Shaping the Next Generation of Longevity-Focused Skin Care
An Interview with Nathalie Chevrot,
Global Skin Care Category Director, Advanced Actives, Symrise
As skincare shifts toward a holistic pursuit of youthful and healthy skin, the focus on ‘longevity’ is rising. Symrise, a key player in the ingredient industry, drives this evolution with an innovation strategy rooted in science and grounded in decades of skin biology research, molecular expertise, and advanced pre-clinical evaluation methods. Nathalie Chevrot, Global Skin Care Category Director of Advanced Actives at Symrise, shares her vision on the skincare landscape and Symrise’s role in shaping its future.
How is Symrise driving innovation in the Skin Care category to respond to the evolving market landscape?
Symrise drives innovation in skin care through a 360° strategy that combines deep scientific intelligence with a strong understanding of consumer needs and market trends. We offer high-performing, science-backed ingredients designed to meet the evolving expectations of consumers worldwide. To guide this innovation, the Symrise Global Consumer Study (CICS survey [1]) provides us with up-to-date insights into consumer behaviors, market dynamics, and future priorities.
On the science side, our dedicated in-house R&D teams build on over 70 years of legacy in skin biology, molecular pathways of skin aging, and patented ingredient development. They are supported by Symrise’s Scientific Advisory Board for Cosmetic Ingredients [2] to remain at the forefront of innovation.
This approach is reinforced by a robust infrastructure, including three dedicated skin care Centers and a global network of 14 Application Labs offering tailored, customer-centric support. By working closely with our partners to innovate their product development, we anticipate emerging needs and deliver next-generation solutions, ensuring every ingredient is both scientifically backed and market-ready.
What technologies and scientific approach does Symrise employ to ensure its ingredients remain at the forefront of well-aging innovation?
To remain at the forefront of well-aging innovation, Symrise invests in advanced technologies and conducts in-depth cellular and molecular research. A key example is our pre-clinical screening service powered by Cutech, which integrates advanced ex vivo human skin models, high-content imaging, and molecular profiling techniques, to precisely investigate biological pathways and reliably predict ingredient mechanisms and efficacy.
We also leverage AI with our Sym‘Index™ tool, which enables the scoring of skin sensitivity by analyzing extensive biological and sensory data sets. This is vital for developing effective yet gentle ingredients suited to diverse skin profiles.
These technological platforms, combined with our global efficacy validation, drive our continuous innovation, ensuring delivery of scientifically substantiated, high-performance ingredients that define the present and future of well-aging.
The skin care industry faces complex challenges, from understanding skin aging to managing daily environmental aggressors. How is Symrise tackling these challenges?
Every day the skin faces UV rays, blue light, pollution, stress, and other external aggressors that accelerate visible aging and compromise skin health. Additionally, consumers are increasingly concerned about aging-related facial skin issues [3].
To address these challenges, Symrise has developed a diverse portfolio of advanced, science-driven ingredients to reduce and prevent visible signs of aging, fight inflamm’aging, and protect sensitive skin.
At Symrise, longevity is a core focus driving innovation. Rather than focusing solely on visible aging, we emphasize prevention and long-term skin vitality. Driven by the 12 ‚hallmarks‘ of aging [4], we guide our innovations toward supporting key biological processes associated with mitochondrial function, cellular senescence, and oxidative stress, applying a holistic approach through three pillars: supporting the skin matrix, strengthening skin defenses, and helping to even skin tone.
Ingredients such as Dragosine® FG exemplify this approach, helping to support essential biological pathways involved in mitochondrial resilience and epidermal renewal, with clinical studies demonstrating benefits including wrinkle reduction, improved firmness, and enhanced skin vitality.
Longevity is redefining consumer expectations. What are the most significant shifts you‘re observing, and how is Symrise addressing them?
A key trend is the increasing demand for retinol and advanced retinol alternatives and derivatives for sensitive skin. In response, Symrise has developed solutions such as SymRenew® HPR, delivering retinol-like benefits with excellent tolerance thanks to its bioavailable hydroxypinacolone retinoate structure. It enhances wrinkle reduction and improved skin renewal without the discomfort commonly associated with retinol – making it suitable for all skin types. In addition, Symrise‘s proprietary RETIN’ALL platform provides different options to support retinol-containing formulas with solutions that reduce discomfort sensations, prevent discoloration, and avoid degradation, making well-aging routines more tolerable.
How is Symrise responding to the growing consumer demand for environmentally conscious skin care products?
At Symrise, sustainability is embedded at every stage of the ingredient development process. We are paving the way towards increasingly sustainable ingredients by integrating renewable feedstocks, biotechnology, and green chemistry principles – whenever possible – to reduce environmental footprint while preserving high biological performance. For example, SymRelief® green is a sustainable innovation obtained through precision biotechnology and ginger root extract. It delivers soothing efficacy while targeting key biological markers involved in inflamm’aging by helping to preserve skin structure and protect collagen from degradation.
We continuously enhance the sustainability profile of our ingredients prioritizing natural sources and conscious practices across our portfolio. Our efforts extend to regulatory compliance; our regional teams leverage their expertise to ensure that all ingredients meet strict sustainability and safety standards in every market we operate.
How do you see the future of Skin Care in the coming years, and what is Symrise‘s key value proposition to its partners?
At Symrise, the future of skin care moves beyond reactive anti-aging, toward proactive, science-driven longevity – focusing on preserving skin health and vitality over the long term.
We aim to be an indispensable co-creator for our partners, delivering deeply researched, scientifically validated, and increasingly sustainable ingredients. Our portfolio is evolving towards plant-based alternatives to our existing ingredients and new ones obtained through cutting-edge technologies, like peptides or exosomes, empowering our partners to lead the market with next-generation well-aging solutions.
Ultimately, we don‘t just supply ingredients; we provide the scientific platforms, biological insights, and technological expertise that enable our partners to shape the future of skin health.
References:
[1] CICS 2025 – global consumer survey conducted in 16 countries with 1000 respondents per country.
[2] Symrise Cosmetic Ingredients Scientific Advisory Board: an internationally renowned group of independent scientists representing the spirit of Symrise’s open innovation network.
[3] CICS 2025 - 37% of consumers indicate that aging-related face skin issues are often a concern for them.
[4] Hallmarks of aging: An expanding universe, Carlos López-Otín et al., Cell, 2023.
To request product samples or learn more about Symrise skin care products, visit SymSelect, or contact: advanced.actives-ci@symrise.com.
