Development of cosmetic products through Adapter
- 08. March 2019
- Articel,
- Success story
Travellers definitely know when they need an adapter. If you are travelling to Great Britain, China or the United States, then this device is a useful friend for you. That is why you can find many questions about it on the internet forums e.g. do you need an adapter in Mexico? Where can I buy an adapter? What are the plugs like, do I need an adapter?
If you enter the word adapter to Google, the first search result shows a web page with the same name. For those who are not aware yet, Adapter.ee is a website that gathers all Estonian universities and research and development institutions in order to facilitate cooperation between enterprises and researchers.
If an interested person would like to include researchers in the development of their thought or idea and enters the question “How to get in contact with a researcher” in Google search, they will reach a platform which is an aiding tool to increase the share of research-intensive economics and entrepreneurship or increase cooperation with entrepreneurship.
This is the kind of help that was sought by Nelli Kerde on 5thof January 2017. She had the idea to create her own business and wanted to develop a spa product range from local clean raw material. This required the help of researchers.
The story of the Loond brand began with a skin issue
Many children and adults are struggling with dermatitis. Kerde’s family had the same problem, they loved to visit wellness spas but there were problems with the selection of care routines. It was difficult to find suitable care routines for a problematic skin. When discussing this with the leaders of spas, they came to a conclusion that this is a wider issue and an idea to launch a collection of spa cosmetics suitable for the skin of Nordic people was born. “We realized that we have to develop products for problematic skin together with researchers and spas,” says Kerde looking back at the start of her company.
Initially, Kerde turned to a university. The idea, which seemed the most logical at first, did not work out this time because it did not reach the right people. As they continued searching online, they found the Adapter website and the application form on the website was immediately completed.
She remembers formulating her wish as follows: “I want to start developing massage candles which contain cannabis oil, beeswax, etc. At first, I would like a consultation to create an action plan and find out what kind of finances are required. The aim is to prove the benefits of different components and their great performance and if possible, find different, mutually appropriate raw materials which can be used. I want my product to be based on science. I would like to know which research organization could help me with the development of the recipes?”
The first ideas of product development came to mind in a café
The CEO of Loond Spa, Nelli Kerde, was surprised how quickly she received a response from Adapter and how many proposals they had.
Uno Mäeorg, associate professor at the University of Tartu, and Kerde met in the cozy atmosphere of Maiasmokk Café. “I met all the researchers who made an offer, but I found common ground with Uno and we drew up an initial action plan in the café,” explains Kerde. “Many studies and scientific experiments were carried out in the course of development.”
At this point it is important to note that the company had not been created yet. “At that moment I was waiting for an approval for my business plan from Töötukassa but the cooperation with university researchers made me believe that I am doing the right thing. By today, we have the first Estonian natural cosmetics brand which has been created in cooperation with reseachers and which considers the needs of professionals and normal consumers,” says Kerde.
However, this was not the only cooperation with researchers but over time, a need to turn to Adapter for development purposes appeared once again. This time, the researchers of Tallinn University, Rando Tuvikene and Heidi Lees came to help the company. “The purpose of the last study was to identify the potential of Värska pharmaceutical mud. We compared the characteristics of Värska pharmaceutical mud with the ones of many other muds (e.g. the Dead Sea and Blue Lagoon mud). The results brought us joy because we received the confirmation that our mud is very competitive. In conclusion, I can say that everyone should try using the help of Adapter cooperation network because it is convenient and time effective and you will establish contacts who deal with topics that are important to you,” Kerde explained.
Adapter is therefore not only necessary for travellers but for all people who value time and who would like to get scientific support for their ideas and thoughts.