25 Apr 2010 Made from scratch: New skin care line launched

Rx Solutions Skin Therapy was developed by US Co mpounding Pharmacy and is a full skin care line with options for normal, dry, oily, blemish-prone and aging skin. It will be sold exclusively through independently owned pharmacies, but a prescription is not necessary. The term “cosmeceutical” refers to products that have both cosmetic and pharmaceutical benefits.

Having a full skin care line made from scratch is a service not offered by many pharmacies, putting US Compounding and US CosmeCeuticals at the forefront of a new opportunity.

Kristin Riddle joined US Compounding in 2005 and is one of the creators of the Rx Solutions Skin Therapy line. She serves as lead pharmacist for US CosmeCeuticals and clinical services director for US Compounding. She is one of the foremost authorities on cosmeceutical compounding.

“At first we were just creating some products to solve problems for people, and then we started expanding it more.  As we tried out different products, people would come back and say, this has solved (a) problem that I’ve never been able to find anything to deal with. That was what really kept us going … the responses we got from consumers.”
US CosmeCeuticals has invested more than $400,000 on research and development into the skin care line. After an eight-week consumer trial and a pilot program in 15 pharmacies around Arkansas, the line is being rolled out statewide this spring and summer.

Most recently, US CosmeCeuticals set up Rx Solutions at a pharmacy in south Louisiana, followed by one in Mississippi. Soon to follow will be one in Seattle. Other pharmacies outside Arkansas have shown an interest in the skincare line as well. The nationwide launch of the line will be in June.

“Our skin says a lot about our health and our habits,” Riddle said. “As medical professionals, we’ve been able to create a line of products that will produce healthier skin and significantly diminish the effects of damaged skin by increasing cell turnover and preventing free radical and sun damage.”

The product line is mass produced at US CosmeCeuticals in Conway, with the exception of a few items that are needed

in very large quantities. Those are manufactured according to the formula developed by US CosmeCeuticals at Professional Compounding Centers of America in Houston, which supplies the chemicals for the products.

Riddle said the benefit of a high-end cosmeceutical is the certainty that the beneficial ingredients for the skin will always be present in the same potent amount.

For example, she said, peptides are good for the skin.

“You can put a few drops of peptides in your product and claim you have peptides and charge a lot for your product. We have a percentage of peptide (in our product) that works,” she said.

Riddle has been invited to speak all over the nation about developing a cosmeceutical line. Eventually, US

CosmeCeuticals will add more lines, she said.

“We are constantly working with new ingredients, especially from the (annual) conference in New York. They present the newest ingredients there,” she said.

US Compounding president and CEO Eddie Glover, P. D., said, “Because we’re pharmacists, we’re very interested in the chemical composition of the product and how it affects skin. We use substantial amounts of high-quality, active ingredients to make a therapeutic difference, which sets us apart from over-the-counter skin care treatments found in department stores or other retail establishments.”

He added, “We have all really enjoyed doing this. We are very pleased with the response in the test markets and the response from people wanting to try it.”

Glover and Riddle are a father-daughter team.

As the rollout continues, US CosmeCeuticals will train pharmacies to provide skin care consultations and to be familiar with the product.

Riddle noted the US CosmeCeuticals storefront only recently opened.

“We have focused on our product launch rather than focusing on selling in Conway. We have focused on getting our product as it needs to be … getting in other pharmacies. We wanted to be sure when we opened for Conway we were ready for Conway,” she said.

Rx Solutions is available in 15 pharmacies in Benton, Charleston, El Dorado, Fort Smith, Hot Springs, Magnolia, Paragould, Searcy, Sheridan, Stuttgart, Texarkana, and also at US Compounding in Conway.
Riddle said, “We had a lot of naysayers because we want to do this in pharmacies. A lot of people say we should broaden our market. We really want to do it right in a market we’re in, and that’s why we want to focus on pharmacy.

We understand pharmacy. To see that come to fruition and be successful in pharmacy … that has been very exciting.”