Why is shopping online for skincare so bad...

[alicefromlondon]

Hi all,

I used to work in the beauty industry, and I still find shopping for skincare products online to be super frustrating. I've gone to a derm before, tried Skin + Me - and no real issue with either of those, but trying to find (I'd like to develop this myself, if I can!) a better way to shop online for skincare. I'd love any thoughts on your frustrations with online skincare shopping - how do you figure out which product actually works for you & does it (usually?), do you use ChatGPT? If so, how good do you find the recommendations it provides?

Thanks so much for any thoughts...!

I have a current hatred of having to put in a load of information so they can recommend you a skincare regime and products before you can see any prices. I get that skincare tailored to you could be a bonus but I am working with a budget so it's helpful to have some idea before you start.

I'd like the option to but small tester products before committing to a whole bottle of something.

I'm not sure what the answer is. I did use chatGPT to come up with my current skin care regime and it's working pretty well!

Yeah, I've asked some friends, and a lot have said tester products would help them feel confident to purchase full size - so many products are so expensive for full size. There is a crazy stat about the % of wasted skincare/beauty products - something like 20-40%!! because they don't work, get returned, overproduction, etc.

It's actually problem when you start first and it really takes a lot of energy, time and expenses to finalise a skincare routine which works for particular skin. I figured it out in 6-7months and now my routine looks something like this if this may help:
Morning:
Using water to wash your face,
Sebamed clear face gel,
la roche posay spf
Evening:
la roche posay moisturizer,
Tretinoin (0.1) from skinorac
Sebamed clear facial gel

Thanks that's super helpful! Do you know of any online sites / tools that can help you create a routine? I know there are a lot of quizzes and face scanners, but imo they aren't great. I'm thinking of trying to build something that would, similarly, ask Qs about your skin but then make product recs based on what people w/ similar skin, i.e., colour, tone, conditions, etc. so that they aren't generic recs and it would - hopefully! - cut out a lot of trial and error!

I find shopping for skincare online to be fine tbh but I have quite a big amount of disposable income so it’s never a disaster if I make an expensive purchase that I don’t love. I also have really good skin and it’s also not sensitive so I’m happy to try loads of different things.
Finally though I’m quite realistic in my expectations- I never buy a serum on the promise that it’s going to fill fine lines or plump up under eye circles.

The irony is, it's not only about the expenses, even with high expenses you don't always get good products. The challenge I find is to find the right product