Born Again: MyChelle

MyChelle Dermaceuticals launched 11 years ago, back when natural antiaging skin care was still a developing market. Now the brand is reinventing itself as “the industry has grown up,” said Kristine Carey, vice president of marketing. The first to bring peptides to natural skin care, Carey said, MyChelle has repackaged all products, color coding its various lines, with red representing products for dry skin, purple for aging skin, green for combination skin and blue for sensitive skin. Perhaps most compelling is the firm’s new MyChelle Imaging System [MIS], which takes an image of the face — at shelf — focusing on fine lines and skin damage. The MIS then prescribes a treatment regimen. Users can return to the store after several months and reimage their face to see any changes in their skin. Reaction to MIS has been “overwhelming” said Carey, as it has been testing in a Whole Foods Market in Austin, Texas. “They had to give people buzzers, like they do at a busy restaurant, because so many people were in line to use the machine,” she said. In addition to skin care, MyChelle is launching Ultimate Lash and Brow Enhancer this month, for $67, which claims to improve the appearance of lash length after six weeks. New ceo, Terry Tierney, former ceo of Allegro Coffee, added MyChelle is going from being sold exclusively in natural channels, such as health food stores and Whole Foods Market, to specialty beauty channels, chains and boutiques.