High-Street Beauty Alternatives Could Save Consumers a Bundle. However, Do Budget Beauty Products Really Work?
Rachael Parnell
When Rachael Parnell learned a supermarket was selling a fresh beauty line that appeared akin to offerings from high-end label Augustinus Bader, she was "incredibly excited".
Rachael hurried to her nearest store to pick up the Lacura face cream for £8.49 for 50ml - a small portion of the £240 cost of the high-end 50ml item.
The smooth blue packaging and gold top of each products look noticeably similar. And though Rachael has not tested the premium cream, she states she's pleased by the product so far.
Rachael has been using lookalike products from mainstream retailers and grocery stores for years, and she's in good company.
More than a fourth of UK buyers state they've tried a beauty or cosmetic lookalike. This increases to 44 percent among 18-34 year olds, according to a February poll.
Dupes are beauty items that copy established companies and present affordable substitutes to luxury products. These products often have comparable names and packaging, but occasionally the ingredients can vary considerably.
Victoria Woollaston
'Expensive Isn't Necessarily Superior'
Skincare professionals contend some dupes to premium labels are reasonable quality and help make beauty routines more affordable.
"In my opinion higher-priced is necessarily more effective," comments skin specialist Sharon Belmo. "Not all budget beauty label is inferior - and not all luxury beauty item is the best."
"A number of [dupes] are really amazing," adds a podcast host, who runs a program about public figures.
Many of the products modeled on high-end labels "run out so quickly, it's just crazy," he remarks.
Scott McGlynn
Medical expert a doctor argues dupes are acceptable to use for "basic skincare" like moisturisers and cleansers.
"These products will do the job," he comments. "They will handle the fundamentals to a acceptable standard."
Another skin doctor, suggests you can save money when searching for simple-formula items like hyaluronic acid, niacinamide and squalane.
"If you're purchasing a single-ingredient product then you're likely going to be fine in using a dupe or a product which is fairly affordable because there's not much that can cause issues," she explains.
'Don't Be Sold by the Packaging'
Yet the experts also recommend consumers do their research and say that higher-priced items are occasionally worthy of the additional cost.
Regarding luxury skincare, you're not only paying for the label and advertising - sometimes the higher cost also stems from the formula and their grade, the potency of the active ingredient, the research used to create the item, and studies into the item's performance, she says.
Facialist Rhian Truman suggests it's valuable questioning how some alternatives can be offered so at a low cost.
Sometimes, she says they might contain bulking agents that do not provide as many benefits for the complexion, or the materials might not be as high-quality.
"One big uncertainty is 'How is it so cheap?'" she asks.
Expert McGlynn notes in some cases he's bought skincare items that look similar to a big-name brand but the actual formula has "little similarity to the luxury product".
"Do not be sold by the outer appearance," he cautioned.
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For advanced products or ones with components that can aggravate the skin if they're not made correctly, such as retinoids or vitamin C, she suggests sticking to research-backed brands.
The expert explains these will likely have been through costly trials to assess how successful they are.
Beauty items are required to be tested before they can be sold in the UK, notes consultant dermatologist another professional.
If the brand makes claims about the effectiveness of the product, it needs evidence to verify it, "however the manufacturer doesn't always have to conduct the trials" and can alternatively cite testing conducted by other companies, she adds.
Examine the Ingredients List of the Container
Is there any ingredients that could suggest a product is low-quality?
Ingredients on the list of the container are listed by quantity. "Potential irritants that you need to avoid… is your petroleum-derived oil, your sodium lauryl sulfate, fragrance, benzoyl peroxide" being {high up
