Grocery Store Beauty Lookalikes Could Save Consumers a Fortune. But Do Economical Skincare Products Perform?

Rachael Parnell

When a consumer found out a discounter was launching a recent skincare range that appeared comparable to offerings from premium company Augustinus Bader, she was "extremely excited".

She dashed to her nearest shop to purchase the store-brand face cream for £8.49 for 50ml - a tiny percentage of the £240 price tag of the high-end 50ml item.

The streamlined blue packaging and gold top of both products look noticeably comparable. Although Rachael has not used the luxury cream, she claims she's impressed by the alternative so far.

She has been buying skincare dupes from popular shops and supermarkets for years, and she's part of a trend.

More than a quarter of UK shoppers report they've bought a skincare or makeup lookalike. This jumps to 44 percent among younger adults, based on a recent poll.

Dupes are beauty items that mimic well-known brands and present budget-friendly options to premium items. These products often have comparable names and packaging, but occasionally the formulas can vary significantly.

Victoria Woollaston

'Costly Is Not Always Better'

Beauty experts argue some substitutes to luxury brands are decent quality and help make skincare less expensive.

"It is not true that costlier is always better," comments skin specialist one expert. "Not all affordable skincare brand is bad - and not all luxury skincare product is the finest."

"Some [dupes] are absolutely impressive," says a podcast host, who hosts a program with celebrities.

Many of the items inspired by luxury brands "sell out so rapidly, it's just insane," he remarks.

Scott McGlynn

Aesthetic and dermatology doctor a doctor argues alternatives are suitable to use for "fundamental products" like hydrators and face washes.

"These products will serve a purpose," he comments. "These items will do the fundamentals to a acceptable level."

Ketaki Bhate, thinks you can spend less when you're looking for single-ingredient products like HA, niacinamide and a moisturizing ingredient.

"If you're purchasing a simple product then you're probably going to be fine in using a budget alternative or a product which is very low cost because there's minimal that can cause issues," she adds.

'Do Not Be Swayed by the Packaging'

Yet the experts also advise buyers investigate and say that more expensive products are occasionally worth the additional cost.

Regarding high-end beauty products, you're not just covering the name and promotion - at times the higher price also is due to the ingredients and their quality, the potency of the active ingredient, the technology employed to create the product, and studies into the products' efficacy, Dr Belmo notes.

Facialist another professional suggests it's valuable thinking about how certain dupes can be offered so inexpensively.

Sometimes, she says they might contain filler ingredients that don't have as many advantages for the complexion, or the ingredients might not be as high-quality.

"One key doubt is 'How is it so low-priced?'" she asks.

Commentator Scott admits on occasion he's purchased beauty products that appear similar to a well-known brand but the item has "little similarity to the premium version".

"Do not be sold by the container," he warned.

SimpleImages/Getty Images

For potent items or those with components that can inflame the skin if they're not made accurately, such as retinoids or vitamin C, she suggests sticking to medical-grade companies.

The expert says these will likely have been through expensive studies to evaluate how efficacious they are.

Beauty items are required to be assessed before they can be sold in the UK, says skin doctor Emma Wedgeworth.

When the company states about the efficacy of the item, it needs data to back it up, "however the manufacturer does not necessarily have to conduct the testing" and can alternatively cite evidence done by other brands, she adds.

Check the Ingredients List of the Pack

Are there any components that could indicate a product is poor?

Ingredients on the list of the container are ordered by amount. "Potential irritants that you should look out for… is your mineral oil, your sodium lauryl sulfate, parfum, benzel peroxide" being {high up