IN THE SPOTLIGHT: LUCY MACDOUGLAD - BIOLOGI

Being Biologi's biggest fans, we are thrilled to have had the opportunity to chat with Lucy, one half of the Biologi founding duo. 

The award-winning, clean cosmeceutical brand Biologi has listened to customers and curated simplified regimes that cater to a range of skin concerns. 

Tailored, simple, effective. Just the way we like it. 

In this discussion we learn, what was missing in the skincare industry before Biologi, the journey to bottling 100% active plant extract, where the Biologi ingredient inspiration comes from and how Lucy unwinds after a big day.

 

 

The team here at Ritology are all big Biologi fans. The touch, scent and results from every serum is simply incredible. We'd love to hear more about the core values of Biologi and how the concept came to be. 

When Ross first started Biologi, his mission was simple – He wanted to create 100% active plant extract serums that can change the skin on a cellular level. The active ingredient is what makes the product work, and Ross wanted to be able to provide that potency without adding filler ingredients that dilute the efficacy. As the brand has evolved, our core values are still fairly simple. We are focussed on being 100% transparent, providing ethical skincare that truly works. We like to ensure that our customers know exactly what’s in our products (which is pretty easy given that our products contain only one single pure plant extract and 0.2% Sodium Benzoate, a small percentage of a preservative). As a brand we’re passionate about educating our consumers on everything from production processes through to how ingredients are made, but most importantly, on empowering our customers to feel good in their own skin. 

 

You are actually world leaders when it comes to producing 100% active organic plant serums.  Given your history and experience in this industry, what did you know to be missing from the other skincare lines on the market?

The biggest thing that was missing was potency – Brands were (and still are) selling products that might have the active ingredient at 2%, then they add a whole heap of filler, emulsifiers and synthetic ingredients to make it cost effective. What you find is something that is so diluted doesn’t have the desired effect on the skin. Ross spent countless years and money researching, developing and finally inventing a revolutionary plant extraction method. He discovered that we could bottle 100% of the plant activity and that it was highly effective on the skin, however no other brands were willing to use these extracts in their pure form. That’s essentially how Biologi was born. 

Biologi’s proprietary extraction technique was able to identify that plants contain what we call a Phyto-nutrient Protection (PNP™) and it does more than keep the plant nutrients active within the plant. When we analysed how the Phyto-nutrient Protection (PNP™) interacted with human cells, we found it contained a “bio-key” that opens the human cell wall membrane, flooding the cell with active nutrients, which purges the toxins, detoxifies and reduces inflammation in the effected cell. Once the cells have detoxified, the Phyto-nutrient Protection (PNP™) delivers potent active nutrients through the cell wall membrane which helps the cell structure repair. This method of extraction of active nutrients from plants has significant benefits in the preservation and rate of absorption of these nutrients by human cells. No other brand has this technology and our products prove that undiluted nature truly works. We are proud to say we offer a few world firsts when it comes to skincare – not only do we offer the 100% active ingredient serums, we are also the first skincare product in the world that contains natural, stable, active vitamin C (not Ascorbic Acid) thanks to Biologi’s revolutionary extraction system that keeps plant nutrients stable. 

We love your work with Samantha Harris, and many other inspirational individuals. What brand or person would you love to trial Biologi and collaborate with and why?

There’s a few on our list! We love amazing Aussies like Lara Worthington or Teresa Palmer. These women are doing incredible things in their own right, whilst juggling careers and motherhood.  

As a husband and wife team we can imagine a lot of work is brought home. What is your favourite self-care ritual to shift out of work mode, unwind and slow down?

It can sometimes feel like the work never stops but thankfully we truly love what we do and some days it doesn’t feel like work. We would be lying if we said that it’s a breeze all the time – there certainly are challenging days but as a team we balance each other out. We love spending time with our fur babies – whether that’s taking them for a walk or a swim, or simply sitting on the couch giving them cuddles. Exercise is really important for both of us and we try to do regular Pilates classes or walks along the sand. 

I am personally obsessed with your Hydration serum post shave although I recently got my hands on your latest launch, the Regenerate anti-aging serum and now find it difficult not to want to touch my face all day. What are your favourite active ingredients and why.

This is like asking us to choose between our dogs haha! We’re really proud of all of our products however one of the products that we’re particularly proud of is our cleanser. Biologi’s Bc Refresh Cleanser is a great example of our hard work and innovation paying off. Prior to our discovery, we always said that we would never develop a cleanser because at the time we hadn’t discovered a plant extract that would have the right efficacy as a single ingredient. Then we discovered that soapberry extract (which is the ingredient of Biologi’s Bc Refresh Cleanser) was packed with nourishing actives that can wash away impurities and leave skin fresh, clean and clear. This is a world-first – the naturally occurring amino acids, phenolic acids and amines work in synergy to remove all traces of dirt without disturbing the skin’s natural oils and moisture essential for hydration. However, if you had of asked us about developing a cleanser from a single plant extract a year ago, we were saying that it was impossible! 

What’s next for Biologi? Are there any exciting collaborations, products or events that are in motion?

Our future plan is to definitely develop the range, and this often happens in synergy with our discoveries about natural plant extracts. We’re currently collaborating with Ultra Violette to bring limited edition packs focussed on skincare needs in the warmer months. Featuring Ultra Violette’s Clean Screen, Biologi’s Bf Restore Face & Body Serum and Biologi’s BL Nourish Lip Serum, all housed in a luxe vegan leather cosmetic case with transparent windows and double zip around closure. We’ve also just launched Biologi Bundles which are skincare packs featuring a tight edit of Biologi’s cult products to create a complete skincare regime. The first Bundles released are the BHydrated and BBright, both featuring the all new travel size 50ml Bc Refresh Cleanser (currently not available for sale on its own). So there’s lots of newness happening including a new product in a few months time (but I can’t tell you about this yet)! 

 We’d love to be able to also host our event series ‘Confessions of a Cosmetic Chemist’ again, but we obviously need to wait until Covid is mostly a thing of the past. Confessions of a Cosmetic Chemist lifts the lid on the cosmetics industry and helps consumers make informed choices about what they’re putting on their skin. The event allows consumers to cut through the marketing hype and make decisions based on true facts. 

One of our goals is to simplify personal care routines: less is more so to speak when you are using quality ingredients or products. We feel Biologi has a similar motto, buying better, not more. Quality active ingredients instead of a 12 step skin care regime 2x a day. Where do you draw your inspiration and motivation for not only your product, but day to day life?

Most of our inspiration comes from the vast amount of ingredients found in the Australian landscape. The Australian landscape actually has more biodiversity than the Amazon and Asia combined! Aboriginals have long been tapping into the power of Australian natives, leveraging natural ingredients for health and skin benefits. So we let what’s available to us drive our work, spending time researching these ingredients and understanding how they can work best on the skin. It’s important to us that skincare routines aren’t complicated. We really only need a few ingredients on our skin for it to thrive, so we always want to make sure everyone is getting the best out of their skincare and not over complicating it ‘just because’. That’s part of the reason why we championed the Skin Fasting movement – because it really does work wonders on the skin! 

We noticed that you and the team love to travel. 2020 unfortunately put a halt to that. Post-COVID, what is the first destination you guys are wanting to visit and why?

 New Zealand which is where I’m from originally and it feels like our second home. We miss all our Kiwi friends and family terribly so cannot wait to get back there. There are of course so many other places in the world that we’d love to go but New Zealand is top of the list at the moment. 

We need to know: Hit us with the best and let's say, the most challenging part of being in business with your other half?

The best bit is getting to spend every day with your best friend and the worst bit is that too! Haha. In all seriousness we are pretty lucky that we can be quite different in many ways, but we tend to complement each other so it all balances out. It’s nice having each other there for constant support and we have a great team that can provide a buffer for when we might need a break from each other! 

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Biologi have a range of bundles on offer tailored specifically for certain skin concerns. The first 2 bundles in the series are BHydrated & BBright.

BHydrated tailors to Normal-Dry skin providing hydration and environmental protection, while BBright targets pigmentation and dullness for those seeking an even, radiant glow. 

All of Biologi’s skin bundles include an exclusive travel sized Bc Refresh Cleanser + Bonus luxurious Microfibre Cloth!

You can purchase these bundles and follow Biologi's mission here:

Shop: https://www.biologi.com.au

Instagram: @biologiserum