Biotech-driven skincare brand, Epicutis, has expanded its professional spa offering with the launch of two new backbar-exclusive body treatment products designed to elevate the treatment room experience through our clinically inspired skincare philosophy: The new EPICUTIS Massage Oil and EPICUTIS Body Scrub.
Developed specifically for spa professionals and not available for direct-to-consumer purchase, this product focuses on skin barrier support, minimalist formulation, and treatment performance, rather than fragrance and sensory experience like traditional spa body products.
Highlights include:
- EPICUTIS® Massage Oil - A seven-ingredient and body treatment oil formulated without essential oils to help reduce therapist sensitization concerns while deeply nourishing skin through antioxidant-rich botanical oils including rice germ, amla, goji berry, and sunflower seed oils. Lightweight yet indulgent, the oil glides effortlessly across the skin to enhance massage while helping to soften, hydrate, and refresh. The result is more than relaxation—it’s skin that feels visibly smoother, supple, radiant, and revitalized with every application.
- EPICUTIS® Body Scrub — A showerless exfoliating treatment combining sugar crystals, rice powder, HYVIA®, and Hinoki wood oil to gently renew skin while supporting hydration and microbiome balance. Featuring a sophisticated blend of fine sugar crystals and rice powder, it gently exfoliates to smooth rough texture, lift away impurities, and reveal radiant skin. Infused with omega-rich Hyvia®, this dual-action formula melts effortlessly upon contact, replenishing essential lipids while deeply nourishing and restoring the skin barrier.
Together, the launches reflect a growing shift in the spa industry toward multifunctional, science-backed treatment products that support both guest outcomes and therapist wellness.
MedEsthetics talked to Lisa Johnson, President of Sales and Marketing and Carlos Calvo Rodríguez. VP of Global Spa & Wellness about the launch. Check out the Q&A below:
Q1. The description mentions therapist sensitization concerns. Do you think the spa industry has underestimated the long-term effects repeated product exposure can have on practitioners' skin?
Carlos Calvo Rodríguez, VP of Global Spa & Wellness, Epicutis: Absolutely — and it's a conversation the industry has been reluctant to have. The spa world has been so guest-centric that we've overlooked the person delivering the experience. Think about it this way: a spa guest might receive one treatment a month — that's roughly one hour of product exposure. A therapist, on the other hand, works with the same formulations for eight hours a day, five days a week. The cumulative dermal load is incomparable. Sensitizations to products are a real risk, and they deserve the same attention we give to guest comfort. At EPICUTIS, this reality shaped our formulation philosophy from day one — no unnecessary allergens, no synthetic fragrance, no ingredients that create risk while delivering benefit. Protecting the therapist is not a footnote. It's part of the design.
Q2. EPICUTIS describes these launches as "skincare-first" body treatments. What does that philosophy look like in practice compared to traditional spa body products?
Lisa Johnson, President of Sales and Marketing, Epicutis: There's a deeply ingrained belief in the wellness world that skincare is a facial category. But the skin is the body's largest organ — it doesn't stop at the jawline. Traditional spa body products are often built around sensory payoff: scent, texture, foam. That's a beautiful experience, but it rarely translates into meaningful skin outcomes. Our approach flips that model. We start with the science — barrier repair, inflammation reduction, deep hydration — and build the sensory experience around it. HYVIA®, our patented chia-derived active, is clinically proven to boost skin barrier function and hydration that lasts up to 24 hours. That's not marketing language — that's published data. When you put that into a body treatment, the guest doesn't just feel better for an hour. Their skin is genuinely healthier.
Q3. Why was it important to formulate the Massage Oil without essential oils, especially in a category where fragrance is often central to the luxury experience?
Carlos Calvo Rodríguez, VP of Global Spa & Wellness, Epicutis: Fragrance has been central to spa culture for decades — and understandably so. But the science has caught up to what many therapists already suspected: essential oils are among the leading causes of contact allergy in professional skincare settings. When we were developing the Massage Oil, we asked a simple question: what does the skin actually need? The answer wasn't fragrance. It was nourishment, barrier support, and antioxidant protection — delivered without risk. We formulated with seven clean botanicals: HYVIA® for clinically proven barrier repair and hydration, Rice Germ Oil rich in gamma-oryzanol and vitamin E, Amla for its antioxidant heritage, and Goji Berry for essential fatty acids and protective carotenoids. The indulgence is still there — it's just expressed through skin results, not scent. Luxury doesn't have to come with a compromise.
Q4. More consumers are prioritizing barrier repair and long-term skin health in facial skincare. Are you now seeing that same mindset extend into professional body treatments?
Lisa Johnson, President of Sales and Marketing, Epicutis: Without question. We've watched the facial skincare conversation evolve dramatically — guests now walk into treatment rooms asking about ceramides, lipid barriers, and inflammation. That sophistication doesn't disappear when the treatment shifts below the neck. If anything, the demand for body-focused skin health is accelerating. Consumers who've invested in understanding their facial barrier are now asking the same questions about their décolleté, their hands, their legs. They want products that do something — not just products that smell beautiful for sixty minutes. The launch of our Massage Oil and Body Scrub is a direct response to that shift. These are not indulgence vehicles dressed up as skincare. They are skincare products, formulated with clinical-grade actives, delivered through a professional ritual. The treatment room is the right place for that conversation to start.
Q5. These products are backbar-exclusive rather than direct-to-consumer. What does that decision say about how you view the role of spas and treatment rooms in the future of skincare?
Lisa Johnson, President of Sales and Marketing, Epicutis: It's a deliberate decision, and it reflects how we view the role of the spa in the future of skincare and wellness. Therapists are professionals — they understand the body, they understand the skin, and they hold a relationship of trust with their guests that no e-commerce platform can replicate. We want those professionals to have access to the most effective tools available — formulations with published clinical data, pharmaceutical-grade actives, and minimalist ingredient profiles that respect both the guest's skin and their own. When a result happens in a treatment room, it's validated. It builds trust. It opens a conversation about long-term skin health that goes far beyond a single session. Retail commoditizes that relationship. Professional exclusivity honors it. Not to mention we believe the therapist should have a treatment at the same time as the guest and with Epicutis, they absolutely expereince that multiple times per day.
