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Rachael Parnell

When Rachael Parnell found out a supermarket was selling a recent product collection that appeared akin to offerings from high-end label Augustinus Bader, she was "super excited".

The shopper dashed to her local shop to purchase the Lacura face cream for £8.49 for 50ml - a small portion of the £240 cost of the Augustinus Bader 50ml item.

Its smooth blue container and gold cap of the two products look remarkably similar. Although she has not used the high-end cream, she states she's satisfied by the dupe so far.

Rachael has been buying skincare dupes from mainstream retailers and grocery stores for a long time, and she's in good company.

More than a fourth of UK consumers report they've tried a beauty or cosmetic dupe. This rises to 44 percent among younger adults, as per a recently published poll.

Dupes are beauty items that imitate established companies and provide cost-effective alternatives to luxury products. They often have alike branding and containers, but sometimes the formulas can vary substantially.

Victoria Woollaston

'High-Priced Is Not Necessarily Better'

Beauty specialists argue some alternatives to luxury labels are good quality and assist make beauty routines more affordable.

"It is not true that higher-priced is invariably better," states dermatology expert a doctor. "Not every low-budget skincare brand is poor - and not every high-end skincare product is the top."

"Some [dupes] are really impressive," says Scott McGlynn, who presents a show featuring public figures.

A lot of of the items modeled on luxury labels "disappear so fast, it's just insane," he observes.

Scott McGlynn

Aesthetic and dermatology doctor a doctor believes dupes are acceptable to use for "basic skincare" like moisturisers and face washes.

"Alternatives will be effective," he explains. "These items will perform the essentials to a satisfactory level."

Ketaki Bhate, thinks you can spend less when seeking single-ingredient items like hyaluronic acid, Vitamin B3 and a moisturizing ingredient.

"When you're buying a simple item then you're likely going to be alright in using a dupe or a product which is quite low cost because there's not much that can go wrong," she explains.

'Don't Be Sold by the Packaging'

Yet the experts also suggest consumers investigate and state that higher-priced items are at times worthy of the premium price.

Regarding premium skincare, you're not just covering the label and marketing - sometimes the higher price tag also is due to the formula and their grade, the concentration of the effective element, the science employed to produce the item, and trials into the item's performance, Dr Belmo says.

Skin therapist Rhian Truman says it's valuable considering how some dupes can be priced so inexpensively.

In some cases, she believes they might include less effective components that do not provide as numerous benefits for the complexion, or the ingredients might not be as well sourced.

"One major doubt is 'Why is it so inexpensive?'" she says.

Expert Scott says on occasion he's bought skincare items that appear similar to a well-known label but the item has "no connection to the original".

"Do not be sold by the packaging," he added.

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For advanced items or ones with components that can inflame the skin if they're not formulated properly, such as retinoids or vitamin C, Dr Bhate advises sticking to research-backed companies.

The expert states these probably have been subjected to comprehensive tests to determine how efficacious they are.

Beauty products must be tested before they can be available in the UK, notes skin doctor Emma Wedgeworth.

When the label states about the efficacy of the item, it needs data to support it, "but the seller does not necessarily have to perform the testing" and can instead reference evidence completed by different companies, she says.

Read the Ingredients List of the Container

Is there any components that could indicate a product is low-quality?

Ingredients on the back of the tube are listed by concentration. "Potential irritants that you want to be wary of… is your mineral oil, your SLS, fragrance, benzel peroxide" being {high up