The man behind the creams explains why “7.5 Billion Skin Types, One Cream” is not just a tagline.
To say that Professor Augustinus Bader has exacting standards would be an understatement. After all, this is the man who spent 30 years diligently researching stem cell behavior before ever considering a beauty venture. This attitude - an uncompromising demand for innovation and performance - extends to everything the brand does, including our recent campaign: 7.5 Billion Skin Types. One Cream.
The language we used is deliberate and meant to emphasize the universality of Augustinus Bader skincare. Anyone can use it, everyone can benefit from it. To help explore that concept in more detail, we turned back to the source and sat down with Professor Bader. In the below interview, we talk to the Professor about what makes a product truly versatile, how to get the most from your creams, and the beauty trends he wishes would stop.
The campaign’s tagline is “7.5 Billion Skin Types. One Cream.” How does the science behind the product support this message?
As a medical doctor, I approached the creation of a skincare product in a very different way [from other brands]. The innovation behind the creams is a specific knowledge of what the stem cells need to trigger your own skin to fix itself naturally. Our Creams are smart creams. The formulas work in a targeted manner to integrate the skin physiology of the user. By using the skin as a natural bioreactor, the cream becomes uniquely personalized to the needs of the individual user's skin. The products are genuinely universal as they work independently from gender, ethnicity, or age differences, and adjust to the individual's skin needs. Naturally personalizing the creams to each user allows them to achieve the best possible result for all skin types. We call this next-generation smart skincare.
What allows The Cream and The Rich Cream to address such a wide variety of skin concerns? Why is that unique among skincare products?
The development of my skincare range focused more on skin health and personalized medicine than that of a traditional beauty developer. Our Trigger Factor Complex® (TFC8®), the proprietary technology at the heart of the Augustinus Bader skincare products, is the result of over 30 years of clinical research. Rather than using a single “hero” ingredient, it’s a complex of more than 40 different ingredients–medical grade vitamins, lipids, proteins, amino acids–which, in exact quantity and combination, constitute important building components for healthy skin. TFC8® is essentially a toolbox, providing the skin with everything it needs to fix the things that go wrong, whether that’s age-related or from things like pollution. When you’re able to do that, you can support epigenetic factors that enable the body to rejuvenate your skin according to your own needs.
One Cream is also about streamlining your skincare routine. How do your products do that, in both the short- and long-term?
Augustinus Bader products work very well on their own - the formula can target a multitude of skin issues, including fine lines and wrinkles, dehydration, redness, loss of elasticity, acne, and pore size. The Creams are most effective when our active ingredient, TFC8®, is the first point of contact with the skin. But when incorporating your other products, please ensure they have fully absorbed before you apply either cream.
Our skincare products are not a temporary fix. The innovation is the ability to support your skin to fix itself, meaning you will retain any improvements to your skin even if you're unable to use regularly. Whereas some moisturizers simply do their job for the day in hand, this one works to train skin in the longterm. After three to four weeks of using this - and only this - after cleansing, you’ll see a big difference in skin quality and health.
How important was it to you that Augustinus Bader products work across a variety of age, gender, and skin constituencies?
All humans have the same innate repair potential, so our Creams can be used by and are beneficial to a diverse customer base: all ethnicities, environments, and skin types. It’s all about empowering your cells to do that perfect regeneration that they are capable of doing. Looking after this amazing living organ, that does so much more than just cover the body, is more than just vanity.
One Cream celebrates inclusivity. Why is this an important message?
Everyone is an individual, so integrating individual repair processes is more relevant and also more universal. When your body's natural regeneration processes are supported and nourished, you can achieve the best version of yourself. Beautiful skin is a reflection of health, regardless of age, race, or gender.
As a scientist and doctor, what trends in beauty get under your skin? Which ones are you excited about?
There is a common misconception about the external application of foreign stem cells in skincare products. Stem cells can only make the type of organism they derive from. An apple stem cell is programmed to create an apple and an orange stem cell to make an orange. Adding stem cells to a skincare product, whether it be a plant, animal, even human stem cells, is ineffective and unnecessary.
Personalized skincare is gaining notable demand in recent years, but current offerings predominately rely on personal consultation and rudimentary genetic testing. I am excited by the ability to identify a person's unique skin profile and tailor products based on the ingredients’ effects on their epigenetic markers.
What does the idea of “One Cream” mean to you?
For me, it's about creating sustainable and inclusive products that deliver measurable results. We all have the means to course-correct our cells -so we integrated this knowledge into a skincare product that is effective, natural and easy to use.
Read more about Professor Bader and his work here