Serum Hoarders Anonymous: Do You Really Need All That Stuff?
Disclaimer: The blog post you are about to read is unfiltered. Read at your own risk! ⚠️
Hi, my name is Tina, your Waite Park esthetician, and I probably have more products on my shelf than I’d like to admit (but I’m gonna ‘fess up anyway) — including 3 different opened tinted SPFs because I wanted to know the difference between them. Glad we got that out of the way first. Now, let's move on, please...
The Client Who Changed the Way I Think About Serums
I'm going to take us back to 2016, when I had my first case of serum hoarding as a newbie in my aesthetics career. I was working in a local spa, where we offered pretty basic skincare at the time. A facial was always - an exfoliant, 2 serums, 2 masks, and some finishing touches with a whole lot of arm rubbing for sixty-five bucks.
This was pre-TikTok. I mean, shit, it was pre-anything really. The stats on my clients were that 50% washed their faces, 50% used a moisturizer, 15% used a serum, and if they did, it was because “they just heard they needed to add a serum.”
As if all of this wasn’t questionable enough, in comes - let's call her Carly for writing's sake - because I have absolutely no idea who this lady was, nor did I ever see her again after she shook me down for the marine peptide serum.
Carly comes in for a facial. As I'm going through my intake form and chatting about what she uses at home, she admittedly told me her guilty pleasure: she LOVVVEEESSSSS a good serum.
Carly owns at least 10 serums. She uses 6 of them every night before she goes to bed, and 4 more in the morning when she wakes up. She loves the feeling of that bouncy, sticky-icky face.
But here is what Carly doesn’t do. Carly doesn’t exfoliate. Carly actually doesn’t wash her... wait... what??
My eyes got about the size of golf balls. “What do you mean you don’t wash your face?”
“I don’t want to wash the serums off.”
“Well, alright, Carly. Let’s take a look.”
I shit you not, you guys. This was about to be the best case of extractions I had ever performed. Imagine, if you dare, a worm sticking halfway out of a wormhole. That was her entire T-Zone. It looked like one of those gopher games where you hit the gophers back into their holes, except they needed to come OUT of this face ASAP!! Every single one of Carly's pores was caked so deeply that it was protruding significantly out of her face. Like, get the tweezers, let's gooooooo!!!!
I spent the next 55 minutes chatting with Carly about the importance of exfoliation, especially if you want the MOST out of your expensive ass serums. “It’s like not removing the dirt off a fence before you paint it,” I exclaimed... “Your pores literally can’t absorb any of it if you don’t remove the dead skin and gunk from yesterday.”
I walked her to the front after the service, handed her a cleanser and an exfoliant, and I said, “Keep it clean.” Total came to about $70 for both. I was really proud. I thought I had genuinely taught this lady a valuable lesson in skincare.
But then, out of nowhere, I was blindsided by Carly’s addiction.
Carly opted for our most expensive product instead... the marine peptide serum. She also opted out of the cleanser. She left that day with a serum, and I was left with nothing but confusion. But hey, I'm no stranger to addictions, and denial is clearly not just a river in Egypt.
Serum hoarders come in many shapes and sizes. You can typically identify them by the expiration dates on the bottles they refuse to throw away, the audit of their TikTok cart history, and the number of steps in their routines.
But it also makes me think more deeply about the messages we are taught, and who is pulling the strings to guide us down this road. Who is the real Joe Camel of skincare? Is it really as simple as a love of vitamin C, or is it truly all a conspiracy theory to feed a much bigger machine?
Why We Hoard Serums: The Psychology Behind It
Today, serum hoarding is practically its own brand. So what makes otherwise rational people collect enough skincare to lubricate an elephant for an entire summer?
Let's break down the top 5 psychological reasons for serum hoarding, followed by the evil marketing ploy that creates them. Then you can be the judge of whether a class action lawsuit is justified or not.
FOMO (Fear of Missing Out)
Everyone is buying it, so I should too.
Evil Marketing Ploy (aka The Marketing Tactic Behind It):
Limited editions, viral products, waitlists, and "selling out fast" messaging create the impression that we need to buy NOW to be part of the flock.
I'm pretty sure I know when this started. It was a bubblegum-scented lotion that came in a bold pink bottle that took over my 6th-grade class. It was followed shortly after by Bath & Body Sweet Pea, right? IYKYK.
2. Hope in a Bottle
The belief that every product is a solution to a problem they have. Every serum may be the answer.
Evil Marketing Ploy:
In order to create a solution, brands need to create a problem. They do this by highlighting issues that you didn’t even realize you had until you saw the ad for the product that could “fix it”.
Personally, I'm still hoping I can find a serum that can fold fitted sheets. That's a REAL problem I don’t even need convincing of.
3. Obsession with Improvement
Always looking to improve their home care routine because they never feel it is good enough. However, they get confused and end up with everything, everywhere - all at once.
Evil Marketing Ploy:
New & Improved formulas and next-generation “hero” ingredients convince us that our current skincare is “outdated” and we need to catch up.
Nothing ages faster than a skincare trend. Skincare ingredients get dumped faster than contestants on Love Island.
4. Social Proof
It is totally normal to have an entire drawer of products, with a backup drawer. Everyone else does it too!
Evil Marketing Ploy:
Skincare is part of who YOU are because once it becomes part of your identity, buying products becomes part of that identity that you will go to all lengths to uphold and protect.
If they jump off a cliff, and I jump off a cliff. At least we will all look shiny doing it!
5. Authority Mentality
I need this product because it was recommended by a dermatologist or a scientist.
Evil Marketing Ploy:
Brands will use dermatologists, biased clinical trials, and scientific language to convince us that it can be trusted - that this is the answer to all of our needs.
OK but hear me out. . . why don’t we get the religious leaders involved while we are at it? Introducing the ONLY product line - Blessed by a Rabbi, only at Tina Rachelle Aesthetics!!
The Straight Facts on Serums
Now here are the straight facts, because real talk is a personal vendetta, and because it's my job to let you know... if I can convince just ONE person to put down the Ulta credit card and go wash their face, I will have finally gained redemption.
FACT: Great skin is BORING. It doesn’t require 15 steps, nor does it WANT 15 steps. Having this many products can trash your barrier, make your other products ineffective, or cause them all to expire before you can actually use them.
Serums are great. They really are the MVP of your routine. But too many cooks in the kitchen, and it can get nasty real quick. It's best to create a well-rounded routine that checks all the boxes without doubling up on similar ingredients, and to make sure you rotate your products and use them when appropriate. If you’re using a winter moisturizer in the summer, I’m probably talking to you…
Pick your overall focus, then head over to an esthetician to help you customize that routine.
This is why estheticians will always be my go-to choice over TikTok and whatever Dr. Drew got paid to say on TV. They look at your skin, simplify your routine, and save you from wasting a lot of money on things you don’t actually need.
Oh, and also, if you wouldn’t let a man stay past his expiration, the same rule should apply to those products in the back of your closet (yes, I mean YOU).
Got a great story for a killer blog post? Have a comment or concern? Hit the button below my blog post that says “share my thoughts.”
Ready to simplify your routine and actually get results? Book a skincare consultation at our Waite Park spa — we'll tell you exactly what you need and, more importantly, what you don't!
