Opulus

Opulus Activator with Opoule Treatments / Source: Opulus Beauty Labs

BeautyNorth America

5 MINUTE READ

Sophie Benson

WHAT WE SAY:

Daily shots of potent, active ingredients are being championed for their fresh convenience, but are creating an environmental nightmare with their "proliferation of completely unnecessary packaging." Opulus Beauty Labs is changing the game.

Its skincare range comes self-contained in solid ingredient capsules, activated on-demand with a reusable device. Think a pod coffee machine but for skincare. It is a design that seems so simple and it needs to scale up fast to reduce the high cost. Could you make it the norm?

KEY FACTS:

American D2C brand Opulus Beauty Labs is proving that single-serve skincare does not have to mean single-use packaging, with its pioneering Opoule Treatments – plastic-free skincare pods.
Inspired by Parisian chocolates, a hard outer shell of vitamins, ceramides, and botanicals encases a soft core of suspended ingredients. The solid outer coat mimics an ampoule, protecting the filling from oxidation and degradation, while doubling as an absorption enhancer. The liquid inner core is a stable formula, which activates when mixed.
The complementary Opulus Activator device is used to melt Opoule Treatments into a liquid product within 100 seconds, dosed to cover the face, neck and décolleté, and hands. The patent-pending thermal blending process activates and combines the two layers at precisely 41.67°C (107°F) to facilitate absorption. The result is fresh skincare.
The Opulus Activator is a “forever cosmetic jar”, with compatibility for all future product releases, such as face masks and hair products, ensured. The one-size-fits-all approach reduces the need to buy multiple, packaged products for a single beauty routine, better aligning with the reality that consumers use just 10% of beauty products they own.

An assortment of Opoule Treatments / Source: Opulus Beauty Labs

The Activator’s thermal blending process melts the treatments within 100 seconds / Source: Opulus Beauty Labs

DIVE DEEPER:

Single-dose beauty is meeting the demands of consumers looking for safer, cleaner, and more convenient beauty products, with 54% of people buying it for its travel-friendly status, and 47% because it keeps a product from being exposed to bacteria, sun and air. The downside, however, is the packaging waste, with 29% of people saying this is a barrier to use for them.
Self-contained Opoule Treatments remove this barrier. The treatments are delivered in a recyclable paper wrap, which features a tab top for easier removal from the storage tray. The outer shell works exactly like plastic to protect the core ingredients from bacteria, while the heating of each treatment ensures freshness and safety.
One Activator device and a month’s supply of Opoule Treatments is priced at USD 495, while 28-day refills cost USD 165. High initial and ongoing costs do not promote an accessible approach to sustainability, however, as the range expands and the brand scales, Opoule Treatments will cost between USD 3 and USD 8.
Products are currently available on a D2C basis via the brand website and approximately 20% of customers are monthly subscribers. There are plans to enlist strategic partners and distribute to dermatologists and spas in 2022.
As of 2021, the brand had raised USD 8 million from investors, projecting USD 6 million in revenue in its initial year on the market.
The longer term plan is to license the technology to other brands, creating own-label Opoule Treatments and customised Activators, with the potential to expand into serums, moisturisers and body treatments.
In-house manufacturing and oversight was crucial when developing the brand. All products are made in the USA. Formulations are certified as cruelty-free, and free from phthalates, parabens, sulfates, silicone, mineral oil and fragrance.
As similar production processes are already present within the confectionary industry, the brand claims scaling and setting up production lines globally is an achievable goal.

"Typical jars expose precious ingredients in day-to-day use, and each exposure degrades the product further. At Opulus, there are no bottles, no jars, no plastic, no pods to toss."

Opulus Beauty Labs

Key Design Considerations:

Offer repair services and replacement parts

How would you ensure longevity of an activating device? Establishing logistics for repairs and replacement parts may be necessary to reduce any waste associated with the device. Consumers are invested in the repair economy and would be adverse to buying another device with built-in obsolescence.

Consider the impact of tech development

What are the embodied emissions and impacts associated with manufacturing the Activator? Consider whether the use of plastic-free products offset and outweigh this, and how many uses would be required to do so.

Minimise branding capabilities for licensed partners

Could your branding inadvertently generate waste? Customisation techniques for licensed products should be weighed up carefully. Each year approximately 400 million silicone moulds used to press logos into lipsticks are discarded, so prioritise efficient, low-waste branding processes.

Be aware of price premiums

Initial investment will be high for the consumer and, with the rising cost of living, an impossible investment for many. Is your audience prepared for a cost trade-off to reduce waste? This solution is currently best marketed at a high-spend consumer.

Lower costs with partnerships

What low cost access solutions could you implement to broaden use and product contact? Distribution to spas, dermatologists and even retail outlets could provide a home for on-demand treatments without the need for the initial investment.

Expand beyond skincare

Scope for expansion into multiple product areas provides the potential for a monopoly on a consumer’s entire routine. Could you group doses into categories, regimens or concerns to streamline choice and make an all-encompassing single-dose routine the easy choice?

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