President of Moor Spa Inc Michael Beresford reveals his interest in Moor Therapy and reveals why product purity and safety are at the forefront of products.
An education in wellness
Michael you have always had an interest in the power of wellness after completing a Bachelor degree in Pure Sciences. Tell us what inspired your interest in the wellness sphere originally?
“After graduating, I worked in a research institute in Switzerland for five years studying the effects of Transcendental Meditation (TM) on brain functioning. That’s when I became interested in stress management / wellness in general and the European spa culture in particular. Moor therapy has been a big part of that culture for centuries and I found it to be fascinating. I had several friends who found that taking Moor baths had quite a profound healing effect for aches and pains, hormonal imbalances and skin problems – and that’s what stimulated my interest specifically in Moor therapy originally.”
In 1996 you moved to Canada where you are now based to make Moor based products available there – tell us about that experience and how it was received.
“We decided to focus on the spa industry because the benefits of Moor were not so well-known in the North American natural health arena as they were in Europe. At that time, the spa industry was in its infancy with just a few hotel spas and day spas in Vancouver. We received a great deal of interest from these locations and our products were used and sold in several of them. In those days we used to run our business from the basement of our home with the garage acting as a warehouse! Nowadays we have a 7,000 sq ft fulfillment operation plus a 5,000 sq ft lab and our products are sold by several hundred spas in 15 countries.”
What is Austrian Moor?
Tell us about the wonder Austrian Moor ingredient – why is it such an incredible ingredient?
“What is remarkable about our Austrian Moor is that it is a synthesis of a huge range of organic and mineral components derived from a multitude of plant species which became submerged underground during the Ice Age thousands of years ago. Many of these nutrients, such as humic and fulvic acids, phytohormones, magnesium, calcium and sulfur have healing properties within their own right – but the synthesis of these nutrients creates a whole much greater than the sum of its parts. Most types of muds that are used in the health / beauty industry (such as clay, fango, dead sea mud etc) are primarily mineral-based.
Because the molecular size of these minerals is too large to pass through the skin membrane there is very little absorption and the minerals work more on the skin surface. However, organic substances are known to be as much as 20 times more “bioavailable” and therefore can be absorbed directly into the tissues.
This combination of about 50/50 mineral/organic is ideal for producing both skin benefits and benefits deeper within the tissues. Another important factor is that moor deposits are generally found close to the surface and are therefore open to contamination from environmental pollutants – but the deposit that we use – called Tiefenmoor or Deep moor, is cocooned within the earth and totally protected from any possible kind of contamination. Therefore it is absolutely pristine and pure.”
Moor and the power of healing
What are its healing properties?
“The main two healing properties are firstly, that it’s a powerful detoxifier due to the presence of humic and fulvic acids which are able to bind on to impurities (including heavy metals) within the tissues and flush them out of the body; and secondly that it’s anti-inflammatory due to the significant sulfur content.
Toxicity and inflammation are closely related and tend to increase as we grow older – in fact, in many ways they are the aging process. So the use of the Moor in spa therapies ties in closely with our desire to slow down aging. More than that, though, is that the therapies help to relieve various types of aches and pain associated with aging. In Europe, moor therapy is widely used as a treatment for a whole host of inflammatory conditions and is available as part of health insurance plans. The same revitalizing / rejuvenating effect is also true for the skin which is subject to the same aging processes.
In addition, the moor has been found to increase circulation and balance the pH of the skin and the skin microflora. It’s also ion-exchanging resulting in the removal of harmful positive ions and the absorption of revitalizing negative ions through the skin.”
How is it sourced to make sure it retains its potency in the products?
“We source the pure moor essence directly from the supplier in Austria where it is simply mined, harvested and filtered to remove any debris. It’s then packed into 60 Litre barrels and shipped by ground and ocean freight to our facility in Vancouver. In order to produce the various pure Moor products, it is then refined to remove particles above a certain size, blended with purified water and homogenized into the right consistency. We also produce a liquid extract of the Moor which is a dark, almost black liquid which contains all of the water soluble components of the moor – most importantly the humic and fulvic acid. This liquid extract is then included in all of our blended product formulations from serums and moisturizers to shampoos and lotions.”
Moor Spa lands in Australia
Moor Spa Skincare – what is the hero from this range?
“In addition to the Austrian Moor, we have sourced several other naturally occurring substances over the years which have complementary therapeutic properties. One of these is a substance called Kelzyme which is a 6 million year old fossilized kelp deposit nestling 100 ft below ground in the Sierra Nevada mountains in the Western USA. This substance is rich in bio-available calcium, minerals and enzymes which render it an amazing product for exfoliation, brightening and skin rejuvenation. Our Kelp Enzyme (Kelzyme) Facial Mask has become a hero product in our skin care range since its launch in 2017.”
Who is your clientele?
“The eco-conscious, health seeking, well-educated spa-going consumer – largely female but with a growing male contingent.”
Moor Spa Pro. Tell us about this concept.
“This is for professionals only – One of our policies has always been to try to respond to the needs of our spa professionals. A few years ago we received many requests for 100% natural ampoules for use in microneedling, dermaplaning, RF treatments etc. There weren’t any such products that were 100% Natural Source at the time so we tasked ourselves with developing highly concentrated UV- sterilized vials of hyaluronic acid, vitamin C and growth factor ampoules for these specialised professional treatments. More recently, there was a considerable demand for a professional pre-extraction product so our chemists developed our Disincrustation Gel for this purpose which has become extremely popular. This product has been embraced by one of the world’s leading salon chains. Since Moor Spa is a professional line, not available in retail stores, we feel that our pro line is an important distinguishing component of our brand.”
Creating unique skincare
The skincare/bodycare market is flooded with innovations. How hard is it to stand out from the competition?
“The inclusion of the moor extract in all of our products is unique in the market – but, in addition, all of our products are guaranteed 100% Natural Source. Many companies claim 95 or even 99% natural but you always need to ask what is the 1% to 5% that’s not natural as the “devil is in the details” We provide the source information for every ingredient that is included either in a guarantee which is included with each product or on our website.
As far as I know, we are the only company which does this – certainly in the spa / salon market. Also, all of our products are certified as clean by an organisation called CertClean. This certification is only available for products that don’t include a long list of over 2,000 disqualifying ingredients which they consider to be potentially harmful. We have been producing 100% natural formulations for over 20 years so we consider ourselves to be pioneers in this field – but our aim is not just to produce products that are natural, but also highly effective as well. People sometimes have the misconception that natural products can’t be as effective as synthetic ones, but that really is not the case. There is a vast repository of active cosmeceutical ingredients that are natural (including our moor extract).”
What sets Moor Spa apart?
“Apart from our 100% Natural Source formulations and the inclusion of the moor extract in every product, we have spent a great deal of time and effort on making as much of our packaging biodegradable as possible. Also, our product line is incredibly extensive – it includes products for all aspects of spa therapies and treatments – not just skin and body care, but also body treatments, pain management, wellness, massage, hair & scalp care, aromatherapy, men’s care, mani/pedi and professional-only products. You can literally run a whole spa using our products. In fact – we have recently set up our first concept spa, called Moor Spa Eartherapy in the US (see. moorspahiltonhead.com), which we are now planning on replicating on a wider scale.”
Sustainable packaging
You have a strong interest in biodegradable packaging in the spa industry – tell us about that?
“A few years ago I came across a company in the UK called Symphony Environmental which produces a substance called d2w. Normally plastic takes 500 years to biodegrade – and it doesn’t really biodegrade, it just ends up as microplastics; but adding d2w to conventional plastic renders it fully biodegradable within a period of just 2-3 years after being discarded. We then spent over a year trying to find packaging companies that were willing to add the d2w material into our packaging. Now, well over 90% of our packaging contains d2w and is therefore fully biodegradable.”
The future of Moor Spa
What are your plans for this year to expand Moor Spa?
“We have recently completed the development of a piece of equipment called the Integrated Spa System. This allows spas to perform body wrap treatments with steam and vichy shower hydrotherapy without having to build a wet room. The client never has to leave the table to take a shower and is not cocooned in plastic wrapping during the treatment. Instead they are enveloped in aromatherapy-infused steam and rinsed with a 6 head vichy shower all inside a fiberglass canopy. This makes body wrap treatments way more effective, easier to perform and so much more luxurious for the client. We are now going into production to make this available on a wider scale.”
Can you also tell us about your synergy with Encore Beauty?
“We originally connected with Encore via a digital trade show run by Professional Beauty in the UK during Covid. It has taken a few years to develop our partnership with Encore, largely due to the fact that their operation was destroyed by flooding in 2022. However, they are now fully up and running again and very passionate about introducing our brand and products into the spa market in Australia and New Zealand. We feel confident that they are the perfect partner to undertake this project. I will be visiting Sydney in the 3rd week of August to conduct training and product knowledge sessions and warmly invite your readers to come along and see what we have to offer.”
This story originally appeared in the Winter 2024 print issue of Professional Beauty.
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