Three students from the Institut Teknologi Bandung (ITB), as members of Team Maya, secured the national championship at the L’Oréal Brandstorm 2024 event on March 23. They will represent Indonesia internationally, which will be held in London in June. Comprising Saskia Deffa Febriend (19021241) from the Management Study Program, Priscilla Auleader Napitupulu (18221098), and Clara Alrosa Fernanda Sinaga (18221099) from the Information Systems and Technology Study Program, these three female students triumphed over more than 2000 participants from across Indonesia.
Saskia, a team member from the SBM ITB Management study program class of 2024, emphasized that winning this competition wasn’t merely about generating ideas but also about teamwork and time management.
“We divided tasks according to our respective expertise, with Clara focusing on the problem background research, Priscilla on technology, products, and innovation, and myself on business and commercialization aspects,” Saskia explained on Friday (5/4), outlining Team Maya’s composition.
L’Oréal Brandstorm is an annual competition hosted by the leading cosmetics brand, L’Oréal Group. With the theme “Reinvent the Future of Professional Beauty through Tech,” participants are tasked with innovating in the beauty industry by leveraging the latest technology.
This year marks Team Maya’s second participation in the L’Oréal Brandstorm Competition. In the previous edition, the Maya Team was the favorite runner-up. Priscilla noted that they gleaned valuable insights from last year’s experience, contributing to their first-place achievement this year.
“With a team of members from diverse scientific backgrounds, we could exchange numerous perspectives and ideas,” Priscilla remarked.
Over more than four months, Team Maya navigated through several stages before emerging as champions. They began with brainstorming ideas based on given case studies, focusing on solving hair-related issues using L’Oréal’s product line.
Subsequently, they progressed through a preliminary stage where each team submitted a proposed solution document. Of the 900 teams participating in the preliminary round, 10 advanced to the national final stage. In the final stage, teams presented their designed product directly to L’Oréal Indonesia’s executive leadership.
Clara elaborated on Team Maya’s strategies for clinching victory in this competition, which involved conducting direct surveys with individuals experiencing hair-related problems, consulting hair experts from various salons, and seeking guidance from lecturers with expertise in pharmacy and technology. Clara also stressed the importance of ensuring that the submitted products align with L’Oréal’s future vision.
Team Maya ultimately emerged victorious by presenting a solution that addresses hair loss issues by fusing two cutting-edge technologies, ultrasound, and nanodroplets, encapsulated in a tool called FolliGenix. FolliGenix, a non-invasive hair health product, was designed by Team Maya to enhance efficiency and optimize serum usage to prevent hair damage. It is equipped with an Artificial Intelligence (AI)-based application to monitor users’ hair growth.
Team Maya will receive direct guidance from mentors from L’Oréal Indonesia in the international competition. The winners of the international competition will have the opportunity to materialize their ideas at L’Oréal Paris’s headquarters for three months.
According to Clara, participating in this competition isn’t solely about competing but also learning and enhancing one’s skills. Clara expressed gratitude for the opportunity provided by L’Oréal to participate in the Brandstorm competition.
“Through this competition, we have been provided with a platform to learn and further develop. We believe that our problem-solving approach, innovative technology design, and, most importantly, team-building skills have significantly improved following our participation in this competition,” Clara concluded.
