This Brand Flew Too Close to the Sun

again. they're actually on fire.

This morning started like most other mornings: I woke up, groaned, zombie-walked to make coffee, sat on my couch and opened Instagram. I sleepily caught up on stories and replied to DMs…but then I saw a post that woke me right up.

Supergoop! is a sunscreen brand. They’ve done an impeccable job making sunscreen that people enjoy using, such as Unseen Sunscreen and Every. Single. Face. I really like many of their products. But, because we live in the United States and capitalism requires constant new products, they began releasing products, like the Daily Dose collection, which takes regular ol’ skincare products and adds sunscreen. First they created a vitamin C serum with sunscreen. Exactly one year to the day they released a hydrating serum with sunscreen. I was so annoyed by that launch that I dedicated the very first paid subscriber issue to it. (I’ve opened it up publicly for a limited time if you are interested in reading.) 

Today, again almost a year later, things went in a direction that I truly do not think should be allowed. My first critique is largely the same as my past thoughts, but the others are unique to this launch.

1.  It is irresponsible to make sunscreen use more complicated. Sunscreen is the single most important skincare product you use. It is also one of the few skincare products that has pretty much universal instructions: apply the proper amount (approx ¼ tsp for your face) as the very last step in your daytime skincare routine before makeup. It is hard enough for people to do that correctly every day so why on earth would you introduce more variables?!
   
   When consumers hear serum, they think before moisturizer. Before sunscreen. Advertising a sunscreen vitamin C serum doesn’t make it clear that you would still need to use it as your sunscreen step, not your vitamin C. In fact, Supergoop! had to release a statement clarifying this. In fact, Supergoop! further clarified that this serum should be applied as your serum step underneath a separate, dedicated sunscreen.
   
   Not only is that very confusing, but it introduces even more possibilities for misuse, such as using too little sunscreen (applying a little bit of each thinking it adds up to a whole) or mixing (never, ever mix anything into sunscreen). It is irresponsible to make sunscreen use more complicated. It is even more irresponsible for a sunscreen company to make sunscreen use more complicated.
   

2. It is not retinol. The second I saw “bio retinol” I thought oh come on. I knew instantly what they were doing. It’s what many, many brands have done recently and it is infuriating every time. What Supergoop! is calling “bio retinol” is actually an entirely different, completely unrelated ingredient called bakuchiol. You probably are familiar with this ingredient as it is often called a “retinol alternative” and what many people use during pregnancy as it has the potential to offer similar anti-aging benefits. It’s also often formulated with retinol. It’s a perfectly fine ingredient that can do a lot. I like bakuchiol! I have no qualms about bakuchiol. I have qualms about false advertising.
   
   Bakuchiol is called a “retinol alternative” because people know what retinol is. It’s called a “retinol alternative” because people don’t know what bakuchiol is. It’s called a “retinol alternative” to confuse you into buying it thinking it is going to do the same thing as retinol. I want to be very clear: I am not saying bakuchiol is ineffective or cannot possibly provide the same results as retinol. It is very promising in a lot of ways. But retinol is one of the most studied, researched and clinically proven ingredients in skincare. It’s called the gold standard for a reason.
   
   I already know the name is going to cause confusion as I saw someone comment asking if this could replace their prescription tretinoin. This is dangerous! It absolutely cannot replace your prescription. Nor can it be used in the same way. Which leads me to my third and final point.
   

3. The ways you use retinol and sunscreen are very different. With some exceptions, you only use retinoids (retinol, retinal, tretinoin etc.) at night. With no exceptions, you only use sunscreen during the day. If someone thought this was an actual retinol, they would likely be confused if this should be used morning or night. They might wear sunscreen to bed or think it is advisable to use other retinol products during the day. Beyond that, you need to apply very different amounts of these products in order to get their intended effect. You only apply a pea-sized amount/thin layer of retinol, whereas you need to apply a minimum ¼ tsp of sunscreen. If someone were to think this was an actual retinol, they might drastically under apply sunscreen. Once again, this is dangerous!

This product was announced today, but is not available to purchase until December 20th, so there is no product page on the Supergoop! site. While I don’t expect their description or usage instructions to properly address the concerns above, I’ll be sure to let you know and eat my words if they do. The launch was official announced in this article.

Ok, I need a drink or 20. Next week, we’ll talk about my favorite products of 2022.

Thanks for reading!

xx,

Jolie