Skincare is a billion dollar industry, but does forking out more for high performance anti-ageing science skincare really give better and quicker results? After all, it wasn’t too long ago when we were using sorbolene single ingredient creams and cold creams were considered good enough. Is high-science skincare worth the investment? And more than that, will it perform a skincare miracle?
To convince us one way or another, we asked skin expert, Belinda Besant, national training manager for prestige Swiss skincare brand, La Prairie. Below she shares why women are spending more up on innovative formulations – and why they’re worthwhile.
WE’VE COME A LONG WAY
“[La Prairie] started long before we introduced our skincare range. We actually started as a wellness retreat in the 1930s in Montreux, Switzerland called Clinique La Prairie. It was where everyone who was anyone would go to have that elixir of youth – to be revived, recharged and rejuvenated,” explains Besant. It wasn’t until 1978, almost fifty years later, that La Prairie take-home skincare line was launched, featuring their proprietary signature Exclusive Cellular Complex derived from the results of the in-demand cellular therapies used at Clinique La Prarie.
BREAKTHROUGHS & DEVELOPMENTS
Exclusive Cellular Complex
Every La Prairie product touts the Exclusive Cellular Complex, but what exactly is in it? “It’s a cocktail of a hundred ingredients that mimic the nutrients in the skin,” Besant explains. “It helps your skin to work like a younger skin, improving cell functions, giving new life and energy back to the cells where beauty is born,” she continues. Simply put, think of it like a complete wellness program for your skin. A nutritional booster for the skin anytime you need.
Caviar
La Prairie’s very first caviar product launched in 1987 and astounded the skincare industry. “No one before had focused on the nutritional needs of the skin, and no one had talked about the skin’s firmness. Certainly no one had taken the chance of using such an unusual ingredient in a facial product!” says Besant. “Caviar set a new standard. It’s such a nutritious food, rich in vitamins, minerals, phospholipids and omega 3, which are the building blocks of healthy skin. But our skin is the last place to see the effects of what we eat; the nutrition goes to every other organ first, so extracting caviar and devising a delivery system capable of enriching the skin was an innovation,” she continues. Essentially, La Prairie’s caviar technology was a pre-cursor to the peptide technology that we see today.
Gold
Besant says gold is the very essence of opulence, and who would disagree? Used by pharaohs, Cleopatra and even consumed because of its precious metal status, La Prairie harnessed its beauty benefits for their next revolutionary phase. In 2015, they launched Cellular Radiance Cream, La Prairie’s very first gold product to give the skin a youthful, radiant glow. “This highly corrective range refines the skin’s texture, tone and luminosity. We find that mature women want something more for their skin, so the radiance collection offers rich textures, nurturing ingredients underpinned with gold to give the skin back its glow,” explains Besant.
Swiss survival plants
Sometimes the next big breakthrough ingredient is right under your nose. That was the case with the Swiss Ice Crystal collection featuring Swiss survivalist plants, which endure some of the world’s harshest climates, to help strength skin, defend it and keep it looking younger for longer.
Platinum
La Prairie’s first ‘Platinum’ product launched a decade ago in 2008. The highly aspirational Cellular Cream Platinum Rare priced at $1540 for 50ml. “We chose Platinum because it was an ingredient to rejuvenate, rebuild, and firm the skin. It’s for all ages, all skin types, and for someone aspiring to have the very best treatment for their skin,” says Besant. “It has an instant tensing effect that feels amazing while it goes to work in depth. It’s a unlike anything else – a bit like the rare and precious metal we’ve used as the active ingredient, but it does so much for the skin. But the main point is ultimate rejuvenation.”
THE LATEST INNOVATION
Which brings us to… La Prairie’s latest and greatest innovation. Continuing to harness the power of platinum in the Platinum Night Elixir, a transformative, cashmere-soft evening skincare booster (use before moisturiser) that fights against ageing while you sleep. The elixir will set you back $1540 for 20mls, which is not spare change for most. So, does it work? And do you need it? Naturally, Besant thinks so. “I’m going to challenge the idea that it’s a treat because I think more and more women are spending money on things that work,” she says.
It’s already sold out once, and Besant says the initial verdict from skincare lovers and cult fans of the brand have been extremely positive.
“The feedback I’ve had from people from people of all ages is that this product has been amazing. A lady that works with us that is 24 years of age is in love with it. And I was curious, for someone so young, what does she love about this product? She said, ‘I love the way it makes my skin feel immediately.’ She was concerned about her skin texture, and after just one drop at night she’d wake up the next morning and her skin texture had improved,” Besant shares.
A skincare miracle? Sounds a lot like it.
Rescu. Founder and Editor, Bahar Etminan’s review:
SHOP: La Prairie Platinum Night Elixir Crème
