It’s difficult to articulate exactly what makes a
universally beloved beauty product, but whatever it is, skincare brand CeraVe
has it. Having launched in 2006 in the US and finally arrived in the UK in
2018, few faces that have tried a CeraVe product have not liked it. Before it
crossed the pond, British beauty journalists were known to return from work
trips to the US towing suitcases loaded with CeraVe products. Now, it’s the
fastest-growing brand in health and beauty, with a total estimated retail value
of over £31 million.
Over Zoom, one of the founders of the brand, Tom Allison, explains that a big clue to its success is in plain view on the utilitarian packaging. “Under the CeraVe logo, it says ‘developed by dermatologists,’” he says. “In 2004, we brought together a panel of dermatologists who are considered the world experts in ingredient formulation design and asked them what they would create were they to start a skincare brand themselves. They pointed us to ingredients called ceramides.
At the time, skincare fell into one of two camps: so gentle
it wouldn’t disrupt sensitive skin, or so thick and occlusive that skin had no
option but to not dry out. Ceramides, which had been extensively researched and
scientifically supported by clinical papers, offered a solution to these two
extremes, and one that would work for all skin types. “If you imagine the skin
is a brick wall, skin cells stack up on top of each other like bricks, and
there is the mortar that holds the cells together. Half of that mortar
substance in the skin is comprised of ceramides,” explains Allison. “Put
simply, you don’t lose water through the skin cells themselves, but rather
through the cracks between them – also known as barrier dysfunction.”
Allison and his team understand that today’s customers can
see through a poor formulation. In this hyper-connected age, we are more
skin-savvy, understand the specific benefits of each and every ingredient, and
know what the skin needs. “Our product development process gives us a leg up,
since the dermatologists we partner with are considered subject matter experts
when it comes to ingredient and formulation designs,” says Allison.
“Transparency drives trust with the consumer.”
Since a lot of skincare now comes with a lofty price tag –
and sometimes for dubious formulas – CeraVe’s affordable, efficacious (and
luxurious) formulas are refreshing. “We define accessibility in two ways: easy
to find at your local store or e-commerce site, as well as value for
formulation design and size of format.” Big tick on both counts.
Since the brand puts an onus on creating a product that
appeals to dermatologists – its “most important customer” – it’s not just the
formulas that are important, but how easily their clients can get hold of them.
If a dermatologist is to recommend a product to a client to use consistently,
they need to know it’s affordable and easy to find – especially since most
clients are paying to visit the dermatologist in the first place, and will
often be forking out for prescriptions, too. Accessibility also comes from the
fact that there is a formula for every skin type, race, and age.
The brand can afford to sell its excellent formulations at a
great price because it forgoes the big-budget celebrity advertising and paid
influencer posts that so many brands subscribe to. Instead, it lets the
products speak for themselves, and ultimately, word of mouth is the biggest
driver of sales. You only have to take a quick glance at TikTok to see
thousands of videos offering organic testimonials and before-and-after
photographs featuring the brand’s products. “We are not making as much money as
other skincare brands, and L’Oréal [which bought the brand in 2017] knows that,
but it’s okay because we perform and that’s really all that matters,” says Allison.
So, what to try first from the brilliant budget brand beauty
editors can’t get enough of? Well, if this article hasn’t already communicated
just how brilliant the cleansers are, then it’s not done its job correctly. The
Hydrating Cleanser is an excellent all-rounder that effectively and gently
removes make-up and grime, leaving all skin types happy and hydrated. The
recently-launched Hydrating Cream-to-Foam cleanser, meanwhile, is designed for
those who like the sensation of a foaming formula, but with the sensibility of
the hydrating cleanser – it uses amino acids, rather than surfactants, so won’t
strip the skin as most foaming formulas do. Oily skin types will love the SA
Smoothing Cleanser thanks to the 0.5 percent concentration of salicylic acid,
which gently exfoliates clogged pores.
Via: https://www.vogue.co.uk/
