that are starting to be available for for consumers that you know you can get an app and you know try out a lipstick and it'll show you what the lipstick looks on your face.
• 29:04
  SPEAKER_04: Yes, exactly, exactly.
• 29:06
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, people are interested in that, and so that's something that we're we're continuing to um enhance our our abilities there and always looking for the next technology to put in our clinical trial and use in our um efficacy reports that we provide to our to our consumers as well as our physician customers.
• 29:24
  SPEAKER_04: I love that, and I and I think that that's you know, it's very important to have this like cutting-edge technology when you're doing any kind of like further formulation on something.
• 29:34
  SPEAKER_04: And I think that's a message that I really hope resonates in the skincare industry right now because um, you know, I'm not gonna lie, you're one of the very few people I've spoken to that really seems to be understanding this.
• 29:45
  SPEAKER_04: So, you know, for everybody out there who wants to start a brand, I think it's something to really consider is do you have the means to really do it the right way?
• 29:54
  SPEAKER_04: You know what I mean?
• 29:55
  SPEAKER_04: Like, do is the technology gonna be there?
• 29:56
  SPEAKER_04: Is the are the resources gonna be there where you can really make a difference?
• 30:00
  SPEAKER_04: So I love that.
• 30:01
  SPEAKER_04: I love what you're doing with um all of the research stuff.
• 30:03
  SPEAKER_04: It's it's truly great.
• 30:05
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, glad to hear that.
• 30:07
  SPEAKER_01: It's exciting, and and you know, we're we feel like we're really on the leading edge from a scientific perspective, and you know, we not only want to improve products that are used for you know current types of um of skin conditions, but also we want to provide products perhaps for areas where there's never been anything that's been used there before, just like a topical product to help with the the bruising and the swelling after a filler, or a topical product to use after um a body shaping treatment, um, or something again that protects a sunscreen that protects against blue light and pollution, you know, and uh you know UVA and UVB, and also is all physical and is designed to match almost all skin tones.
• 31:02
  SPEAKER_01: So whether it's daily skincare or on the procedure side, we're always trying to take take the product and the science and the performance to the next level.
• 31:10
  SPEAKER_04: And you know, I actually have a follow-up question uh about that because you know, earlier we spoke about how this it really can everybody can use elastin, obviously.
• 31:19
  SPEAKER_04: But I want to know when you did your clinical trials and you looked at, you know, obviously when a skin is treated and damaged, um the the permeability definitely changes as well, right?
• 31:29
  SPEAKER_04: So that with skin care, a lot of people love talking about, well, you know, when you're applying something topically, there's a lot of factors to consider, like, you know, it going through the bloodstream or if it's penetrating deep enough into the layers of our, you know, of normal skin.
• 31:42
  SPEAKER_04: And I'm just wondering if you found a difference between the results of people that were um treated versus non-treatment, if the if there was a completely non-treatment group.
• 31:51
  SPEAKER_01: Uh yes, absolutely.
• 31:53
  SPEAKER_01: I I think the other um type of um uh scientific uh undertaking that we've put in place at Alastin, that we've been one of the first to do, and we've done it certainly the most extensively, is uh multiple biopsies.
• 32:08
  SPEAKER_01: So um in um virtually all our clinical trials and also while we are developing products, um we will um have um volunteers, we call them that, but sometimes we recruit people from the office, but uh volunteers um who'll come in and maybe put um one of our uh products on um you know one wrist and then put a plain moisturizer on the other wrist and do that twice a day for eight weeks, and then take a biopsy and see if there's a difference.
• 32:41
  SPEAKER_01: And um that was really, I think, when we um had our first biopsy data, it it came in in um in March of 2016, and we went to our our first uh physician meeting, and uh it was American Academy of Dermatology, and we were showing some of our biopsies to the physicians, and they said, you know, this is amazing how much difference we can see you know in the dermal level of the skin after just a few weeks of use of your product, that oftentimes it can take you know a laser treatment or something like this to have this type of result.
• 33:20
  SPEAKER_01: So we've continued with that.
• 33:22
  SPEAKER_01: Um we've done uh biopsy treatments or biopsy studies with virtually all of our products.
• 33:27
  SPEAKER_01: We look for things like um increased collagen, increased velastin.
• 33:33
  SPEAKER_01: We've worked with um some very uh leading edge uh uh derm pathologists who've actually determined how to in the past you would sort of just look at the color of the collagen, how how bright it is, the stain on the collagen to see if if you have more or less collagen, but they actually figured out a way to quantify it, to actually measure the depth of that color, um, figured out ways to look at uh hyaluronic acid uh generation.
• 34:01
  SPEAKER_01: So all sorts of new ways we can tell with the biopsy that our products are actually making a difference to the patient, in addition to you know the obvious results from a visual perspective that you can see with a regular camera or with an imaging camera that can actually measure redness, uh brown spots, wrinkles, um uh even skin texture and tone, uh size of the pores.
• 34:31
  SPEAKER_01: So we look at both visually and then we look uh into the skin layer itself uh to look at again the improved health and and um wellness of the skin after using our products.
• 34:43
  SPEAKER_04: I I that's so cool.
• 34:44
  SPEAKER_04: And it, you know, it makes me wonder, especially when you were speaking about the trihex technology, um, and you know, looking at elastin and collagen specifically, I'm curious what's also happening in the other with other parameters that determine, you know, um the skin barrier and and and how you know healthy our skin is and and all of those things, because if you're having such a profound effect on such you know proteins like collagen, then it must be doing some amazing things um downstream as well on smaller proteins and smaller molecules, right?
• 35:16
  SPEAKER_01: It's that's probably true.
• 35:18
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, at some point it sort of gets to the point where you you can't you can't track everything through the body, and you know, we're working at at the skin level.
• 35:26
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, that's really what we're doing is we're we're helping to improve the the appearance of the skin.
• 35:33
  SPEAKER_01: Um, but you're you're absolutely right.
• 35:34
  SPEAKER_01: It isn't just collagen and elastin, it's um it's uh the skin barrier um penetration and health.
• 35:42
  SPEAKER_01: And obviously, we use certain ingredients too, um, such as certain types of ceramides and things like that to enhance the skin barrier because that protects it from you know insult and injury.
• 35:54
  SPEAKER_01: Um, things like uh tool, transepidural water loss, um, all of those types of things are important to help keep your skin looking moisturized and young.
• 36:05
  SPEAKER_01: And and that is one of the reasons people sometimes have wrinkles when they're uh when they're tired or their skin's really dry.
• 36:13
  SPEAKER_01: It just isn't going to look as good because that skin barrier is impaired or they've had the water loss and they don't have the moisturization that they need in the skin.
• 36:23
  SPEAKER_01: So again, we look at a broad range of things, and and most of our products have multiple ingredients and probably much more complex manufacturing than you might see in some other other products in the space because of that, because we're trying to address as many of those factors as we can to support the health of the skin and the the appearance of the skin.
• 36:46
  SPEAKER_04: Wow.
• 36:47
  SPEAKER_04: Well, I'm really, really I'm I'm just I have I've run out of questions because this is so beautifully crafted and so well thought out.
• 36:54
  SPEAKER_04: I mean, I I'm really you know at a loss for words there.
• 36:57
  SPEAKER_04: So wow, I'm just very impressed, Diane.
• 36:59
  SPEAKER_04: Thank you so much for telling us all this great information.
• 37:02
  SPEAKER_01: Well, thank you, Ecta, and I really appreciate the chance to come on here.
• 37:06
  SPEAKER_01: Um, you've done a great job as an entrepreneur building skincare anarchy podcasts, and I've enjoyed listening to a number of them.
• 37:14
  SPEAKER_01: And um, I appreciate the chance to talk about Alastin.
• 37:17
  SPEAKER_01: We're we're very passionate about what we do and developing new products that are helping the skin of many, many consumers, and also working very closely with uh our physician customers to give them the data that they need for those physicians who are working with uh their aesthetic patients.
• 37:37
  SPEAKER_01: So um again, thanks for the chance to come on board and uh on your chance to do it.
• 37:44
  SPEAKER_04: It was my pleasure, and I'm actually gonna I'm probably gonna come up with more questions because I always ruminate after my interviews, and I'm I'm gonna have a million questions for you, I think.
• 37:51
  SPEAKER_04: So you might have to come back on.
• 37:54
  SPEAKER_01: Okay, that sounds great.
• 37:55
  SPEAKER_01: Or call me anytime and you and I'll just chat.
• 37:57
  SPEAKER_04: Awesome, awesome.
• 37:58
  SPEAKER_04: Well, everyone out there, please, please, please go check out Elasted and check them out on um Instagram, any, you know, obviously the website, um, give them a follow, give the line a try.
• 38:07
  SPEAKER_04: It's it's I mean, this is amazing.
• 38:09
  SPEAKER_04: It's it's real science-backed skincare that works.
• 38:12
  SPEAKER_04: So, you know, this is something I think everyone should really be investing in.
• 38:16
  SPEAKER_04: And so, yeah, and leave us some feedback.
• 38:17
  SPEAKER_04: Um, let us know what you thought about the episode.
• 38:19
  SPEAKER_04: And if you have any questions, um, we want to know all of it.
• 38:23
  SPEAKER_04: So, thank you so much.
• 38:25
  SPEAKER_01: Thank you.
• 38:31
  SPEAKER_04: Hey guys, so I hope you love that episode.
• 38:34
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• 38:56
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• 39:17
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• 39:22
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• 39:27
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• 39:33
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• 39:38
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