Sometimes beauty isn't pretty but it should be fun. For all those who aren't tied into the instagram and social media of the beauty industry, the CEO of Deciem is having an extremely publicized challenge ... with everyone. As quoted by one honest and funny associate "It's a bit of a hot mess right now but we believe still."
Deciem is the umbrella company to many sub brands who are meant to be disrupters in the beauty industry. Tired of the faked and too perfectly glammed up photo shopped images, Deciem goes bare bones to deliver effective skincare and make up at price points ANYONE can afford. You don't need to be rich to look good. I agree with this ethos and after trying many different products, I feel they're constantly delivering on that promise. Even if they're... arguing and harassing all their customers in social media.
The store itself is fair sized for a curated beauty store. It only sells Deciem products and nothing else. With clean white washed walls and a beautiful rustic wooden floor, it's quite bare bones to only focus on the products. Simple shelving has the products all nicely lined up and easy for grabbing and reading more about them. What I like is that you can easily see their inventory... that's really important as it is completely normal for someone to purchase 10 of one item in one go. Their website often are out of stock and have backlogs for months on their most popular items.
Service here is what I love... completely well informed on every type of product to help what you're concerned about. ZERO pressure and they're very friendly. No judgement either. Really. It's not your usual beauty spot. At this spot, there was 4 associates and they were all equally great. They have a lot of great knowledge to curate an entire skincare routine (one for AM and one for PM) to get that skin you crave. They're also honest on what has been successful compared to others. With their help, I was able to pick up 2 more items to add to my growing Deciem products on my shelves.
Niod Survival 30 (sunscreen) - You know the line that every 90s kid heard... wear sunscreen. Well, I believe it and I think it helps to prevent aging. With most sunscreen, I hate them cause they're heavy, white cast, goopy, clog my pores, break me out, doesnt work with make up, or ... all the above. I read Niod was coming out with a new sunscreen... I was so excited. On Saturday, the product was just released for the first time and I got to try it. It's incredibly light weight and absorbs into your skin. It doesn't sit heavy on it. With one of the strongest UVA and UVB resistance (its SPF 30+++), I was so grateful that it covered all the bases. So far with a few days of use, no break outs, no pilling, or white cast, I'm really happy with this. 4/5
Ordinary Granactive Retinoid 5% in Squalane - This is a repurchase as it's probably the only retinol that is strong and has not killed my skin. The configuration of the retinol is such that it doesnt irritate my skin and one of the more advance versions of it. It's also less than $15 for a bottle... really. I find my skin smoother and more even toned with this. As for anti-aging, I'll have to do the long game on it but for 2 bottles, it's my favourite night time treatment. Just moisturize the heck of out of your skin with a glycolic moisturuzer to slough off the dead skin on top. 4.5/5
Ordinary Alpha Arbutin 2% + HA - New concerns raised... new fun bottles to use. My sun freckles always crop up in the summer and though I know they're cute and all... I'm worried they're going to be a permanent fixture that only gets darker. Sooo... this bottle is supposed to help with hyper pigmentation and looks of spots. I can't say it's working quite yet (only a week) but one thing for sure, it hasnt killed my skin. No break outs or clogging of pores. Looking forward to see if this works over time. Rating.. jury is still out.
Though I love Deciem is a Canadian company... yeah, hot mess is an understatement. I just hope they get back on track and keep at it with great service and products. read more