In Costa Rica there is talent in all fields. Three bright young Costa Ricans from Desamparados, Pérez Zeledón and Alajuela are the living proof.
They met in a university course called “Innovation Management”. The dark circles that began to show under their eyes as a result of the hard semester prompted them to come up with the idea of creating a natural product to diminish them.
It’s called Acalay because one of the products we use comes from the Inca culture, so in Quechua language, Acalay means ‘beautifying’,”
said Gabriela Soto, a 21-year-old and, fourth-year pharmacy student from the University of Costa Rica.
According to Daniela Fernández, one of the creators, the ingredients cannot yet be revealed because they are working on the process of patenting the product, but they did point out that they are rich in omega 3 and omega 6, components that help to counteract this problem.
The talented young women also pointed out that after a long investigation and market study they realized that their product is unique in the country. “There is nothing similar in the market, our product attacks dark circles, it does not conceal them,” said Fernández, 25-year- old student.
German Valverde, pharmacist and adviser to the students, explained that dark circles can be caused by tiredness or allergies, both causing inflammation and dryness. Valverde added that if the problem is not attacked in time, the dark circle runs the risk of becoming chronic, which is when the skin loses its flexibility.
The expert highlighted the quality of the product of the young women and also noted that its anti-inflammatory, moisturizing, and antihistaminic components could prove to be a very good option for the market.
Madrigal indicated that the product could reduce dark circles in a single day for those people who are tired and in one to three months for those people who have the chronic problem. The product is for people of all ages and can be applied as many times as you want, since it’s manufactured with natural products, so it does not cause problems to the skin and health.
The young women stressed their desire to continue improving the product as they are working on how to include other components to protect the skin from ultraviolet rays.
Stefanny Gamboa concluded by saying that they are in search of investors and working on improving the presentation of the product. The young women foresee that Acalay can be sold at 3000 to 5000 colones.