Ep 380 – Emerging Trends from IMCAS Paris with Jenni Nagle

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0:01:34.6 Maggie Staszcuk: Hello and welcome to ASCP's Esty Talk. I'm your host Maggie Staszcuk and ASCP's program director. I am beyond excited for today's episode. I'm joined by the co-founder and Chief Operating Officer of Lipgloss + Aftershave, Jenni Nagle. Welcome to the show, Jenni.

0:01:52.7 Jenni Nagle: Oh, Maggie, thank you so much. It's an honor to be here with you today.

0:01:56.4 MS: Before we dive in, I'd like to share a little bit about our guest. Jenni is a licensed esthetician with over 20 years in the industry, navigating everything from luxury resort spas to high-volume medical spas. She has trained teams, evaluated advanced devices and treatment protocols, and collaborated directly with top skin care brands worldwide. A respected educator and speaker, Jenni brings hands-on expertise and deep industry insight to help estheticians make informed decisions, elevate their practice, and navigate the evolving world of professional skin care. Jenni, how fun is your job? You're out there covering major events like IMCAS Paris, the premier cosmetic dermatology and plastic surgery conference.

0:02:46.5 JN: Maggie, if I could tell you that I feel like I wake up in a dream sometimes. Waking up and saying, "Today, I need to go to the French pharmacy to explore European SPF formulations." I couldn't ask for more.

0:03:02.2 MS: You notice trends at IMCAS before they even make it to the US. What's catching your eye this year?

0:03:07.9 JN: I've gotta tell you, so we've been attending the IMCAS in Paris for the last four years, and this year was no different in putting us in a sense of awe. We noticed that IMCAS really feels less like a beauty expo and more like a strategy summit. So the conversations that we noticed this year were really shifting from what's exciting and what's trending and buzzwords to what's sustainable. So the biggest trend that we noticed this year for 2024 is regenerative aesthetics and longevity. So if you have not heard that word yet, brace yourself because every time we turned around... We attend a press conference at the very beginning on the first day, and they tell you what's trending, they tell you what they're seeing around the world with all of the percentages and the numbers, and you take that all into account, and then you hit that trade show floor. And everywhere we looked, it was regenerative medicine, regenerative aesthetics, and longevity. And so that really set the stage for what we were going to absorb over the next three days. So I wouldn't say it was this one miracle ingredient or last year and the year prior, it was exosomes.

0:04:29.4 JN: Everywhere we turned, it was exosomes. And so we knew that the US was slowly gonna make its way there. So it was less of one specific thing, but more of this protocol layering and this well-rounded approach. And I think that that really contributes to the longevity conversation because as estheticians, we know that it's not a one-pronged approach to any skin condition.

0:04:53.4 MS: That's really fascinating. So I'm hearing a couple of things because you mentioned sustainability, but then also regeneration. How are these two things playing together?

0:05:02.8 JN: What's interesting is, and I want to make sure, sustainability, so not necessarily from a clean, green, eco-friendly approach, but sustainability saying, "We're not just gonna go in there and chop things off and cut things up and trim and tighten and stitch. We're going to make sure that internally everything is balanced so that externally you really see it for the long term." And you're sustaining these results because with the rise of GLP-1s and all of these weight loss medications, which we'll get to a deeper conversation on that, but that played a huge role in this longevity approach because the effects that these weight loss medications are having externally, I think that we've seen them already in the US. We've seen the hair loss, we've seen the laxity. And that's really where estheticians can play a big role, and they can really start helping the clients and the patients that are getting these injections. They can help them maintain those results and help build that skin back up or even prepare the skin before they go into those treatments so that it is a sustainable dose that they're getting and they can maintain this and they don't have to have these shocking downside effects of those medications.

0:06:23.4 MS: That's good clarity. That makes a lot of sense. So you said regeneration and layering your protocols, layering your products. Is there any one ingredient or treatment that you saw stood out at IMCAS?

0:06:39.3 JN: So peptides were everywhere. And much like exosomes, we saw that so many brands were incorporating those. And it was interesting because there's various ways to deliver your peptides. On the medical side, there's injections, and that's the GLP-1s and that side of it. But on the skincare side, we're seeing these topical formulas that are either delivered via mesotherapy, which is done very much in the EU, and that's actually injected. I know we have mesotherapy here on a lot of devices where it's more infused, but what we see over there is an injection of these topical serums. So with that being said, I think that the rise of microneedling is just naturally gonna be increased, and I think we're gonna see a lot more devices, I think we're gonna see a lot more protocols because estheticians aren't injecting anything. So the closest thing that they can do to deliver these formulas is microneedling.

0:07:46.6 MS: So this was more of a medical esthetic show. And we're seeing, or we're expected to see these trends shift to the US, impact estheticians here in the US. How does this play out for estheticians and scope of practice? Microneedling you mentioned, we see that a little bit here in the US already. But what can estheticians expect to see in terms of these global trends and how they can adopt them?

0:08:15.5 JN: So I want to address just one of the points about the medical conversation and how that bridge is really gapped. We saw heavily how many medical brands are including estheticians in their conversations because they're starting to see that estheticians play a key role in the overall treatment plan for longevity and for sustainability. And so these brands are becoming protocol partners. They really see the key role that estheticians are playing. So we saw a brand, for example, that their biggest product is an injectable, and they have an entire skincare line. So we're seeing that crossover and we're seeing them pull that in. And I don't think they're getting the doctors to really recommend those skincare products. That's where the esthetician gets pulled in. So what I think estheticians are gonna start seeing in the US, and I am so confident, Maggie, and we're recording this two weeks before the B.WELL in New York, and we'll all be there. So when this airs, I can't wait to see that I'm correct that we're gonna see this crossover. We are gonna see more and more of these "medical brands" and medical device manufacturers attend these spa shows as we move forward.

0:09:40.3 JN: Because like I said, these brands see the importance of pulling these estheticians in, and they see this med-spa crossover, and they see how the community and the industry is really coming together. So I think that at B.WELL New York City, at the Medical Spa Show by AmSpa, which are the next two upcoming shows, this crossover is absolutely gonna take place. So this is a great opportunity for estheticians to get to know these brands and open the door to these conversations about how they can play a role.

0:10:14.9 MS: Hold that thought. We'll be right back.

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0:11:14.7 MS: Okay, here we go. Let's get back to the podcast.

0:11:17.9 MS: That has to be really exciting for the estheticians that are hearing this, that are tuning in. Because I think there's really been kind of this tug-of-war between what estheticians can do and what the medical community is doing and wants to allow them to do.

0:11:33.1 JN: Oh, absolutely. And what we have said, our conversation on Lipgloss + Aftershave has evolved over the past few years because we've seen this medical bridge starting to happen. We've seen these medical spas or wellness centers start to crossover into some of these areas that just expand the offerings. And it shouldn't be a threat to estheticians. It should be a growth opportunity. So if you are unable in your state, which many of us are, to do microneedling or to do, you don't have a nurse injector in your facility or you don't have a medical director, this is now your opportunity to broaden your horizons, learn about the other side, learn about these treatments that you're unable to perform, and make connections with these providers that can do that. Because they are also gonna start seeing the importance of having the preventative treatments before an aggressive laser treatment, before even threads or anything to build the skin health, and then post-treatment. A lot of these doctors don't want to do that. They don't know how to tell you what to do besides put Aquaphor on your skin after treatment. So that's where the esthetician education plays such a role and is so valuable.

0:12:59.3 MS: What would you say is the one thing you saw at IMCAS that you were like, "Yes, I love that. I can't wait to see it adopted here in the US?"

0:13:09.3 JN: Mental wellness. Mental wellness being incorporated into aesthetic medicine, aesthetic wellness. So we were walking the floor and we were with Dr. Briglio, she's one of our medical contributors. And she stopped and she said, "Oh my gosh, they have TMS." And we looked at each other and she said, "I offer that in my practice," because she also has a psychiatric side to her business. And we stopped and it was actually the manufacturer already made body and face devices and they were now launching, it had been launched, it wasn't brand new, but they were launching in the US. It basically goes in and balances and organizes your brain. So it works from everything from depression patients all the way to the busy mom that feels so scattered and just her brain feels really unorganized. And this device goes in and really the way he explained it is it organizes the clutter on your desk. So when a patient feels better and feels more confident and feels clear-headed, they feel better about what they look like.

0:14:20.5 JN: So you don't have to take this one-pronged approach to skincare and just nip and tuck and tighten and inject. You can do this full-picture approach, which I thought was really cool. And that to me brought the longevity conversation completely full circle when you saw the mental wellness aspect come into play.

0:14:41.3 MS: This is fascinating to me. And on ASCP Esty Talk, we've talked a lot about the industry shifting to this whole-body health, and certainly mental health is a part of that. But I'm curious your opinion as to how well this will be adopted. Again, going to this conversation about the tug and pull between the medical community versus the esthetic community and scope of practice and truly what estheticians are allowed to do legally.

0:15:07.7 JN: Right. So I think this ties it back to these bridge practices or these relationships that you establish. The biggest... I'm in New Jersey. We can barely do anything in this state, so it presents challenges. So if you're not under a medical director where you can perform these treatments, partnering with them is so important to me because the gap isn't intelligence. Estheticians know, estheticians can understand all of this. It's really the application. So being able to understand how to talk to your clients about it, because we've said this also for years, that clients are on TikTok, they're on social media, they're on Instagram, they're hearing about all of these things. And if they come to you as a trusted professional, you're their esthetician, and they want to ask you questions about any of these treatments, even if it is an injectable and they know you don't do it, but they're like, "What do you think about fillers?" If you can come with a point of view you know and you've done your research, you can have an opinion. You can be completely anti-filler and say, "You don't need the filler. I don't recommend it. Let's do this instead." But for them, knowing that you are aware of how filler works, how it dissolves, how it's injected, and knowing the basics will give them more confidence in you.

0:16:34.6 JN: So just because we can't perform these treatments does not mean we shouldn't be educated on them or we should feel threatened by their existence, because your clients are gonna do them anyway. I know that majority of the people that I do skin treatments on, they're getting injections. So for me, I'm a reinforcement. I'm a reinforcement to all of the other work that they're doing, and I'm the sustainable part that they can keep doing this at home. And as long as they're doing what I prescribe at home, everything else that they're getting injected or tightened or tweaked will need to be redone over time, probably. Injections aren't a one and done. So we as estheticians, we really are the sustainable portion.

0:17:23.4 MS: Yeah. They're gonna find a rhyme or reason, and hopefully you're the one guiding them and providing the treatments. And if not you, then someone else, right?

0:17:31.4 JN: Exactly. So I think that estheticians being part of groups like ASCP and listening to Esty Talk and listening to skincare podcasts, you have an advantage because you open your mind to conversations that... A lot of us are solo, solo Estys in solo suites now, so we are kind of on islands, right? And so it is so crucial to be part of these communities. And that's a huge reason why we created Lipgloss + Aftershave and why we're a destination, because I know 20 years ago when I was getting licensed, I had zero resources except the brands at my beauty school and then the brands that I worked with at the spas that I was at. And that was it. And that's what I learned, and that's what I knew, and those were the philosophies that I followed. And looking back, I'm like, "Wow, I really wish I would have had access to hear about the approach from all of these other skincare brands." I didn't have to use them, but to know how this brand approaches sensitive skin and how this brand approaches deeper chemical peels and to understand the technology behind that is so crucial. And now, it's going even a step further by saying, "Wow, as an esthetician, I could understand how injectables work and I could understand facial structure and I can understand how a CO2 laser works."

0:19:04.0 JN: I can't provide it and I can't do the treatment, but if I can experience it and if I can see how it works and understand it, I feel that much more confident in explaining to a client why my treatments are so much more crucial to help them if that's the path they're gonna take.

0:19:22.8 MS: Are there any other thoughts you want to leave us with, Jenni?

0:19:25.3 JN: Maggie, I think the biggest takeaway from today is just for estheticians to understand that bridging the gap between medical aesthetics and medical providers into our world is so key. And as long as we have the educational resources to build our confidence as estheticians in that industry and in that entire world, I think it just enhances everything that we have to offer. So we invite everyone, we hope that everyone, if you're new to the Lipgloss + Aftershave platform, we have hundreds and hundreds of hours of online education that is all free. It's from brands all across the world. You can pick by topic, you can scroll by brand and just start exploring. And we're about to launch an entire eight-part facial injectable series with Dr. Vincent Wong, who's a UK-based doctor, and he is doing this whole series so that estheticians can understand facial structure and can understand injectables, which I think is so exciting for us. If I could have learned about injectables and facial structure 20 years ago, I would have been over the moon. So we really invite estheticians to take part and get to scrolling on the website under education and see how they can add to their knowledge base.

0:20:46.0 MS: Where can we find Lipgloss + Aftershave?

0:20:48.4 JN: So we are on Instagram. We have a lot of fun over there on social, making education fun. So that's lipgloss_aftershave on Instagram. And then our website is lipglossandaftershave.com, and that's where all of our webinars live. And if you just go over to education, you can find everything on demand and you can see everything that we have upcoming, including the injectable series.

0:21:13.3 MS: That sounds amazing. Can't wait to check that out for sure. Now listeners, we want to hear from you. Share with us on social media through Instagram, Facebook, or send us an email at getconnected@ascpskincare.com. In the meantime, thank you for listening to ASCP Esty Talk. For more information on this episode or for ways to connect with Jenni Nagle and Lipgloss + Aftershave, or to learn more about ASCP, check out the show notes.