For years, I’ve been asked the same question: 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲𝘀 𝗮 𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗺 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗵 𝟯𝟬 $ 𝗱𝗶𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝘁 𝟯𝟬𝟬 $?

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲𝘀 𝗮 𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗺 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗵 𝟯𝟬 $ 𝗱𝗶𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝘁 𝟯𝟬𝟬$? My usual answer: It depends, are you paying for the formula, the technology, or the marketing?

In the cosmetics industry, I see a growing gap between what a brand communicates and what’s actually inside the product. According to AskAttest, 𝟲𝟭% 𝗼𝗳 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘀𝘂𝗺𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝘀𝗮𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗱𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗜𝗡𝗖𝗜 𝗹𝗶𝘀𝘁𝘀, and yet 𝟯𝟱% 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼 𝗽𝗮𝘆 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗮 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗱𝘂𝗰𝘁 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗽𝗮𝗰𝗸𝗮𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗴 (GCI Magazine, 2025).

Additionally, 𝟲𝟳% 𝗼𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗿 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘀𝘂𝗺𝗲𝗿𝘀 admit they make purchase decisions based on how a product looks and whether it shows up on social media.

This is shifting brand priorities, but it doesn’t change the fact that the 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝘃𝗮𝗹𝘂𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗮 𝗰𝗼𝘀𝗺𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗰 𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗱𝗲𝗽𝗲𝗻𝗱𝘀 𝗼𝗻 𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝘂𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗲𝗰𝗵𝗻𝗼𝗹𝗼𝗴𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗶𝗰𝗲𝘀.

Quality isn’t just a list of ingredients. It’s 𝘩𝘰𝘸 and 𝘸𝘩𝘺 those ingredients are used: Do the active ingredients have proven efficacy at the given concentration? Are they properly stabilized (e.g., vitamin C, retinol, peptides)? Has the formula undergone full stability and microbiological testing? Does the packaging protect the formula or just support the brand image? From experience, I know that the most expensive creams don’t always have the most advanced formulations. Often, the highest cost isn’t the technology, it’s the ad campaign, celebrity ambassador, and visual storytelling.

When working with brands, I see two recurring mindsets:

“𝘓𝘦𝘵’𝘴 𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘢𝘬𝘴 𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘵𝘩𝘧𝘶𝘭𝘭𝘺.”

“𝘓𝘦𝘵’𝘴 𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘬𝘴 𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘮𝘪𝘶𝘮 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘴 𝘢 𝘨𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺.”

Both approaches exist, but only one builds long-term value and consumer loyalty. The other might be spectacular short-term, but often doesn’t hold up in real-world use or repeatable production. Meanwhile, the competition is only accelerating.

Between 2023 and 2028, the global cosmetics market is expected to grow by 𝟮𝟵%, reaching a value of €𝟳𝟭𝟰 𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗼𝗻. This signals huge potential, but also rising pressure around 𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆, 𝗶𝗻𝗻𝗼𝘃𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗿𝗲𝗴𝘂𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲. The real edge belongs to those who 𝗱𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗱𝘂𝗰𝘁𝘀 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗴𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝘂𝗽 from raw material technologies to formulation stability and industrial efficiency. In cosmetics, it’s not about looking valuable. It’s about 𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗹𝘆 𝗱𝗲𝗹𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘃𝗮𝗹𝘂𝗲 even after the packaging is opened. If you’re working on a new brand, product, or investment decision – let’s talk.

I’ll help you assess where the 𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗲 𝘃𝗮𝗹𝘂𝗲 lies in your portfolio, and where the potential is waiting.