Q&A with Our (Formulary Maison’s) Founder

How did you come up with the idea of Formulary ?
I had been working with VC funds investing in beauty brands for the last seven years. As I saw more companies (both scaled up and new startups), I realized that almost everyone was shying from launching the most effective products, as they were perceived to be too expensive for the Indian consumer. However, on looking at the costing closely, I realized that it was not the cost of the product which was high but the markups in the industry. For example, a product which costs INR 300 to make, will typically retail at INR 1200-`1500, with most of the cost going to retailers and other peripheral expenses. This gave us the idea that using a member driven model, we can achieve the twin objective of both a better product and a better price.       

What are the biggest malpractices which you have seen in the industry, which consumers should be aware of ?
I have seen quite a few, but the funniest was a product which said 5% niacinamide and hyaluronic acid. When we checked the formulation, we realized that the hyaluronic acid is just 0.01%. Similarly, we saw a very popular product, say “96% snail mucin complex”. Now, general customers would assume that the product is 96% snail mucin, but actually it just means that the complex is made of 96% snail mucin, and the complex could be as low as 1% in the whole product. Apart from this, when we started working with formulators, we realized that all ingredients come in multiple grades, and many brands were using the inferior grades for their products   

Are there any hacks to get maximum impact on the skin with minimum effort ?
I would say, the biggest hack is the sunscreen. Damage from the sun is responsible for most of the wear/tear and aging. Hence, a good sunscreen goes a long way in keeping the skin youthful and radiant.

How do you decide on which new products to launch ?
We look primarily at efficacy, which can be enabled either by new ingredients or new technologies, resulting in better absorption. There is a whole ecosystem of ingredient manufacturers, beauty labs and beauty manufacturers who all are incentivized to constantly keep coming up with new products/formulations. Because of this, this is a very trend driven industry where every quarter, there is a new product or brand which is hot. We work with all these ecosystem suppliers to source the latest formulations which have the highest proven clinical efficacy and then launch them.   

What is your favorite Formulary and non Formulary product ?
My favorite Formulary product is the Liposomal Vit-C serum. Vitamin C is such an all round, effective ingredient and this one delivers it in a format, which is highly absorbent.
My favorite non Formulary product is the Medicube Collagen Night Wrapping Mask. From all the results I have seen, it gives a great glass skin look. We are working hard to bring it to our customers soon. Although I must admit, I am not a big skincare user, apart from the sunscreen. So, my opinions are biased more from the perspective of someone who is an evaluator of products, rather than an end consumer. 

We heard you say that in wellness, consumers should be doing less and not more. What is the philosophy being that ?
Wellness and Skincare routines have become a full time job, resulting in a huge cognitive load for consumers. This is something which should be in the background, enabling you to enjoy the more meaningful parts of life like family, travel, food etc. Hence, in our club, we encourage members to find a few products which suit them, and then stick to them. In fact, our CHSA routine is an effort to simplify skincare for our consumers.