After more than 16 years of working in medical spas, registered nurse and educator Pamela Hill saw a gap in the skin care industry. Products, she thought, were lacking effectiveness and diversity. From the treatment rooms of her Colorado-based medical spas, Facial Aesthetics, Inc., Hill filled a niche. Throughout the past eight years, she formulated the Pamela Hill Skin Care cosmeceutical line, steering her products toward clients’ needs in preparation for a national and then global marketing launch.
The line includes products for both professional and at-home use—sold at physician’s offices, spas and medical spas. Hill’s cleansers and moisturizers aim at upholding the effects of therapeutic spa treatments, such as microdermabrasion, with an ingredient mix that includes topical vitamins and antioxidants.
“The at-home products include glycolic and lactic acids, vitamin C serums, enzyme masks, green tea moisturizer, as well as a segment of the line that includes peptides,” Hill says. “The back bar line is used for treatments in the spa and includes products such as lactic and glycolic acid peels, neutralizer gel, masks and moisturizers.”
Environmentally safe and free from animal testing, Pamela Hill Skin Care is designed to promote healthy aging.
“I wanted a product line that would perform,” Hill says. “To have an entire line that performs to a high standard is hard to find and even harder to manufacturer.”
Hill has been active in all aspects of the line’s production.
“We use [a] sample to see if it works the way we want it to as an individual product and as a product within the line,” she says. “If it doesn’t—and rarely is it perfect the first time—we give the manufacturer feedback, and a new version of the product is made.”
Hill has also authored 13 books—with two more on the way—to educate graduate estheticians and registered nurses in the medical spa and spa industry about patient care, new treatments, safety policies and training procedures.
“We insist that each treatment is performed the same by each esthetician or RN; clients depend on this,” says Hill. “It is like going to a restaurant and getting your favorite dish prepared differently each time. If you like something, you want it the same each time.”
Hill received her nursing diploma from Presbyterian Hospital and Colorado Women’s College and has practiced nursing for more than 25 years. Her background as a registered nurse has aided in the success of her spas in Denver and in Highlands Ranch, which were founded in 1991, attracting nearly 1,000 clients per month between the two locations.
“Our clients love our treatments and are excited to know that they are on the cutting edge of the investigative work that I do, whether it is a new treatment or a new product,” Hill says. “Some of the treatments I am passionate about currently include the use of LED (light emitting diodes), fotofacials [intense pulsed light] and Fraxel skin treatments.”
In addition to redesigning Pamela Hill Skin Care product labels and preparing for trade shows this year, Hill is currently outlining books on acne and ethnic skin care. She also updates her online skin care blog on a regular basis.
“My blog is an important way for me to get information to estheticians and RNs on subjects that are relevant to our industry,” Hill says. “Recent [topics] include holiday blues, business tips and taking care of oneself in this demanding field.”
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