RICA

RICA is an Italian cosmetics company based in Sicily, best known for professional depilatory waxes and, later, natural haircare. The brand traces its origin to 1994, when it began as a small artisanal laboratory at the foot of Mount Etna [1]. It operates as a family enterprise, trades as Rica Group S.p.A., and describes itself as active in the haircare and body-care sector across more than 60 countries [2].

The company builds much of its identity around Sicilian raw materials, in particular volcanic water drawn from Mount Etna and oil from the prickly pear (opuntia). Its product range spans waxing systems, hair colour and a premium haircare line, distributed largely through professional salons alongside consumer sales.

According to Italian regional business publication Economy Sicilia, RICA was established in 1994 near Mount Etna as a small artisanal workshop [1]. Brand accounts reproduced by the Dutch reseller Happy Campers describe the founder, Mario Puglisi, as "a humble and hard working man" who bought a small hair-removal wax manufacturer while travelling on business along Sicily's eastern coast, then built it into an international company.

The business remained in family hands. Economy Sicilia describes RICA as a family enterprise run by four Puglisi siblings: Mario Puglisi as chief executive, Nunzio Puglisi as research and development director, and their sisters Antonella and Maria Grazia Puglisi [3]. Some business databases record the founding year as 1993 rather than 1994 [4]; the brand's own site and the editorial coverage both give 1994, and the 1993 date most likely reflects the registration of the corporate entity rather than the launch of the brand.

RICA's early reputation was built on wax. In 1996 the company presented a patented liposoluble Fruit Wax at the Cosmoprof trade fair in Bologna, a formula it states was free of colophony (pine resin), which helped establish it among European wax producers [5]. The move away from colophony is significant because that resin is a common cause of skin sensitivity in traditional depilatory waxes.

The company later extended into hair colour and haircare. After what it describes as a three-year development programme, it launched the Colorica professional hair-colour line around 2000, subsequently developed into the Chromoplus Colorica system offering 106 shades [6]. In 2014 it introduced Naturica, a premium haircare range inspired by Mediterranean ingredients and Sicilian botanicals [7].

RICA is privately held and, according to business-database listings, remains owned by the Puglisi family [4]. No parent company or acquisition history is recorded in the available sources.

RICA presents its products as natural cosmetic treatments rather than purely functional items, positioning waxing and haircare within a wider idea of wellbeing; its stated mission is "to create natural treatments that enhance the beauty of body and mind." Environmental responsibility is a recurring theme in the company's own messaging, which frames sustainability as central to how it operates: "We believe there is no responsible alternative to doing business other than through the pursuit of environmental sustainability" [8].

A distinctive part of that positioning is vertical integration. Brand copy carried by Happy Campers states that "all production processes, quality control and distribution come from within RICA facilities, eliminating the need for a supply chain" [8], with manufacturing based at the company's site in Belpasso, near Catania.

The waxing range is the company's core, built around liposoluble wax formulated for different skin and hair types, alongside film wax for sensitive areas, hard wax, and a sugar wax the company describes as based on an ancient recipe of water, sugar and lemon juice. Two ingredients recur across the formulations: volcanic water from Mount Etna, described as enriched with copper, selenium and zinc, and opuntia (prickly pear) oil.

In haircare, the Naturica line is organised into several ranges targeting concerns such as moisture, repair and volume, using botanical extracts and essential oils. The company reports that Naturica products are made largely from natural ingredients and packaged in recycled (post-consumer) materials, and that the line carries Eco Bio Cosmetics certification from the Italian body ICEA [9]. For its cosmetics more broadly, RICA has described formulas as free of SLES/SLS surfactants, parabens, artificial dyes, mineral oils and sulfates, and its Chromoplus Colorica colour system as vegan and cruelty-free [3].

RICA's press coverage sits mainly in trade and regional media rather than mainstream beauty titles. Economy Sicilia has profiled the company as a Sicilian cosmetics business expanding into China, and the French hair-trade magazine Live Coiffure covered the arrival of Naturica in France, emphasising its Mediterranean ingredients and Etna volcanic water.

RICA remains active. The company operates an e-commerce site and continues professional salon distribution across more than 60 countries, with reported markets including India, the Arabian Peninsula and, more recently, China [2]. It is still run as a family business under the Puglisi siblings.