Grace Abamba
Grace Abamba has taken over as President of the UK Society of Cosmetic Scientists (SCS) at an exciting time for the society – during its 70th anniversary year.
That's a lot of cosmetic science. Celebrations kicked off after the AGM and will gear up in earnest for the Annual Dinner that takes place during SCS Formulate in November.
Abamba graduated from Aston University with a combined honours degree in Biochemistry and Pharmacology.
She qualified as a teacher with a postgraduate certificate in education and worked in further education, teaching human biology and chemistry.
This was when Abamba developed a keen interest in the science behind cosmetic products and went on to study for the SCS Diploma in Cosmetic Science.
After completing a Masters in Biotechnology and Applied Molecular Biology at UCL, Abamba spent the early part of her career in R&D as a development chemist, formulating novel personal care and household products.
She also has 18 years' experience in the retail sector working on branded and private label consumer goods for Superdrug, QVC and Tesco.
In 2016, she joined the BRC Global Standards team as Global Technical Manager for the consumer products standard, developed by industry leaders to drive product compliance through the supply chain.
Grace, you take on the role of President having been VP last year: what have your highlights been during the past 12 months?
When Jackie Searle became President last year we agreed that we wanted to broaden the appeal of the society and have useful/synergistic relationships with others in allied industries.
We've certainly started making inroads and we'll be continuing with this. We've attended trade shows and events and connected with other societies and organisations to spread the word of the society and try to widen our appeal.
We were already close to the RSC, CTPA, LCF, DMU and BSP, and now have new links with the Trichological Society, RSB, BAD, Allergy UK and the dermatological departments of some specialist hospitals, as well as the teachers that we are now in contact with thanks to Scrub Up On Science, our schools initiative.
I'm particularly excited about being President this year as it is the society's 70th anniversary. I've been very involved with the SCS since I began in cosmetic science and I'm passionate about the core values of the society and the fact that education is at the heart of everything it does.
What will be your primary areas of focus in the coming months?
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