Pro products vs OTC Explain Please?

[Lady_Nightshade]

Im not a pro at all, and Ive been around these forums long enough to know that otc products are not liked. But can someone please explain to me the difference between Professional brands and what the public buy in shops.

For example why is Dermotological (Im using this as its the only pro brand i remember the name of) better than Avene from Boots?
Or why is Clarol better than Aussie Miracle?
That kinda thing.

Im just an uneducated girl who really doesnt know how come one is better than the other so if someone would spare me the time just to explain I would be most grateful and more educated.

I did try a search, but couldnt find this info.

Please bear in mind Im a Customer so telling me how its good for your salons wont really help me, dont mean to offend but its true.
:hug:

 

[persianista]

Proffessinal brands are usually purer with more active ingredients in them. That means that a therapist needs to be taught exactly what to prescribe a client to get the correct result.
With hair colours its more complex but there is a huge difference in box colours from the chemist and the colour ranges that hairdressers use. The training hairdressers have to do regarding colour is long and thorough as it is a complicated subject.

 

[Lady_Nightshade]

Please dont shoot me down in flames Im just trying to understand. :green:

If Dermatolica (sp) starts selling in Boots I can understand it will hit salons pockets... but will it make it a lesser product than before?

:hug:

 

[Lynne Baker]

If consumers can buy Dermalogica at Boots it's unlikely that there will be any Derm trained people there to advise them which product is best for their skin. People will then buy what their friend has said is brilliant, and it's pretty hit and miss as to whether it's the correct product. They'll go away and use it, and if it doesn't do what they want it to then Dermalogica's reputation will be diminished.
So, whilst it's a short term gain for Dermalogica, it's a long term loss not just for them, but for the salons stocking it too, because people will remember the bad experience they had with the OTC product and think, well, there's little point in having a Derm facial when that stuff I bought from Boots was rubbish.

 

[geeg]

Not sure how Dermalogica are handling this one, but many such companies have a professional range that is quite different from the consumer range they put into the shops.

Dermalogica have literally hundreds of products and I'm sure they will not all be available in Boots. Many of their products because of their 'Professional Use Only' Status will still only be available to the therapists who wish to still stock it (and this is because of the amount of active ingredients in the products). Therapists will do the intensive treatments and consumers will be able to buy maintenance products from Boots or maybe even an entirely new range of Dermalogica products.

Clarins did the same thing years ago .. many have. In a way I can understand why Dermologica have done it. They have all these super products for skin care and perhaps their professionals are not good at retailing them to their customers? they want to make them more available to the consumer ... I don't think it will hurt the salons who are great at retailing (unless they undercut the professionals on price and that would be a suicidal decision) as long as the pros are retailing at RRP.

So to answer your question ... yes it will still be Dermologica and the products will be good maintenance products for consumers, but they will not be as good or as active or as efficacious professional products.

 

[Martin Duffy]

I agree with Geeg. Decleor have been supplying selected retail outlets for many years, but none of them carry the entire range, rather they tend to carry the basic retail products, such as cleansers for all skin types etc. This is certainly the case with the Decleor products on Boots, they carry a tiny selection of the range, which are those for normal skins.

Selling in outlets has never tarnished Decleor's image, and they've been around for 35 years, rather many people who have never stepped into a salon before have come to book Decleor treatments as a result of trying & enjoying the products. It raises the brand awareness in the popular consciousness.

I personally don't see it's that different from the number of salons offering online shops selling products to non-clients!

In my experience there also tends to be a big divide between the kind of people who buy unadvised in the high street & those who prefer to visit a salon & be advised on skin-care. I know people will worry that Boots like websites may be able to offer them cheaper, but the reality is that most skincare tends to be impulse buy, i.e. they want it there & then. In fact, from my research most of the big companies are only offering discounts of 50p, £1 or £2 off anyway, which when adding p&p is hardly that much of a draw!

 

[Lady_Nightshade]

So in a nutshell... in noob speak :green: its the advice, knowledge and one to one care plan using products determinded (sp) for Your skin that makes pro ranges better and more effective than otc's.

Im talking myself thru this so correct me if Im wrong;

I could buy Xpro product from Xcompany which I think is right for me... but I could (and most likely) would be wrong, therefore it wouldnt work for me and Id be disappointed and unwilling to try Xpro product again.
But if I went to Ysalon and had a consultation then I would be advised Ypro product is the best for me and it would work because it was for my type of skin.

To you pros that may be a really simple concept but for the likes of little me... its actually quite complicated lol. Im used to thinking 'I know my skin therefore I know whats right for me.' Whereas chances are I dont actually.

Thanks for the answers. I feel a lot smarter now. :green:

:hug:

 

[mizzy_dizzy]

I should think it is not only down to the care plan and recommendation from the theropist but also as Gigi said the active ingredients eg: when I did hair dressing moons ago I often got asked by the clients why the shampoo/conditioner wash I did made their hair feel so much nicer than when they did it at home ? Whilst they were using the same brand at home it was not the same exact same range just within the same brand range but OTC , whereas mine the professional product was more consentrated and applied and removed in a pro way by me, does that make sense ?
Cx

 

[geeg]

So in a nutshell... in noob speak :green: its the advice, knowledge and one to one care plan using products determinded (sp) for Your skin that makes pro ranges better and more effective than otc's.

Im talking myself thru this so correct me if Im wrong;

I could buy Xpro product from Xcompany which I think is right for me... but I could (and most likely) would be wrong, therefore it wouldnt work for me and Id be disappointed and unwilling to try Xpro product again.
But if I went to Ysalon and had a consultation then I would be advised Ypro product is the best for me and it would work because it was for my type of skin.

To you pros that may be a really simple concept but for the likes of little me... its actually quite complicated lol. Im used to thinking 'I know my skin therefore I know whats right for me.' Whereas chances are I dont actually.

Thanks for the answers. I feel a lot smarter now. :green:

:hug:

I don't think this sums up what has been said in total .. only in part. Yes there is the professional advice which will be done with more knowledge than the average consumer has, but also as said .. the products therapists use are richer, more consentrated and not the same as those used by the consumer while the retail range may be the same as the therapist sells to her clients.

 

[Lady_Nightshade]

I don't think this sums up what has been said in total .. only in part. Yes there is the professional advice which will be done with more knowledge than the average consumer has, but also as said .. the products therapists use are richer, more consentrated and not the same as those used by the consumer while the retail range may be the same as the therapist sells to her clients.

Im sorry I think thats just confused me.
So pro products are richer and more concentrated than otc products.. I get that bit.
Its the bit in pink Im a bit fuddled on...




End of a long day and not enough caffine.

 

[Martin Duffy]

Put simply in one brand, say Decleor, there are:

Professional products - these are stronger & used only by therapists and are not for sale.
Retail products - these are retailed to clients & are one and the same as those sold in stores.

Hope that helps!

 

[geeg]

Im sorry I think thats just confused me.
So pro products are richer and more concentrated than otc products.. I get that bit.
Its the bit in pink Im a bit fuddled on...




End of a long day and not enough caffine.

Retail ranges are not the same as the treatment products therapists use.

Sorry, I can't see what can be confusing about that.:lol:

 

[NoLimitNails]

I belive Gigi is saying that the retail range could be the same (most likely is) as both the therapist and boot would sell.
Does it make sense now, or did I confuse you a bit more

 

[Lady_Nightshade]

It makes sense now.. for some reason I was thinking was the therapist uses is what she/he sells but its not.

Would I be right in thinking that if a person was to use the more concentrated version a therapist uses, everyday it would most likely irritate the skin.
Or have I lost the plot again?

I totally blame lack of caffine. (cough) :green:





Sometimes it takes a while for it to sink into my thick skull but onces its there its there.

 

[geeg]

It makes sense now.. for some reason I was thinking was the therapist uses is what she/he sells but its not.

Would I be right in thinking that if a person was to use the more concentrated version a therapist uses, everyday it would most likely irritate the skin.
Or have I lost the plot again?

I totally blame lack of caffine. (cough) :green:





Sometimes it takes a while for it to sink into my thick skull but onces its there its there.

I think if you want to know how and why and wherefore the therapist uses what she/he uses, then do the training and become a therapist! :lol: There could be many varied contra-actions from misusing professional products which is why only professionals are authorized to use them.

I think that many of us are confused as to why you yourself post so regularly on the professional forums when you are not in fact a professional yourself? You really should be posting these questions in the consumer section of the site. Not that you are not welcome .. but the forums are for professional discussion and the consumer forum if for consumer queries. I'm going by what your profile says about you so forgive me if I have the wrong info if you have not updated your details.

 

[Lady_Nightshade]

No one else has appeared to be confused about me being here.

And my question about this topic was posted away from the professional geeky sites, I thought this was the correct place, please feel free to shift it to where it belongs if it is not.

Since I re-started to post here I have realised where my quirys have to be posted and thought I was in the right area. Hopefully what I post in the other areas is useful information from a customers point of view and I always State thats I am doing so no one is thinking Im offering a professional's advice.. no one has complained yet.

I do have training and a certificate in manicure/pedicure as stated in my bio, I just never took a job in that field so I dont class myself as a geek and I never offer professional advice.

I have no intention to learn to be a therapist BUT I dont see how it is incorrect of me to wish to learn the difference between the products used. I thought it would be better to ask here, but I can always write letters to the companies involved asking them directly, I dont mind doing that.

At the end of the day these products are here for people like Me to use, by going to a salon and having a treatment. I like to be informed, I dont like wasting my money.

:hug:

 

[mizzy_dizzy]

Now I am confused. Are you talking about the difference between over the counter products and retail itams from salons , or over the counter and professional products?
If it is the latter of the two then not only the products ingredients being stonger ect but also the whole pampered experience and the trained person doing the treatment would be the difference wouldnt it? How could that be a waste of money ? ,

At the end of the day these products are here for people like Me to use, by going to a salon and having a treatment. I like to be informed, I dont like wasting my money.

:hug:

 

[Lady_Nightshade]

Well I wanted to know what the difference was between otc products and proffesional products, now I know theres two types of proffesional products the ones the therapist uses and the ones she/he sells.

So I wanted to know what the difference was between the ones the therapist sells and the otc normal brands. If they had higher active ingredients for example than a bog standard otc brand. Basically, what makes them better!

 

[JesseDavidNailDesign]

Well I wanted to know what the difference was between otc products and proffesional products, now I know theres two types of proffesional products the ones the therapist uses and the ones she/he sells.

They're not two completely different sets of products. Most of the products the therapist uses in the facial are the same products he/she will recommend for you to use at home.

It's just that there are also some professional use only products, that aren't available for the consumer, for safety reasons. Like a 20% enzyme, or something with a low pH, that needs neutralized.

For the most part, the cleanser, toner, mask and moisturizer will be the same.

 

[Lady_Nightshade]

They're not two completely different sets of products. Most of the products the therapist uses in the facial are the same products he/she will recommend for you to use at home.

It's just that there are also some professional use only products, that aren't available for the consumer, for safety reasons. Like a 20% enzyme, or something with a low pH, that needs neutralized.

For the most part, the cleanser, toner, mask and moisturizer will be the same.

Thank you for clarifying that for me.
It seems though my question has got lost somewhere. I understand that some of the proffesional products the therapist uses will be different to the proffesional ones sold at retail outlets. What I wanted to know is...

What makes the proffesional products Better than a retail brand?

Would someone be able to tell me what makes them better, or would you recommend I write a letter to the companies involved to determine this?

Imagine if it helps Im a customer, Ive come for a facial, Im sitting there and all of a sudden I ask... 'so what makes this product better than x,y or z I can get at the chemists'.

How would you, as a therapist, answer me as a customer in your chair?

:hug: