Luxury Skincare

HEALTH & BEAUTY

There is no arguing with the fact that life is getting more expensive. Basic amenities like heat, light and food are all shooting up in price, leaving us all wondering where we can make cuts in our spending to off-set these hikes in our dayto-day living costs. So, what does this mean for our skincare routines? With brands like The Ordinary and The Inkey List offering low-price products with high efficacy, the question is, should we all be ditching our favourite luxury brand in favour of a budget one?

A wise ‘skinvestment’ now could pay dividends in the future. “ ”

The answer is, of course, a personal and subjective one; you buy what you can afford, but it is worth remembering that the research and development that goes into more premium brands is what enables the cheaper brands to exist – they are using tried and tested technology that is known to work. Where the luxury brands have the advantage is in their development process, and the fact they are bringing new and innovative products to market.

PREMIUM BRANDS EXPLAIN “Decree” by Dr Anita Sturnham is a much admired skincare brand that offers a carefully curated range of products with multiple benefits for the skin, in one serum or cream. Dr Strunham commented, ‘When we formulate a product for the Decree line, it can take a number of years to develop a formulation, to test and perfect it. Decree is known for producing multi-tasking formulations which are packed with several key active ingredients. Our serums, for example, contain the skin benefits of several serums in one.’

Sturnham goes on to say, ‘Smaller brands, like Decree, are unable to produce large production runs that the big drug companies benefit from.

All of these factors contribute to the cost of a product. When you come across the smaller, niche brands, these are the factors to consider when looking at the price tag.’

Jaicey Harding from New York-based skincare brand, Derm Institute, also agreed that investing in your skin holds long-term benefits. Harding states that, ‘When it comes to investment worthy skincare, the value of the investment is in the advanced ingredients and delivery systems that provide fast, long-term results. Upgrading your skincare routine to high-end skincare is an investment that creates impactful improvement to the skin, [using] medical grade ingredients [that] are proven to deliver noticeable change.’

KNOWLEDGE IS POWER The use of clinical grade technology and ingredients allows skincare brands to bring the efficacy of a facial or a visit to the dermatologist to your at-home regime – which does make achieving incredible results accessible to those without the time or resources to visit a clinician or facialist – and at a much lower cost. However, it does put the products themselves at a higher price point, in order to allow these innovations and scientific leap-forwards to be reformulated for safe use at home.

• Making an investment in yourself is never a bad call.

• Knowledge is power when it comes to choosing what you put on your skin.

• Do your research and understand the ingredients that make up the formulation.

• A wise ‘skinvestment’ now could pay dividends in the future.

To quote a skincare giant; “Because you’re worth it.”

Ready to make an investment in your skin?

Try these:

DERM INSTITUTE Youth Alchemy Soft Cream, £405

DECREE Discovery Kit, £150

NATURA BISSÉ Diamond Extreme Eye, £184

SKINCEUTICALS HA Intensifier, £95

All products available at John Bell & Croyden, 50-54 Wigmore Street, London W1U 2AU and at johnbellcroyden.co.uk

Issue 23 / Aspire / 59