Retinol Alternatives Are On the Rise according to Nikki Brown of StyleCaster.com

On August 17, 2022, Nikki Brown, wrote a terrific article on Stylecaster.com titled “Retinol Alternatives Are On the Rise Thanks to These Top-Sellers” and after reading it and sharing it in our office – it started a vivacious discussion. The most boisterous aggrievement was astonishment at how Reviva’s Bakuchiol Plus Serum didn’t make the list.

It is understandable that Reviva’s Bakuchiol serum was overlooked by Nikki’s list – after all, it only debuted recently. But the second most heated area of discussion were the “interesting” names, complex formulas, and the prices of some of the featured products.

Reviva’s Bakuchiol Plus Serum – 1oz at $32.00

Reviva Labs aims to keep our product names and formulas clean, simple, and straightforward. Our Bakuchiol Plus Serum features three key ingredients: Bakuchiol, Alfalfa, and Artichoke. The entire anhydrous formula only has 10 ingredients: Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Carthamus Tinctorius (Safflower) Seed Oil, Bakuchiol, Medicago Sativa (Alfalfa) Leaf Extract, Spilanthes Acmella Flower/Leaf/Stem Extract, Cynara Scolymus (Artichoke) Leaf Extract, Astragalus Membranaceus Root Extract, Tocopherol, Ubiquinone, Jasmine Oil. And each ingredient supports or enhances the others.

Reviva’s Collagen Revitalizing Crème – 2oz at $38.50

To be fair, some of the products on Nikki’s list aren’t serums, they’re cream moisturizers – so we compared our Collagen Revitalizing Créme which now features Bakuchiol too. Moisturizers generally contain more ingredients and our cream has 28 ingredients: Water, Cetyl Alcohol, Glycine Soja (Soybean) Oil, Glycerin, Cetearyl Alcohol, Olea Europaea (Olive) Fruit Oil, Diheptyl Succinate, Propanediol, Capryloyl Glycerin, Palmitoyl Tripeptide-5, Bakuchiol, Hydrolyzed Soy Protein, Squalane, Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Fruit Extract, Enteromorpha Compressa Extract, Caprylyl Glyceryl Ether, Salicyloyl Phytosphingosine, Citrus Sinensis Extract, Sebacic Acid Copolymer, Caesalpinia Spinosa Gum, Xanthan Gum, Carbomer, Oryza Sativa (Rice) Bran Extract, D-Alpha Tocopheryl Acetate, Caprylhydroxamic Acid, Sodium Hydroxide, Sodium Phytate, Ubiquinone. Similar to our Bakuchiol serum, this product doesn’t have anything extra – everything is well balanced. Even the addition of Bakuchiol required subtle reworking of the formula – and each ingredient tweak was scrutinized.

When we reviewed the products on Nikki’s list, the extraordinary pricing and long laundry lists of ingredients, resulted in many comments and jeers. But our mother’s taught us not to cast aspersions. We’re confident, these formulas are considered terrific by those they benefit. There are ingredients we disagree with and some that we strongly disagree with – but every chef is going to have their favorite ingredients and cherish their own recipes. As we like to say, if a product works for your skin, keep using it.

Let’s glance at a few of the items features in Nikki’s article

We should note a few were out of stock, or difficult to find detailed information on – so we’re not featuring every product Nikki reviewed – you can always read the original article. So, let’s dive in:

1. Elemis Pro-Collagen Renewal Serum – ½ oz at $95.00 (36 ingredients)

We’re not fans of the fragrance (Parfum) or perfuming ingredients at the tail end of the ingredient deck. And while Nikki’s article features a wide array of retinol alternatives – we’ll simply point out this item lacks bakuchiol – which is what we’ve focused on of course.

Aqua/Water/Eau, Pentylene Glycol, Glycerin, Lysine Aspartate, Polysorbate 20, Hydroxyacetophenone, Hydroxyethyl Acrylate/Sodium Acryloyldimethyl Taurate Copolymer, Polyacrylate Crosspolymer-6, Disodium EDTA, Fragrance (Parfum), Cichorium Intybus (Chicory) Leaf Extract, Hexylene Glycol, Maris Aqua/Sea Water/Eau De Mer, Stevia Rebaudiana Leaf/Stem Extract, Polysorbate 60, Sodium Hydroxide, Sorbitan Isostearate, Caprylyl Glycol, Padina Pavonica Thallus Extract, Xanthan Gum, Glyceryl Acrylate/Acrylic Acid Copolymer, Porphyridium Cruentum Extract, Medicago Sativa (Alfalfa) Extract, Phenoxyethanol, T-Butyl Alcohol, Acacia Decurrens Flower Extract, Chlorella Vulgaris Extract, Collagen Amino Acids, Rosa Centifolia Flower Extract, Linalool, Leuconostoc/Radish Root Ferment Filtrate, Citronellol, Geraniol, Sodium Benzoate.

2. CLEARSTEM HYDRAGLOW Stem Cell Moisturizer – 2oz at $56.00 (28 ingredients)

There’s certainly a lot packed into this moisturizer – even if you don’t count each amino acid separately. The combination of hemp oil and bakuchiol is interesting. We’d likely recommend layering our Calming Rejuvenation Crème (featuring hemp oil) with our Bakuchiol Plus Serum.

Water/Aqua, Squalane, Propanediol, Cannabis Sativa (Hemp) Seed Oil, Punica Granatum (Pomegranate) Seed Oil, Polyglyceryl-6 Distearate, Glycerin, Cetyl Alcohol, Raphanus Sativux (Radish) Seed Extract, Bakuchiol, Aloe Barbadensis (Aloe Vera) Leaf Extract, Hyaluronic Acid, Jojoba Esters, Boswellia Carteri (Frankincense) oil, Camellia Sinensis (Green Leaf) Extract, Amino Acids: (Lysine, Histidine, Arginine, Aspartic Acid, Threonine, Serine, Glutamic Acid, Proline, Glycine, Alanine, Valine, Isoleucine, Leucine, Tyrosine), Phenylalanine, Argania Spinosa (Argan) Sprout Stem Cell Extract, Curcuma Longa (Turmeric) Root Extract, Blueberry Essential Oil, Lactobacillus Ferment, Diglucosyl Gallic Acid, Alpha Lipoic Acid, Lactic Acid, Xanthan Gum, Caprylyl Glycol, Ethylhexylglycerin

3. Sunday Riley A+ High-Dose Retinol Serum – 1oz at $85.00 (58 ingredients)

We’re not sure this product should qualify as a retinol alternative, since it literally includes retinol as a key ingredient. Plus the sheer number of ingredients makes us wonder just how much of each ingredient is actually present in the formula. Trying to cram too much into a single product diminishes the percentages – which is why Reviva advocates for layering products typically.

Water, Propanediol, Dimethyl Isosorbide, Triheptanoin, Dimethicone, Glycerin, Pentylene Glycol, Hexyldecanol, Disiloxane, Cetyl PEG/PPG-10/1 Dimethicone, Diheptyl Succinate, Propylene Carbonate, Hydroxypinacolone Retinoate, PPG-24-Glycereth-24, Phenyl Trimethicone, Retinol, Ubiquinone (CoQ10), Honey Extract, Sodium Hyaluronate Crosspolymer, Algae Extract, Zingiber Officinale (Ginger) Extract, Opuntia Ficus-indica Fruit Extract, Bisabolol, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea) Butter, Phospholipids, Saccharomyces Cerevisiae Extract, Lecithin, Sodium Acrylates Copolymer, Hydrogenated Polyisobutene, 1,2-Hexanediol, 4-t- Butylcyclohexanol, Polyglyceryl-10 Stearate, Caprylyl Glycol, Helianthus Annuss (Sunflower) Seed Oil, Sorbitol, Cetylhydroxyproline Palmitamide, Polysilicone-11, Benzoic Acid, Dehydroacetic Acid, Sodium Phytate, Glyceryl Polyacrylate, Polysorbate, Hydroxyphenyl Propamidobenzoic Acid, Stearic Acid, Brassica Campestris Sterols, PVP, Capryloyl Glycerin/Sebacic Acid Copolymer, Sodium Benzoate, Alcohol, Potassium Phosphate, Decyl Glucoside, Phenoxyethanol, Hexylene Glycol, Potassium Sorbate, Tocopherol.

4. The Inkey List Bakuchiol Moisturizer – 1oz at $11.49 (20 ingredients)

We were pleased to see Bakuchiol featured in the product name as well as the product. Though, we’re not fans of the preservative phenoxyethanol and the viscosity ingredient carbomer – but neither is inherently bad – we simply believe better options exist.

Water (Aqua), Squalane, Glycerin, Propanediol, Plukenetia Volubilis Seed Oil (Sacha Inchi oil), Dicaprylyl Carbonate, Bakuchiol, Phenoxyethanol, Sodium Caproyl Prolinate, Hydroxyethyl Acrylate/Sodium Acryloyldimethyl Taurate Copolymer, Carbomer, Sodium Hydroxide, Ethylhexylglycerin, Sodium Stearoyl Glutamate, Polysorbate 60, Phytic Acid, Glyceryl Polyacrylate, Sorbitan Isostearate, Tocopherol.

5. Versed Press Start Gentle Retinol Serum – 1oz at $21.99 (33 ingredients)

Interestingly, this product features both retinol and bakuchiol in the same product – which again, should disqualify it as a retinol alternative. It’s jam packed with ingredients and uses phenoxyethanol as a preservative.

water,helianthus annuus (sunflower) seed oil, sodium acrylate/sodium acryloyl dimethyl taurate copolymer,retinol, bakuchiol,crithmum maritimum extract, glycerin, paeonia suffruticosa extract, butyrospermum parkii (shea) butter, hydroxypropyl cyclodextrin, sodium hyaluronate, carica papaya extract, xylitylglucoside, anhydroxylitol, xylitol, hippophae rhamnoides oil, tocopheryl acetate, opuntia conccinellifera fruit extract, rosa canina seed oil, chamomilla recutita (matricaria) extract, aloe barbadensis leaf juice, chlorophyll, caprylic/capric triglyceride, hydrogenated vegetable oil, nylon-12, isohexadecane, polysorbate 80, trehalose, leuconostoc/radish root ferment filtrate, phenoxyethanol, ethylhexylglycerin

6. Herbivore Botanicals Bakuchiol Retinol Alternative Serum – 1oz at 54.00 (20 ingredients)

We generally appreciate what Herbivore does with their formulations and this product is likely a decent product. We’d probably look to purchase it when it’s on sale.

Aqua/Water/Eau, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Water, Glycerin, Psoralea Corylifolia Seed Extract, Leuconostoc/ Radish Root Ferment Filtrate, Populus Tremuloides Bark Extract, Gluconolactone, Amethyst Extract, Sodium Phytate, Vaccinium Myrtillus Fruit/Leaf Extract, Vaccinium Angustifolium (Blueberry) Fruit Extract, Tremella Fuciformis Sporocarp Extract, Melia Azadirachta Flower Extract, Coccinia Indica Fruit Extract, Melia Azadirachta Leaf Extract, Corallina Officinalis Extract, Solanum Melongena (Eggplant) Fruit Extract, Aloe Barbadensis Flower Extract, Ocimum Sanctum Leaf Extract, Ocimum Basilicum (Basil) Flower/Leaf Extract, Curcuma Longa (Turmeric) Root Extract

7. bareMinerals Ageless 10% Phyto-Retinol Night Concentrate – 1oz at $62.00 (34 ingredients)

This formula uses peptides instead of bakuchiol along with other emollients. But again, we’re not fans of adding fragrance (parfum) or using other perfuming ingredients or phenoxyethanol.

Water (Aqua/Eau), Squalane, Butylene Glycol, Glycerin, Gossypium Herbaceum (Cotton) Seed Oil, Cetearyl Olivate, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Sorbitan Olivate, C10-18 Triglycerides, Trehalose, Bidens Pilosa Extract, Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Oil, Palmitoyl Tripeptide-5, Sh-Hexapeptide-2, Sodium Hyaluronate, Palmitoyl Tripeptide-1, Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7, Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid, Tocopherol, Coco-Caprylate, Dimethicone, Tocopheryl Acetate, Xanthan Gum, Disodium Edta, Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer, Potassium Hydroxide, Carbomer, Polysorbate 20, Sodium Lactate, Fragrance (Parfum), Limonene, Linalool, Sodium Benzoate, Phenoxyethanol.

8. Omorovicza Miracle Facial Oil – 1oz at $125.00 (19 ingredients)

Obviously the first thing we noticed was the price – our products tend to be a bit more affordable. And when they included fragrance (parfum) and the perfuming ingredients we recognized this wouldn’t be our cup of tea. The “miracle” title did give us a chuckle though.

PRUNUS AMYGDALUS DULCIS (SWEET ALMOND) OIL, CAPRYLIC/CAPRIC TRIGLYCERIDE, PRUNUS ARMENIACA (APRICOT) KERNEL OIL, BAKUCHIOL, BORAGO OFFICINALIS SEED OIL, GOSSYPIUM HERBACEUM (COTTON) SEED OIL, OENOTHERA BIENNIS (EVENING PRIMROSE) OIL, SIMMONDSIA CHINENSIS (JOJOBA) SEED OIL, ROSA CANINA FRUIT OIL, LINUM USITATISSIMUM (LINSEED) SEED OIL, PARFUM (FRAGRANCE) , HIPPOPHAE RHAMNOIDES OIL, ALGAE (ALARIA ESCULENTS) EXTRACT, BRASSICA CAMPESTRIS (RAPESEED) SEED OIL, ROSMARINUS OFFICINALIS (ROSEMARY) LEAF EXTRACT, TOCOPHEROL, HELIANTHUS ANNUUS (SUNFLOWER) SEED OIL, LINALOOL, GERANIOL, CINNAMYL ALCOHOL.

Nearly everyone will acknowledge that retinol and retinoids offer amazing benefits to your skin in so many ways. It helps fight acne, reduces wrinkles, increases cell turnover, boosts collagen production, brightens skin, and it’s also a proven antioxidant. No wonder retinol continues to be popular among all ages and skin types. But retinol also has its downsides. It can be drying, it can trigger breakouts in some, and it can be sensitizing to the sun, and can be irritating. For many, regular, daily use of it isn’t possible. Though today, at least there are varying percentages to choose from – so you can either dial up or dial down your concentration. Reviva’s Advanced Retinol Serum features 0.1% so it’s acceptable for a larger range of skin types while mostly avoiding issues.

Bakuchiol is likely the next “big” skin care ingredient

It’s clear from centuries of Ayurvedic and Chinese traditions that Bakuchiol (psoralea corylifolia – better known as the babchi plant) is highly beneficial. And topically, it’s a terrific, broad spectrum skin care ingredient that offers strikingly similar benefits to retinol – without the usual irritations and sensitivities. Bakuchiol reduces wrinkles, boosts collagen, and helps to brighten skin too. And its lower incidence of reactivity makes it ideal for daily use for everyone – but especially for those who’ve had issues with retinols.

We think our newly released Bakuchiol Plus Serum is destined to be a top seller and a fan favorite. During its development and pre-launch testing 100% of the testers liked the product – and that’s something that’s never happened before.