Our Formulas are Different Out of Necessity

​We develop, test and manufacture our products in the semi-arid atmosphere of our home base, Colorado, where the average humidity is amongst the lowest in the nation and the high-altitude sun is exceptionally intense. Our formulas are different out of necessity. We have all heard the comment from a newcomer to our area, that products they have used regularly just don’t seem to work here. Of course not! They weren’t designed to work here. Conversely our products that perform with excellence in Colorado, are found to perform exceptionally well in other climates.

The performance of our products can be attributed to our selection of the finest ingredients science and nature has to offer and for the masterful blending of those materials by our master formulator. You cannot haphazardly compound even the finest of ingredients, be they organic, natural or synthetic, and expect that compound to be of benefit when applied to your hair or skin. These ingredients must be housed in a delivery system that distributes each material systematically to perform its intended function. The ingredients are of no value unless they remain in contact with the hair or skin. Science tells us that the body carries a negative ionic charge, so we render each of our products cationic, having a positive ionic charge. Now, just as magnets are attracted to their opposite poles, our products are attached by ionic attraction.
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All products contain a category of components called humectants. These materials help to keep products from freezing and from drying out, but their primary function is to attract water from the moisture rich atmosphere, providing supplemental moisture to the hair and skin. The most common are glycerin, propylene glycol and butylene glycol, all of which have a tremendous capacity for the absorption of water. The problem we have with any of these materials in our semi-arid atmosphere is that the most abundant source of water from which they will absorb is the skin itself. That moisture is then readily evaporated into our dry air. These materials will in fact become drying agents.

Concept 7 products contain a variety of weakly hygroscopic humectants that contribute to the wetness of the product itself. Our shampoos all contain two humectants derived from the glucose of corn. One contributes to the density of the lather, and the other is cationic to control static fly-away. Our conditioners contain these same materials performing similar functions.

Concept 7 skin care products utilize the two glucose derived humectants for the luxuriant feel they provide and for their contribution to our long-term shelf stability. The actual moisturization process occurs within the subcutaneous layer of the skin itself. We incorporate a substance extracted from sea algae that is delivered by the same system of transdermal absorption, as used in medicine, to deliver drugs via a skin patch. This material reacts with the hydrogen molecules in the skin to produce water that is held in reserve between the cells. We supplement this system by adding a biological fluid called Hyaluronic Acid which has the capacity to hold 1000 times its weight in water. This entire complex is rendered cationic to be held in contact with the skin by positive ionic attraction.