Black Market Beauty: Know Where Your Products are Coming From

I am a huge fan of Amazon, especially for things like accessories, books, or fun gifts. However, it is important to shop carefully from sites that allow anyone to list items for sale. As my lovely sister Linnsey says, “would you buy your prescription pills, vitamins, or skincare and makeup products from the trunk of somebody’s car?” I think it’s safe to say that almost everybody would answer with a firm “NO”. After all, you have no idea where these products came from. This same concept goes for a lot of websites! Anyone can put items up for sale; there is no quality control (more about this later).

Counterfeit products have become very controversial over the last few years. From prescription drugs, to designer handbags, just about everything has been counterfeited. Yes, even skin care and cosmetics products! Counterfeits are becoming more and more detailed and look almost identical to the real thing. So, how does one tell if a product is counterfeit? After all, it may just be a really good deal! With holiday shopping in full swing, I want to share some of the simple signs to look for to ensure you are purchasing high quality, but more importantly safe-to-use products.

What Are Counterfeit Products: Counterfeit products are replicas of the real product, meaning they are fake. These products are typically produced to take advantage of the superior value of the imitated product.

Where to Find Counterfeit Products: While you won’t find counterfeit products in department stores or specialty retailers, you may find them online on sites like Overstock, Ebay, Amazon, and more. The reason for this is because the public has access to sell products on these sites. Going back to my sister's example, many street vendors are taking to these sites to expand their reach beyond the confines of their trunks. These sites often provide disclaimers in fine print, alerting the shoppers to exercise caution and judgment when making purchases – this is where a lack of Quality Control comes in.

Why is Quality Control Important? Spa and medical grade products are almost always temperature and light sensitive, meaning it is important to keep them out of direct sunlight and store them in a cool, dry place. At my spa, we unpack products immediately and store them at room temperature, away from direct sunlight to ensure quality and longevity for my clients. Quality control is also important because you want to be sure you are getting fresh, real product. Some people take advantage of packaging to give you a completely fake product, while others will sell you expired product at a significantly reduced cost. If it isn’t the real deal, it probably isn’t good to use. If it is expired, it needs to be tossed.

Why buying counterfeit products is bad:

• It puts your health at risk with unknown ingredients

• The quality isn’t there – the packaging could break, or the product many not work well

• Counterfeit products have actually been shown to contain known carcinogens, including arsenic and beryllium. Many have been shown to contain very high levels of bacteria that can lead to infections of the skin

When it comes to quality products, if it costs too good to be true, it probably is. I can assure you that all the products sold at Skin Care by Alana are quality, safe, and most importantly not counterfeit!