I’m a Skin Expert and These Are the New Products I’m Adding to My Routine
I may have been in the beauty business for almost ten years, but there’s still nothing that excites me more than a new skincare launch. Trying and testing the latest and greatest launches is always a lesson in ingredient innovation and a great way to see how brands are interpreting the latest skincare trends and technologies.
Of course, skincare is incredibly personal, but if there’s one thing I’ve learned as a beauty editor and esthetician, it’s that any and every skin type and concern can benefit from a focus on soothing, hydrating, and repairing skin. And so far, that seems to be top of the agenda in 2023. Healing and nourishing products dominated the year’s first skincare launches, and the trend has continued into summer—so if you’ve got sensitive or breakout-prone skin, you’re in luck. Skin Rocks have created a capsule collection of sensitive skin-friendly skincare essentials; Dermalogica has a new barrier-strengthening moisturiser, and Estee Lauder just dropped a new serum within its world famous Advanced Night Repair collection. Plus (and while we know SPF is for life, not just for summer), there have been a bunch of exciting new sunscreen launches that have totally revolutionised the way we perceive sun protection.
All of the above is welcome news for me and my stressed summer skin. Between too much time spent in environments with dehydrating central heating, plus warm weather-induced oiliness, my skin is dull, tired, breakout-prone, and officially in need of some major TLC - which thankfully summer 2023’s newest skincare launches provide.
Featuring hero ingredients like ceramides, cica, peptides, and polyglutamic acid, you’ll find all the details on the best new skincare launches below.
Shop the Best New Skincare Launches for 2023:
1. Neutrogena Retinol Boost Serum
Neutrogena just launched not one but six new retinol-based products, designed to be used together to take a multi-pronged approach in preventing and correcting signs of skin ageing. The collection includes serums, moisturisers, and an eye cream, but this serum is a great place to start, especially if you're a new-to-retinol user.
2. Clarins Cryo-Flash Cream-Mask
Basically a facial in a jar, this mask recreates the benefits of a cryotherapy treatment via a cooling, soothing formula designed to help target signs of skin ageing. The best part? If your skin feels hot and irritated, it provides instant soothing relief for inflamed and sore skin.
3. Ulé Fraiche Cloud Hydra Fortifying Water Cream
Summer is the prime time of year to switch out thick, rich moisturisers for something lighter. This oil-free, non-comedogenic face cream is still intensely hydrating—working to replenish moisture levels and strengthen the skin barrier without clogging pores.
4. Mecca Cosmetica To Save Face SPF50+ Sunscreen
Even more exciting than just a new product launch is a new brand launch. Mecca is an Australian beauty retailer with an impressive own brand offering. The hero of the range is this sunscreen—previously something I always recommended as a must-buy to those headed down under. Finally available in the U.K., I'm certain this is going to become a big hit. The lightweight, whipped texture makes this SPF a joy to use, and it delivers a subtle tint and glow that makes skin look instantly brighter and healthier.
5. Naturium The Smoother Glycolic Acid Exfoliating Body Wash
It’s been a good year for launches from Naturium, a brand that never fails to impress with its ingredient innovation and affordable formulas. And since we're all agreed that the lines between the skincare and bodycare categories have officially blurred, I'm pleased to introduce you to a product that takes body exfoliation every bit as seriously as we do facial exfoliation. Lightweight and soothing, this refreshing body wash helps to target the look and feel of uneven tone and rough skin texture, including keratosis pilaris. It leaves skin silky soft, without the need for scrubbing.
6. Purifide Power Patch
Purifide's skincare products feature in my SOS skincare routine all year round - there’s nothing quite like it for stopping breakouts in their tracks. Last month saw the addition of a newbie to the collection. Designed to shrink, soothe, and protect spots, these fast-acting patches utilise salicylic acid and cica to deliver results in just six hours.
7. Kiehl's Rare Earth Deep Pore-Minimizing & Polishing Powder
Inspired by the popularity of the brand's bestselling clay mask, this cleanser is designed to tackle concerns such as enlarged pores, excess oil, blackheads, and breakouts. The unique formula transforms from a powder to a milky solution (with the addition of water), and provides a thorough cleanse with a gentle scrubbing action.
8. Sunday Riley B3 Nice Niacinamide
Niacinamide is one of those rare and wonderful skincare ingredients which has benefits for almost every skin type and concern. From improving hydration levels to reducing the appearance of pores, strengthening the skin barrier, and balancing oil production, there's little this star ingredient cannot do. If you're looking for a standalone niacinamide serum then this one comes highly recommended—the soothing, silk texture makes it a joy to use.
9. Dr. Jart+ Pore Remedy Renewing Foam Cleanser
If by the end of summer your skin is left feeling stressed, oily, breakout-prone, and in need of a deep deep cleanse, then know that you're not alone. Nor should you feel at a loss as to how to proceed with your skincare routine, because Dr. Jart+'s new Pore Remedy collection is designed with exactly your skin type in mind. My favourite product from the range is this cleanser, which leaves skin feeling deeply cleansed and refreshed. After a few weeks of use, the change to my skin texture and to under-skin congestion is dramatically noticeable.
10. Dermalogica Stabilising Repair Cream
If you're planning on getting on top of strengthening your skin barrier before winter, then you need to introduce this moisturiser to your routine. Ideal for sensitive and reactive skin, the rich cream formula trains skin to improve water retention and become more resilient to irritation.
11. Skin Rocks The Cream Cleanser
They may still be less than a year old, but Skin Rocks have already extended their product range beyond the two retinoid serums they initially launched at the end of last year. Since retinoids can be irritating to new users or sensitive skin types, the rest of the range is boosted with skin-soothing ingredients designed to support skin dealing with the potential side effects of dryness and irritation. In this nourishing cream formula, you'll find ingredients like squalane, jojoba seed oil, and glycerin.
12. Soho Skin Face Oil
You might think of face oils as a winter skincare product, but I personally like to use them all year round. The trick is to finding a lightweight non-greasy oil, which is exactly what Soho Skin's newest launch is. The still nourishing formula shields skin with a comforting blend of squalane, pomegranate, and raspberry seed oils, plus oat to help restore moisture levels and soothe irritated skin.
13. Summer Fridays Rich Cushion Cream
This is the perfect moisturiser with which to transition from summer to autumn skincare. It's light and refreshing in texture, but has a souped up formula packed with ingredients to strengthen and support the skin's moisture barrier.
14. Estée Lauder Advanced Night Repair Rescue Solution Serum
Everyones’ favourite skincare collection just got a major expansion. The original Advanced Night Repair Serum—a multi-tasking treatment which addresses dullness, dehydration, skin tone, and texture is a crowd-pleasing favourite beloved by all skin types. However, this new innovation sees it reinterpreted in a formula specifically for sensitive and redness-prone skin. Thanks to a patented peptide complex and yeast-derived ferments, it visibly reduces existing redness and prevents further flare ups. Apply daily to fragile skin for instant soothing.
15. Ultra Violette Preen Screen SPF50 Reapplication Mist
This newly-launched face mist from one of our favourite Aussie sunscreen brands fills a much-needed gap in our skincare routines—SPF reapplication. Designed to protect skin while on the go, it delivers SPF50 protection without compromising makeup. In fact, it even helps to set makeup and add glow.
16. Dr. Barbara Sturm Makeup Remover
The latest addition to Dr. Barbara Sturm's cleanser lineup—a micelle-based formula, which wicks away both oil and water-based impurities, without compromising dry or sensitive skin.
17. Yves Saint Laurent Pure Shots Cleanser
You might know Yves Saint Laurent best for its makeup and fragrance offerings, but the brand's skincare collection is not to be overlooked. This cream-to-foam cleanser is designed to target the side effects of urban life, working hard to remove makeup, excess oil, pollution, and SPF residue, so skin is left refreshed and refined.
18. Lisa Eldridge Beauty Skin & Makeup Enhancing Mist
With years of experience as a professional makeup artist, it only makes sense that Lisa Eldridge would be well-versed in the best ingredients and techniques to use to prep skin ahead of makeup application. This face mist is designed to do just that—since foundation and concealer are more likely to look flawless and last longer when applied to well-hydrated skin.
19. Rhode Glazing Milk
Part way between a serum and a toner, this milky solution serves well as the first step in a hydration-focussed skincare routine—layer it beneath your serum and moisturiser.
20. Supergoop! Every Single Face Watery Lotion SPF50
Yes, another new sunscreen launch—I told you we were being spoilt for choice this year. This is the latest of Supergoop's cult sunscreens to launch in the U.K. (it's already a fan favourite in the U.S.), and in my opinion is their most impressive so far. The weightless fluid-serum formula is exactly the kind of texture you'll want to put on your skin on warm weather days—it's not remotely heavy, greasy, or chalky.
Next Up: I Try Hundreds of Skincare Products a Year, But These 15 Are My Holy Grails
Grace Day is a beauty editor and content creator. She has over 10 years of beauty-industry experience, spanning editorial, retail, and e-commerce, which gives her a unique understanding into how people shop for their beauty routines.While studying for a history degree (specialising in the history of beauty) and working as a beauty adviser in department stores, Grace started writing her own beauty blog in order to share the products she discovered while dealing with acne. After graduating, she moved to Beauty Bay as beauty editor and content manager. Grace is currently a beauty contributor to Who What Wear. She has also written for Hypebae and PopSugar and works as a brand consultant and copywriter.