Bio Glide — Pre-Shave Glide Concentrate

EVERY INGREDIENT, EXPLAINED

What's in the bottle

• MCT Oil (C8/C10)Base carrier oil

  INCI: Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride

  Fractionated medium-chain triglyceride — fast-absorbing, odourless, and exceptionally stable. Pulled from coconut, refined to isolate the C8 (caprylic) and C10 (capric) chains. Base oil of the formulation — its tactile smoothness and rapid absorption are why Bio Gold feels like a serum rather than an oil despite being entirely lipid-based.

  Sourcing: Coconut-derived.

• Golden Jojoba Oil (virgin, deodorized)Sebum-mimetic carrier

  INCI: Simmondsia Chinensis Seed Oil

  Virgin-pressed and deodorized — it keeps the phytosterols and tocopherols, without the nutty smell of the raw oil. Wax-ester structure is a close match to human sebum — the skin recognises this as 'skin lipid' rather than occluding against it. Jojoba is technically a liquid wax, not an oil, and its ~98% long-chain wax ester structure gives it a stability and skin-recognition profile nothing else in the kingdom matches.

• Meadowfoam Seed Oil (refined)Stability anchor

  INCI: Limnanthes Alba Seed Oil

  The most oxidatively stable botanical oil routinely available. Approximately 95% of its fatty-acid profile is long-chain (C20 and above), with unsaturations at the ∆5 position rather than the more common ∆9 or ∆12. That geometric detail is why meadowfoam resists oxidation not only by its own chemistry but extends the stability of other oils it is blended with. The reason Bio Gold does not go rancid.

• Castor Oil (unrefined)Deep-pull cleansing and film-forming backbone

  INCI: Ricinus Communis Seed Oil

  The chemical reason castor oil is irreplaceable is ricinoleic acid — an unusual hydroxy fatty acid that comprises around 90% of castor triglycerides. Ricinoleic acid's hydroxyl group gives the oil a hydrophilic character unusual among vegetable oils, which is what lets it lift oxidised sebum and heavy debris from the pore without the stripping sensation of a surfactant. In Bio Clean it provides the 'pull' of the second massage phase. In Bio Glide it plays a different role — its high viscosity and mechanical film-forming ability create what we call the Castor-Grip: a thin, cohesive layer that the blade skates across rather than cuts through. This is the same mechanical principle at work in old-world barber preparations. We use the unrefined grade — the refined cosmetic version is more consistent in colour but loses the minor constituents that give the unrefined oil its tackier, more adhesive behaviour.

• Argan Oil — Virgin (unrefined)Skin-conditioning emollient

  INCI: Argania Spinosa Kernel Oil

  Argan oil comes from the kernel of the argan tree, endemic to southwestern Morocco, where it has been used for centuries for exactly the purpose we use it: as a conditioning grooming oil. The fatty acid profile is approximately 43% oleic acid, 36% linoleic acid, and 12% palmitic acid — a balanced monounsaturated/polyunsaturated blend that absorbs readily and leaves a soft rather than greasy finish. It carries meaningful amounts of tocopherols, phytosterols, and squalene as minor constituents. We use the virgin, cold-pressed, unrefined grade — the same material produced by the traditional Moroccan women's cooperatives. Deodorised argan has been on the market for two decades and is more uniform, but it loses the minor-constituent fraction that does most of the skin-conditioning work. In both Bio Glide and Bio Recovery, argan is the emollient that softens the blade's passage and smooths the finish.

• Natural Bisabolol (Type 1)The calming fraction of chamomile

  INCI: Bisabolol

  Bisabolol is the terpene alcohol that gives chamomile its reputation. Most "chamomile" on an ingredient list is a dilute extract; the bisabolol is the part people actually mean.

  We use natural alpha-bisabolol — Type 1 in industry shorthand — rather than the cheaper synthetic racemic grade. The natural (−)-alpha form is the better-tolerated of the two on sensitive skin, and it is one of the more expensive things in the bottle by weight. It is used at roughly 0.5–1%: low, but nowhere near a trace.

• Sea Buckthorn CO₂ ExtractOmega-7 source

  INCI: Hippophae Rhamnoides Fruit Extract

  Our source of omega-7 palmitoleic acid — a fatty acid that also occurs naturally in human sebum, which is part of why it sits so easily on skin. Sea buckthorn is one of the few botanical sources rich enough in it to be worth using.

  CO₂-extracted rather than solvent- or hot-press-extracted, because heat and solvent strip out the carotenoids and phytosterols that give the extract its deep orange colour. It is the reason this oil is the colour it is.

  Sourcing: CO₂-extracted.

• d-alpha TocopherolAntioxidant (vitamin E)

  INCI: Tocopherol

  Natural vitamin E (d-alpha is the naturally occurring stereoisomer, as opposed to the synthetic dl-alpha). Protects the formula's oxidative stability in the bottle and contributes its own antioxidant behaviour on the skin. Works in combination with the tocopherol fraction of prickly pear to give Bio Gold a multi-pathway antioxidant profile without synthetic preservatives.

  Sourcing: Natural d-alpha, not synthetic dl-alpha.

• Cedarwood Essential OilFragrance

  INCI: Cupressus Funebris (Cedarwood) Wood Oil

  Steam-distilled from the wood. Despite the name it is not a true cedar — the botanical source is Cupressus funebris, a cypress — which is why the INCI reads the way it does.

  Dry and woody rather than sweet. It is in the formula for scent.

• Bergamot Essential OilFragrance

  INCI: Citrus Aurantium Bergamia (Bergamot) Fruit Oil

  Steam-distilled from the fruit of the bergamot orange, Citrus bergamia. Bright, sharp citrus — the smell in Earl Grey tea, which is black tea scented with the same oil.

• Geranium Essential OilFragrance

  INCI: Pelargonium Graveolens Flower Oil

  Steam-distilled from the flowers of Pelargonium graveolens. Rose-like, but greener and drier than rose — the shape of the scent without the sweetness.

• Rosemary Essential OilFragrance

  INCI: Rosmarinus Officinalis Leaf Oil

  Steam-distilled from rosemary leaf. Herbaceous and clean — the kitchen-herb smell rather than a perfume note.