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Gül Zone, CEO of DERMAWARE Bio-Targeted Skin Care and EcoZone Inc. 56 DAYSPA | JUNE 2014 ONE ON ONE WITH... Gül Zone has always been a science girl. As a bio-chemistry student at Tulane University in New Orleans, she could often be found in the lab developing formulas and studying chemical theory. When contemplating her career, Zone's aspirations involved studying patent law. Nowhere in the cards did her future read "skin care". But the cards were to be proven wrong. "After grad school, I obtained a job doing R&D; for a medical product development and testing company," recalls Zone. "One of our contracts was with an ethnic haircare company, which represented my fi rst foray into the personal care market. I found myself really loving it." Seeing the potential in his employee, Zone's boss encouraged her to pursue the personal care fi eld and went on to assign her the task of spearheading a separate branch of business that catered to clients in the segment. Although Zone eventually parted ways with the fi rm, the experience instilled in her an excitement and interest for skin care that would prove to grow stronger over the years and lead her to co-found EcoZone Inc., the parent company of DERMAWARE. "I was lucky enough to fi nd my passion early in life," says Zone. "I'm fascinated by skin physiology and what's going on under the surface. I love the formulation component and the thrill of developing new ideas based on what inspires me." It appears Zone's knack for ingredients and formulas has caught on with the spa and skincare industries. Since DERMAWARE's launch in 1998, the company's product lineup has grown from 15 products to more than 350! Zone's enthusiasm for serious skin care has ingrained in her a desire to pass it on to other industry professionals. When not at the EcoZone headquarters in New Orleans, she teaches courses and leads demonstrations at tradeshows and industry conferences. DAYSPA recently had the opportunity to chat with Zone and glean some insight on her beauty business experience and the storms (both literal and fi gurative) she and DERMAWARE have weathered along the way. —Angela Melero H ow do you continue to stay on the cutting edge of skincare technology? When it comes to developing new formulas, I fi nd that I'm inspired in a variety of ways. Sometimes an idea will come to me while I'm teaching a class. I fi nd myself repeating certain information regarding skin care and skin issues over and over until a bell rings in my head, and I think, 'Hey, why don't we try this?' I'm always thinking about how we can target a specifi c need or come up with a new and innovative way to address a specifi c concern. H ow long does the product development process take? The formulation process varies. It can be fairly straightforward and speedy, and sometimes it can take years. It's not enough to just have a great idea. Being in the cosmetics industry is like being a chef—there's a creative and a chemical component. You must fi gure out a way to turn an idea into a stable, effective product with longevity. We've had some doozies over the years! However, I fi nd the formulas that gave us the most problems and challenges in the lab ended up being our greatest discoveries. We keep samples of every test batch we've created. It's a great lesson for us and allows us to look back on our history. C an you give me an example of one of your 'doozies'? Our Vital A Microgel was particularly hard to get right. The goal was to create a formula that delivered high concentrations of vitamin A in micro-encapsulated forms for better stabilization and penetration. We kept trying to push the limit of what we could fi t into this formula without compromising its stability—stability is everything in skin care. Since we use plant-derived ingredients, we also faced the challenge of fi nding the right preservative that wouldn't mess up the entire solution. All these diffi culties came one after the other, but we eventually settled on a great formula that has done very well. W hat has been the most challenging time for your business? Being based in New Orleans, we experienced the devastating effects of Hurricane Katrina in 2005. We had to evacuate the city—my husband, Robert, my daughter and I went to Houston. Robert (bio-medical director for DERMAWARE) was able to get back into the city, which was shut down, and retrieve servers and other salvaged materials from the offi ce. We managed the business out of rented offi ce space in Houston! We kept that offi ce even when we were allowed back into New Orleans, and worked out of both locations. Incredibly, our staff had our New Orleans offi ce up and running within a month! They really stood by us. It shows that with a strong, willing team you can overcome anything. W hen do you fi nd time to unwind? It's a challenge! I have a 14-year-old daughter who will be leaving for college in three years, so I try to make time since I know my days with her are limited. At some point in the day, I need to give my brain a rest, so one thing I try to do when I'm home is unplug. I'll turn off my phone, put it in another room so I won't be distracted by emails and calls, or even hide it! GÜL ZONE O n e o n O n e . i n d d 5 6 One on One.indd 56 5 / 1 / 1 4 3 : 3 1 P M 5/1/14 3:31 PM