Product or Packaging: What are you paying for?

Hello LI Gems,

How many of you have paid high prices for a luxury brand skin care or cosmetic products, say $75 and up only to find out that it does not differ much from the less attractive products who do not dress themselves in designer packaging.  The point I am making is that you DO NOT need to spend a lot of money
to get something that will hydrate, protect
you from the sun and enhance your natural beauty.

Women and men frequently go into a retail beauty environment without knowing what they want exactly and hope that they will find something that fits you either on your own or with the help of a knowledgeable associate who is unbiased, hopefully.  So as we browse there are many ways the brand can grab our attention and one of them is "packaging".  State of the art delivery pumps, shiny gold jars and photos of beautiful women with photo shopped faces using the skin care grab our attention.  Next, we open the jar and smell then feel and we are instantly in heaven.  Am I correct?  It is a marketing trinity that most brands rely on to boost sales and revenue.

I may have the makeup mafia on my tail about this but I will share with you if you do not know already.  This may be my last post.  Most of the name brands you buy are owned by larger cosmetic conglomerates which all purchase the same exact ingredients, in different strengths and amounts, from the same few companies so they can produce their skin care or makeup for all of their lines.  They use different names, packaging and faces to "brand" the lines to spark your interest.

I could go on and on here but I will come to a final point.  I am a huge advocate for being a smart shopper.  A smart shopper is someone who reads labels and saves money and is ultimately happy to ecstatic with their choice.  Here is my reccomendation to you:

1.  Do not judge a book by its cover.  Just because the packaging is dull and does not rival the bright pink, purple, gold and flashy displays does not mean it is inferior.  Find out for yourself and do a online comparison.

2.  Sample both and give 3 week minimum before you make any judgements.

3.  Smaller, privately owned lines are great.  They are untainted by the big boys of cosmetics, the ingredients have not been downgraded to increase profit margins and they still have the heart and soul of their origin whether it be from a passionate artist, a stay at home mom with a dream or a truly amazing story behind them.  I am big supporter of smaller cosmetics lines because they need it and this is a very competitive industry.

4.  One product line does not have it all so mix it up and if you think it does I would like to see a demonstrations please because maybe I am missing something?

5.  Profit margins on skin care and cosmetics range in the "triple digits" and they go higher if they are made overseas in places such as China as opposed to the here in North America or Europe.  It is not expensive to make these products unless your getting some rare fountain of youth berry from an undiscovered location in Siberia.  Even then, still sample.

My main goal is to share my knowledge with women and men on how to take care of your face and body, feel good about yourself and of course save money.

I hope to see some comments here!  I will confess I am victim of marketing as well however I have become a smarter shopper because of it. 

Love,

Matthew Ambrosio
LI Beauty Educator