Beauty sleep redefined: Overnight hair care with the Gliss Night Elixir

How are new products created? How are new products created that precisely meet the needs of consumers? And how is a completely new product category established in the process? One thing is clear: they don't just happen overnight – it often takes months, sometimes even years, for consumers to see new product innovations on the shelves. The story of the Gliss Night Elixir began in the summer of 2020, when Henkel experts spent several days in a workshop with over 30 participants, listening carefully to the wishes of consumers. The result was the idea for a nighttime hair care line, from which the Gliss Night Elixir was ultimately created.

“We can all come up with something that we might think is cool,” says Helena Burkamp, who is part of the international brand management team for Gliss at Henkel. “But it's important for us to address the large group of our consumers and develop something relevant that, at the end of the day, really helps them and supports them in their routines.”

During the workshop, the team approached various aspects very openly and came up with different ideas. “We always ask: What do consumers need? What is important to them? What are they still missing?” says Helena. “This time, the idea of an overnight care product superseded all other ideas. Consumers wanted something they could incorporate into their evening routine, that would help them care for and repair their hair overnight and without much effort,” says the marketing expert. It's actually quite obvious: a lot of hair damage can occur when lying on a pillow and tossing and turning, because there's a lot of friction on the hair. “This gave rise to the idea of a product that helps to regenerate the hair while sleeping, prevent damage and also repair the hair – in other words, to wake up with healthier hair."

In a process lasting several months, the Gliss Night Elixir was then developed from this idea. “It was exciting for all of us,” says Helena, ”because it was something completely new. We are familiar with the concept of day and night care from skincare – but it had never been done in the haircare sector before. Launching a product on the market that opens up a completely new category is a huge innovation, even for a large company like Henkel and for a brand that has been around for over 50 years.”

From the idea to the finished formula

Once the idea was born, it was up to Henkel's research and development team to create a formula that was convenient and easy to use. R&D product developer Jasmin Ingwersen remembers the goal they had in mind: “We wanted to develop a leave-in product that could be applied in the evening to wet or dry hair. It should remain in the hair overnight so that when you get up in the morning, you only have to give your hair a quick brush through.”

Following this briefing, she built the basic framework for the formula with the HAPTIQ system, which strengthens the inner hair structure with micro-bonds and reinforces the resistance and elasticity of the hair fiber. “HAPTIQ is a combination of a bonding technology that enters deep into the hair at a molecular level and repairs it from the inside out, both instantly and over the long term – and a care base that protects the hair from the outside and ensures shine and better combability,” says the trained chemical laboratory technician. Behind the HAPTIQ ‏(bonding) technology is an exclusive technology from Henkel that uses a chemical reaction to proactively and permanently bind the hair's own keratin and protect it from being washed out. This repair technology is used for the first time in the Night Elixir. The formula is completed with conditioning agents and vitamins that help to strengthen the hair and protect it from environmental influences, making it smooth and providing the desired shine.

Together with consumers: step by step to the finished product

The finished product: beauty sleep for hair

The Gliss Night Elixir has been available in stores since February 2023. There are three different types: a golden version for severely damaged hair, a pink version for split ends and a blue, moisturizing version for dry hair.

“With the Night Elixir, we have redefined beauty sleep,” says Helena. “It uses the time we sleep to deeply enter the inner layer of the hair fiber – making it particularly effective. The formula proactively combats hair damage by preventing the hair from losing its natural keratin and preserving it in the long term.” And the product responds to the demands of consumers – because it simplifies the evening and morning routine by using the time spent sleeping for care and regeneration.

Jasmin, who developed the formula, has a particularly special bond to the Night Elixir: “It makes me proud when I walk through the store after the development process and see the result: Wow, I made that, it's got my formula in it. And people now use it every day.”