Opti Laboratories is a modern scientific beauty company, but its roots go back much further than the name itself. The company grew from MyLash, founded by Dr Tom Walker in 2007, and from nearly two decades of specialist experience in eyelash and eyebrow growth.
We have helped more than 16,000 clients since 2007, including people seeking cosmetic enhancement and people recovering their lashes or brows after chemotherapy, thyroid problems, over-plucking, trichotillomania, medication-related thinning and age-related changes. We have many clients that have now used our service for 10 years or longer.
This is the story of how a clinical observation became MyLash, and how MyLash later evolved into Opti Laboratories.
Mylash was founded by Dr. Tom Walker.
Clients
A doctor-led team working with UK pharmacy partners
“Today, Opti Laboratories is a UK-based, doctor-led company focused on eyelash and eyebrow growth, recovery and protection. Tomorrow, we will continue to release cutting edge, science led treatments to help you look and feel your best.”
Dr Tom Walker first observes the eyelash growth effect of bimatoprost in clinical use.
Mylash is founded
Early press coverage begins, including coverage by Alice Hart-Davis in the Evening Standard.
Dr Walker moves from Glasgow to London to build the company and work with leading beauty professionals.
Eyebrow growth becomes increasingly important as fuller brows become a major beauty trend and more clinical research emerges.
MyLash becomes part of Opti Laboratorie
Opti Laboratories introduces a new precision applicator system and launches the Sun Protect Serum.
The Lash and Brow Protecting Sleep Mask is developed.
Opti Laboratories products are recognised as finalists in the Live That Glow Independent Beauty Awards.
The story began in late 2006, long before eyelash serums had become a mainstream beauty category.
Dr Tom Walker first became interested in the cosmetic effect of bimatoprost after seeing it used as an eyedrop for the treatment of glaucoma. The treatment had a side effect – eyelash growth. This side effect was especially noticeable in people being treated in only one eye. These patients could develop much longer, thicker eyelashes on the treated side, while the eyelashes on the untreated side remained unchanged.
That observation was simple, visual and compelling. Before the beauty industry was talking seriously about eyelash growth treatments, the effect was already visible in clinical practice.
The idea behind MyLash came from recognising that this side effect could be applied deliberately as the main effect, carefully and responsibly for people who wanted fuller natural eyelashes.
MyLash was founded in 2007. At the time, most lash enhancement still meant mascara, tinting, lash extensions and crushing the hairs with curlers. The idea of supporting genuine natural eyelash growth was unknown or worse – snake oil.
In the early years, the treatment was used primarily for eyelashes. Eyebrow use existed too, especially for people with thin brows due to medical or cosmetic causes, but the main public interest at that stage was longer, thicker lashes.
From the beginning, MyLash was different from a conventional beauty brand. It was not built around selling “hope in a bottle”. It was built around a medically observed effect, a known active ingredient and a desire to help people grow their own lashes.
In the early days, one of the challenges was persuading people that the treatment genuinely worked.
To demonstrate the effect directly, Dr Walker used the treatment on only one eye. This created a living before and after comparison. The lashes on one side became much longer and more obvious than the lashes on the other side.
It was not the most conventional demonstration, and it did make him look a bit odd for a while, but it was extremely effective in its simplicity. People could see the difference immediately. It was quite literally eye catching.
That experience shaped the company’s attitude to evidence. The most persuasive claims are not the loudest ones. They are the ones that can be seen, measured or explained clearly.
To build the company Dr Walker moved from Glasgow to London in 2009. London was where many of the most influential beauty salons, journalists and early adopters were based.
In those early years much of the work involved contacting salons, meeting people in the beauty industry, listening to feedback from clients, and
explaining a treatment that many had never encountered before. It was not enough to say that the treatment worked. The people who understood lashes best had to see its potential for themselves.
That period was difficult, direct and practical. It involved being in salons talking to potential clients that would soon be the early adopters, explaining the science, showing results and persuading respected people in the industry that natural lash growth could become a serious category in beauty.
We are proud that many of those early clients that took a chance are still growing their lashes and brows with us today.
One of the most important people in the early MyLash story was Sue Marsh. At the time, Sue was working at Daniel Galvin and had been recognised in the press as the “queen of eyelashes” in London. Dr Walker knew that if anyone would understand the significance of a genuine lash growth treatment, it would be her.
He arranged an appointment with Sue, and she understood the implications immediately. She saw that this was not simply another beauty product, but something that could be used more holistically for clients who wanted the best eyelashes possible.
Sue used the treatment herself and took a chance by working with MyLash.
She introduced the company to important clients, other people in the beauty industry and journalists in the beauty world.
Her support helped take the idea from a medical observation into the high-end beauty conversation.
The first significant press coverage was in 2008, in the Evening Standard, in a piece by Alice Hart-Davis. That was an important moment because it helped introduce evidence-based eyelash growth to a wider beauty audience.
Within a few years, MyLash had been featured or discussed in publications including Vogue, Grazia, Cosmopolitan, Company, Elle, Daily Mail, Marie Claire, Mirror, Stylist, Who, Red and others.
This press attention mattered because it came at a time when most people still thought of lash enhancement as something temporary. MyLash helped introduce the idea that natural lash growth could be improved using a more scientific approach.
The treatment began mainly as an eyelash growth service, but eyebrow growth gradually became more important.
In the early years, some clients used the treatment on eyebrows because of thin brows caused by medical issues, over-plucking or naturally sparse growth. Then, during the 2010s, fashion changed. Fuller, thicker brows became
one of the defining beauty trends.
At the same time, more independent clinical research emerged on eyebrow growth. That combination changed the role of the company. MyLash was no longer only helping people grow longer lashes. It was increasingly helping people understand and improve both lashes and brows.
That broader expertise became one of the foundations of Opti Laboratories. For readers interested in the science
and treatment options, we explain this in more detail in our guide to eyebrow treatments.
One of the earliest practical innovations was not glamorous, but it mattered: the applicator.
MyLash adopted disposable micro applicators from the dental world. These hypoallergenic applicators allowed the transfer of a very small amount of liquid to the lash line with precision and hygiene.
That detail reflected the company’s broader philosophy. Results matter, but so do precision, cleanliness and responsible use.
In 2025, Opti Laboratories introduced a mechanical slide brush system. This was designed to provide accurate application while using replaceable heads to support hygiene. It continued the same principle: a good treatment needs a good delivery method.
In 2024, MyLash became part of Opti Laboratories.
This was not a break with the company’s past. It was an evolution. MyLash had built the experience, client base and specialist knowledge. Opti Laboratories was created to take that foundation and develop it into a broader, more ambitious, science-based beauty brand.
Simon Galbraith, one of the UK’s most successful entrepreneurs, brought the vision of building a stronger company capable of releasing new evidence-led products. Lottie Mackintosh refreshed the brand into something that could communicate the science underpinning beauty products in a clearer and more accessible way.
The purpose of Opti Laboratories was to go beyond a single treatment and build a company around scientific beauty: evidence based with real results.
Over the years, clients have come to us for many different reasons.
Some simply wanted longer eyelashes or fuller eyebrows. Others came after chemotherapy, thyroid problems, trichotillomania, over-plucking, medication-related thinning, radiotherapy, weight-loss injections or age-related changes.
That experience changed the company. We learned that people do not usually think about lashes and brows in isolated categories. They want to know why their hairs have changed, whether the follicles are still capable of producing good hair, how long regrowth may take and how best to protect the results once they return.
This is why Opti Laboratories has developed a large library of doctor-led guides covering topics such as thyroid-related lash and brow loss, chemotherapy recovery, trichotillomania, medication-related shedding, eyelash and eyebrow growth cycle,
eyebrow structure, UV damage, lash function and hair protection.
The content library is not separate from the company’s history. It is the result of nearly two decades of client questions.
Opti Laboratories develops products according to a simple principle: identify a real biological or structural problem, understand the science behind it, and then design a product that addresses that problem clearly.
That means separating different goals rather than blurring them together.
A growth treatment should support genuine follicular stimulation
A conditioning serum should improve the appearance and resilience of existing hairs.
A protective serum should reduce damage to the hair shaft.
A sleep mask should protect lashes and brows from friction and pressure while the user sleeps
We are careful not to describe every cosmetic serum as a true growth treatment. Some products condition. Some protect. Some influence the follicle. That distinction has shaped how we write, how we advise clients and how we develop products.
This is also why our educational content separates subjects such as bimatoprost, eyelash growth serums, UV protection for lashes and brows and sleep protection for eyelashes and eyebrows.
Opti Laboratories remains a doctor-led company, with three doctors involved in the team. We work closely with UK pharmacy partners so that prescription-strength treatments are supplied responsibly and with appropriate safeguards.
We do not believe that expertise and beauty should be separate. The best beauty products are often those that understand the biology beneath the appearance.
This matters especially in lash and brow care. The eye area is delicate, the follicles are small, and the difference between a conditioning product and a true growth treatment is important. Good advice depends on understanding those distinctions.
In 2024, Opti Laboratories launched the Sun Protect Serum.
The reasoning behind the product was straightforward. UV damage is one of the major causes of protein degradation in hair. Over time, ultraviolet exposure can weaken the hair shaft, damage the cuticle and make lashes and brows more brittle, dry and prone to breakage.
If the goal is to achieve the best possible lashes and brows, it is not enough only to stimulate growth. The hairs that grow also need to be protected.
The Sun Protect Serum is the first ever serum developed to protect lashes and brows from UV-related damage while also supporting the
condition of the hair. Opti Laboratories commissioned scientific testing to examine this protective effect.
The Lash and Brow Protecting Sleep Mask was developed then released towards the end of 2025.
Sleep masks already existed that protected eyelashes, but many designs transferred pressure or friction onto the eyebrows. That created a problem: a product designed to protect one part of the periocular hair system could still damage another.
Opti Laboratories developed a mask designed to protect both eyelashes and eyebrows. The aim was to reduce friction, avoid pressure on the eye area and preserve fragile lash and brow hairs while the user sleeps.
The mask reflects the same philosophy behind the Sun Protect Serum. Growth is important, but protecting what grows is just as important.
Opti Laboratories continues to gain recognition for its newer products on top of its reputation for our original growth treatment. The Sun Protect Serum was a finalist in the Live That Glow Independent Beauty Awards in 2025, and the Lash and Brow Protecting Sleep Mask was named a finalist in the 2026 awards.
For a company built around specialist lash and brow care, that recognition matters. It shows that the brand’s newer products are being noticed not only by clients, but also within the wider beauty industry.
Opti Laboratories is still developing.
More products are planned, and the principle will remain the same: identify a genuine problem, understand the science behind it, and develop a precise, evidence-led solution.
The company began with one clinical observation. It grew through direct experience, beauty-industry relationships, press attention and thousands of client results. Today, Opti Laboratories is building on that history to create the next generation of scientific cosmetic products.
“When I first saw the effect of bimatoprost on eyelashes, it was obvious that something important was happening. At the time, the beauty industry had not yet built a serious category around natural lash growth, but the effect was there for anyone looking carefully enough.
Since founding MyLash in 2007, I have spoken with thousands of clients about their eyelashes and eyebrows. Some wanted cosmetic enhancement. Some were recovering after illness or treatment. Some had lost confidence because their lashes or brows no longer looked like they used to.
That experience shaped Opti Laboratories. We know that a single product can cover every need. Growth, conditioning and protection are different things, and good advice depends on understanding those differences.
Opti Laboratories exists today because lashes and brows matter more than many people realise. They shape expression,
confidence and identity. What may appear as a beauty treatment is often more than that to many of our clients. Our role is to bring medical understanding, scientific curiosity and practical product design to that specialist area of beauty now. In the future we are planning new products and treatments based on these same principles.”
These guides explain more about the science behind our treatments and the conditions we commonly help with.