Conversations, Modesta Cassinello & Harper's Bazaar Spain

A few days ago we talked about hair with Paula Menéndez, beauty editor of one of the most relevant magazines in our country, Harper's Bazaar Spain. We encourage you to read the interview and not to stop buying the magazine, together with colleagues we talk about hair, which from being a great forgotten to become one of the main concerns in terms of personal care is concerned.

Today, as Paula Menéndez says: "Hair care is experiencing an unprecedented boom. We have finally learned that the key to a radiant mane lies in using active ingredients and technologies as advanced as those that characterize facial treatments.

We leave you the interview, and encourage you to comment:

Paula: According to Business of Fashion, sales of hair care products in the United States grew by 32% in 2021. A phenomenon that, I think, is global. As a creator, have you noticed that change?

Modesta: Yes, COVID-19 changed our habits affecting hair as well. We must remember that hair is not a priority for us, hence any impact brings metabolic changes and suffers, nothing more than a matter of priorities.

During these years, the emotional state of uncertainty of "permanent alertness", and the consequences of such a rapid and prolonged withdrawal from home in the beginning: changes in dietary and hygienic habits, increased exposure to blue light and rest, had consequences on the hair and caused the consumer to look for hair solutions.

Consumers were looking for health, and they were also looking for hair, so they prioritized solutions based more on health than on beauty, unlike in previous years. Hence the boom in cosmetics with active ingredients with proven hair care properties.

And beauty was not important to him? Yes, but as we commented in one of the articles published in our Magazine "Hair Corner", she looked for it in a more relaxed way. Far away were the perfect styles, instead the individuality of each hair was claimed, a very positive change in my opinion.

Paula: You have been proclaiming for years that hair deserves to be cared for like skin. How did you come to this visionary conclusion at a time when no one else saw it that way?

Modesta: Yes, when we talk about hair, we can differentiate between two fundamental areas, scalp and hair shaft, which are distinct from each other but related. First of all, the scalp is a cutaneous part, a skin with different characteristics from the face and body areas in terms of quantity, quality, temperature, anatomy..., with biological activity, which is part of the health area and deserves to be cared for just like the skin. In terms of care, the main objective is to maintain its barrier function, avoid alterations in its microbiota and prevent any irritation.

Secondly, an external part, the hair shaft, inert, without biological response, which corresponds to the field of beauty and requires the balanced functioning of all the structures of the skin that make up the scalp to show its best version. In terms of care, the main objective is to protect its internal and external structure, prevent the loss or modification of color and maintain optimal hydration and shape.

From the very first moment I created my cosmetic line, I paid attention to the scalp and hair and proclaimed its care.

Paula: What are consumers looking for in a hair care product today?

Modesta: They are looking for a balanced scalp, they know that it will give them better hair, hence the increase in searches for scalp care during this time. With regard to the hair shaft, consumers are looking for three main qualities in a cosmetic product: softness, shine and manageability.

As a result of the growing awareness of the need to preserve the planet, solid cosmetics are now "trending". Its success is mainly based on two factors:

1. Sustainability due to the reduction of water consumption during formulation, the elimination of plastic packaging and a better CO2 footprint as a result of lighter transport. 2. Functionality, they are very convenient and easy to use formats, ideal for travel.

2. At Modesta Cassinello, solid formats are undisputed beauty heroes sought after by consumers. As I always say "cosmetics are emotional, imaginative and somehow identify us".

Paula: The focus is, as in skin care, on the ingredients. What are your most precious ingredients?

Modesta: In hair care, we look for ingredients with proven properties on hair and many of them are Mediterranean, which is the essence of our brand.

Always active ingredients that maintain and reinforce hair characteristics, strength, flexibility and resistance to external agents.

In addition to the ingredients used, at Modesta Cassinello we also pay a lot of attention to the formats. As a result of the growing awareness for the preservation of the planet, today there are fantastic solid hair care cosmetics that you can combine with other formats.