Every year, the fragrance industry gathers to celebrate the art and science of perfumery, but there is something truly special about experiencing SIMPPAR in Grasse, France—the historic birthplace of modern perfumery.

Held on May 26–27, 2026, the 19th edition of SIMPPAR brought together raw material producers, essential oil specialists, fragrance houses, ingredient innovators, and perfumers from around the world. Hosted outdoors on the Cours Honoré-Cresp in the heart of Grasse, the event offered a uniquely intimate atmosphere where visitors could explore the latest innovations while surrounded by the history and culture that have shaped the fragrance industry for centuries. SIMPPAR remains one of the most important international exhibitions dedicated exclusively to raw materials for perfumery, attracting suppliers and professionals from across the global fragrance supply chain.
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Walking through the exhibition, visitors encountered an incredible range of ingredients, from traditional essential oils and botanical extracts to cutting-edge biotechnology, fermentation-derived materials, aroma molecules, and sustainable sourcing initiatives. The event highlighted how rapidly the fragrance industry continues to evolve while maintaining its deep connection to natural raw materials and craftsmanship.
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A Highlight of the Visit: Maison Sanganeria & Ultra International

One of the highlights of our visit was the opportunity to spend time at Maison Sanganeria, the beautiful Grasse residence hosted by Ultra International during SIMPPAR week.

Far more than a traditional supplier, Ultra International has built a reputation as one of the world's leading specialists in natural raw materials and essential oils. With operations spanning multiple continents and a vertically integrated sourcing model, the company works directly at origin to secure high-quality essential oils, citrus ingredients, botanical extracts, and natural aromatic materials. This direct connection to growers and production regions allows Ultra to maintain strong control over quality, consistency, traceability, and sustainability throughout its supply chain.

The Workhorse of Modern Formulation

The beauty industry is constantly searching for ingredients that can do more with less—reducing formulation complexity, improving performance, and helping brands bring innovative products to market faster. TYDRA ONE™ is positioning itself as one of those next-generation multifunctional ingredients.

Join the Canadian Cosmetic Cluster and Tydra Labs for an upcoming webinar exploring how TYDRA ONE™ is helping formulators rethink performance, efficiency, and formulation design. The session will provide a closer look at how multifunctional polymers can simplify development while supporting the growing demands of modern cosmetic products.

Why Multifunctional Ingredients MatterToday's formulators face increasing pressure. Consumers expect high performance, elegant textures, sustainability, cost efficiency, and ingredient transparency—all within a single formula. At the same time, development teams are often working with tighter timelines and increasingly complex regulatory and supply-chain requirements.

This is where multifunctional ingredients can make a significant difference.

Rather than relying on multiple raw materials to achieve specific formulation objectives, multifunctional technologies are designed to deliver several benefits simultaneously. This can help streamline formulations, reduce complexity, improve processing efficiency, and potentially lower overall formulation costs.

The beauty packaging industry continues to evolve through strategic partnerships, and one of the most notable developments this year is the acquisition of Asquan Group by Cosmogen. The transaction marks a significant milestone for both companies, bringing together two highly complementary organizations with a shared commitment to innovation, sustainability, and excellence in beauty packaging.

The newly formed Cosmogen & Asquan Group combines Cosmogen's internationally recognized expertise in applicator innovation and custom packaging development with Asquan Group's strengths in selective sourcing and global industrial management. Together, the companies aim to provide beauty brands with a broader portfolio of packaging solutions while accelerating innovation and expanding global market reach. For beauty brands and manufacturers, the merger offers access to a more comprehensive range of solutions, from award-winning applicators and patented packaging technologies to complete packaging systems available through both standard and customized development programs. The integration is expected to strengthen the group's ability to support brands throughout the entire packaging development process. One of the key advantages of the acquisition is the combination of complementary expertise. Cosmogen has built a strong reputation for creating innovative, high-performance packaging concepts that enhance product application and user experience. By joining forces with Asquan, the company gains additional capabilities in sourcing, manufacturing management, and global supply chain coordination, creating a stronger and more agile organization.

What if healthy skin isn't something you chase with the latest ingredient or trend, but something you understand through biology? In this edition of our Founder Spotlight Series, we sit down with Dr. Mireille Vega, founder of V*GAM Biome, to discuss her journey from biotechnology and oncology to building a skincare system rooted in prevention, adaptation, and whole-body health. With more than 30 years of experience spanning immunology, drug design, and skin science, Dr. Vega brings a unique perspective to the growing conversation around longevity and healthy aging.

Rather than viewing skin as a cosmetic surface, Dr. Vega sees it as a living biological system and often the first visible indicator of what is happening inside the body. In this conversation, she shares the personal experiences that inspired V*GAM Biome, why she believes prevention is more powerful than correction, and how women can build a healthier relationship with their skin by learning to listen, adapt, and support its changing needs throughout life.

From microbiome science to stress management, this interview offers thoughtful insights for founders, formulators, and consumers alike who are looking beyond beauty trends and toward lasting skin health.

1. Can you tell us a little bit about your journey and what inspired you to create V*GAM Biome?

I have been curious about how the body works for as long as I can remember. Before I ever had skin issues, I was already asking questions about what goes into the products we put on our bodies and why. When I started experiencing skin challenges as a teenager, I went deep. I became the person who reads every ingredient list, researches every claim, and tries to understand the biology behind it. That curiosity is what ultimately led me to become a chemist.

After completing my PhD in Biotechnology, I developed a formulation approach that made sense based on how skin actually functions biologically. That was in the early 2000s. But the market was not there yet, and the ingredients available were not sophisticated enough to do what I knew needed to be done. So I followed the science into other fields: oncology, immunology, and drug design.When my mother was diagnosed with leukemia, it pulled me even  deeper into those disciplines. Those years taught me something that permanently changed my perspective: the body's systems are interconnected. What I was learning about cancer prevention, immune function, and lifestyle factors applied directly to the skin. Prevention, not correction. Root function, not symptoms.

Years later, two things converged. The science and ingredient technology finally caught up to what I had envisioned. At the same time, my daughter began facing the same skin challenges I had experienced decades earlier.
That was the moment. I looked at her, looked at the closet full of expired products that had never worked for either of us, and decided enough was enough. I built V*GAM Biome to be what should have existed all along: a system that works with the skin's root functions and biology.

2. Longevity and healthy aging are becoming increasingly important conversations within beauty and wellness. What does longevity-focused skincare mean to you personally and professionally?

To me, it means I have been doing longevity work my entire career without calling it longevity. The conversation has finally arrived where the science has always been. When I think about longevity, I think about what I learned across 30 years in oncology, immunology, and health science. The same risk factors that contribute to conditions that shorten life—cardiovascular disease, dementia, immune dysfunction, and cancer—often show up in the skin first. Chronic inflammation, poor sleep, stress, and lifestyle imbalances leave visible signals long before disease appears. The skin is not separate from the rest of the body. It is often the first visible signal.
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For me, longevity-focused skincare is not a marketing angle. It is what happens when you stop treating skin as a cosmetic surface and start treating it as a living biological system connected to everything else. Prevention over symptom correction. Root function over quick fixes. When you apply that same thinking to your mind, your health, and your daily habits, everything shifts. Your skin is not the finish line. It is often the starting point for understanding what your body is trying to tell you.

One of my favourite things about attending trade shows like In-Cosmetics is discovering companies that make you stop and think, "This is where the future is heading." One of the companies we had the pleasure of meeting during our time in Paris was Ariah Bio, a biotechnology company based in Sophia Antipolis on the Côte d'Azur. At first glance, they are an advanced imaging laboratory. In reality, they are helping researchers and companies answer some of biology's most difficult questions.
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Ariah Bio specializes in Spatial Biology, High-Plex Imaging, and AI-powered tissue analysis. Rather than simply looking at whether a protein, biomarker, or cell type is present, they study where it is located, what cells surround it, and how those cells interact with one another within a tissue. This may sound like a small difference, but it completely changes the level of information researchers can obtain. Think of a traditional tissue image as a map showing where all the buildings are located in a city. Spatial Biology goes much further. It helps us understand which buildings are connected, who lives in them, how they communicate, and what happens when something in the neighborhood changes. Suddenly, the story becomes far more interesting.

Fifteen years ago, my entrepreneurial journey started for a very practical reason: I was a young mom, and I realized early on that I needed flexibility. I wanted to parent, build a life, create opportunities for myself, and have the freedom to shape my own future instead of fitting into someone else’s schedule. That realization is really what pushed me into entrepreneurship. What I didn’t realize at the time was that once you start building companies, something changes in you. For many founders, entrepreneurship becomes a bit of an addiction — and honestly, I mean that in the best and worst ways possible. There is something incredibly powerful about having an idea in your head, turning it into reality, and then watching the world respond to it. The moment someone pays you for something that once existed only in your imagination is kind of magical. And once you experience that feeling, it’s very hard to go back to a “normal” way of thinking.

But entrepreneurship is also deeply misunderstood. Social media often sells the glamorous version of founder life — the beach photos, the expensive dinners, the luxury hotels, the motivational quotes posted from airport lounges — but very few people talk about the actual reality of building companies. The reality is that entrepreneurship can be incredibly lonely, even if you have employees, partners, clients, or a large network around you. Founders often live differently than everyone else around them. We keep strange hours. We think differently. We push ourselves to uncomfortable limits. We sometimes make impulsive decisions because speed and instinct are part of entrepreneurial culture. Sometimes those risks work brilliantly. Sometimes they absolutely do not. Either way, you learn to live in uncertainty.

A lot of people around founders do not fully understand the mentality behind it. Family members may not understand why you work weekends or answer emails at midnight. Friends with traditional corporate careers may not understand why you can’t simply “turn work off.” The reality is that when you build something yourself, your business becomes intertwined with your identity, your future, your survival, and your dreams all at once. Entrepreneurship is not just a career path — for many of us, it’s an attempt to build life on our own terms.
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Before we dive into our upcoming webinar on Cosmetic Microbiology, Stability & Quality Testing, we wanted to give you a behind-the-scenes look at the science that quietly protects every great product. We’re joined by Dr. Marisa Isaacs, Director of Operations at Stratum Analytical, a Canadian laboratory specializing in microbiological, molecular, and chemical testing for the cosmetic industry. With over a decade of experience across microbiology, chemistry, and regulatory strategy, she works closely with beauty brands to ensure product safety, quality, and compliance at every stage of development. 
Let’s be honest—microbiology and stability testing aren’t the most glamorous parts of beauty… but they are absolutely the reason your product works safely, consistently, and over time. From shelf life to preservation, this is where science meets trust. To make things more real (and a lot more interesting), we sat down with Dr. Isaacs to break down what actually happens in the lab, what brands often get wrong, and what really matters before going to market.
1. For brands that are just starting out, microbiology and stability testing can feel overwhelming. What are the absolute must-have tests every product should go through before going to market?

​The key is to focus on tests that ensure safety, shelf life, and regulatory compliance, without overcomplicating things. While requirements vary by region, there is strong global overlap. Below is a practical, region-specific breakdown of “must-have” microbiology and stability testing before going to market.

What’s really happening inside your cosmetic formula once it leaves the lab? How do you know it will remain safe, protected from contamination, and ready for the marketplace? Stratum Analytical invites cosmetic brands, formulators, manufacturers, and product developers to join an educational webinar exploring the science behind cosmetic microbiology and quality testing. In today’s beauty industry, formulations are becoming more sophisticated, ingredients more innovative, and regulatory expectations more rigorous. Behind every successful cosmetic product is a foundation of robust laboratory testing that helps ensure formulas remain safe for consumers and meet quality expectations throughout their lifecycle.

From validating preservative systems to detecting microbial contamination risks, analytical testing plays a critical role in transforming a promising formula into a market-ready product that retailers, regulators, and consumers can trust. Strong testing programs not only protect product safety but also strengthen quality systems and support regulatory compliance. Beyond safety testing, laboratory analysis can also provide valuable competitive insight. Ever wondered what’s really behind that bestseller sitting next to your product on the shelf? Through comparative product studies, laboratories like Stratum Analytical can help brands better understand how different formulations perform and how they compare within the marketplace. Whether refining your own formula, evaluating product performance, or gaining insight into competing products, analytical testing can reveal important details that support smarter product development.
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For brands looking to stay ahead of the curve, this type of analysis can support the development of next-generation products and improved formulations. With the right analytical tools, companies can better understand product performance and microbial safety—allowing them to innovate confidently and sharpen their competitive edge in a crowded beauty marketplace. During this webinar, the scientific team at Stratum Analytical will take participants behind the scenes of cosmetic microbiology and quality testing. They will introduce the analytical methods commonly used across the industry to evaluate product safety, support regulatory compliance, and strengthen quality assurance programs. Participants will gain practical insight into how laboratory testing supports cosmetic product development and helps manufacturers maintain reliable quality standards.

At Paris Packaging Week 2026, I will be moderating a panel discussion on the Circular Economy Stage titled “Dreams, Material Realities of Biomaterials vs. Traditional Plastics” (14:30–15:15), bringing together a cross-section of voices from materials innovation, packaging manufacturing, brand ESG leadership, and polymer science. The panel features Eva Lagarde, CEO and Founder of Re/sources; Helen Yang, CEO and Founder of Clement Packaging; Jamie Richards, Director of ESG at Bansk Beauty; Olivier Le Cour Grandmaison, Business Development Manager, Specialty Plastics at Eastman; and Philippe Michon, Co-Founder and Associate Director at Eranova Bioplastics. Together, we will examine the growing gap between sustainability narratives and material realities in packaging, with a focus on what is technically, economically, and systemically achievable today.
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The discussion will open by addressing the tension between storytelling and data, exploring how well-intentioned marketing narratives around “plastic-free” solutions can sometimes obscure scientific and industrial constraints. Panelists will share where misconceptions most often arise—particularly around performance, scalability, and environmental impact—and how the industry can align communication more closely with measurable outcomes and verified data. From there, the conversation will turn to the real potential of biobased and bio-feedstock materials, examining how close plant- and biomass-derived polymers are to true commercial scalability, and what technical, regulatory, and economic barriers must still be overcome before they can compete with established materials such as PET or PP in terms of cost, consistency, and supply reliability.