Drunk Elephant

Opinions are genuinely split. Fans rave about heroes like the Marula oil and the T.L.C. Sukari Babyfacial, while others find the prices steep for results they can approximate elsewhere. Some formulas are also potent, so newcomers to high-strength acids or retinol can find them irritating. The honest move is to start with one well-reviewed product and judge it on your own skin before building a full routine.

The Suspicious 6 is the brand's signature philosophy: it leaves out six categories of ingredients it considers common troublemakers, including essential oils, drying alcohols, silicones, chemical sunscreens, fragrances and dyes, and SLS. Founder Tiffany Masterson frames these as ingredients that can sit behind irritation and congestion for many people. Whether your skin agrees is individual, but that free-of approach is the idea the whole brand is built on.

This is the classic budget-versus-prestige face-off. The Ordinary is built around inexpensive, single-active formulas you assemble yourself, while Drunk Elephant sells a tighter, more curated line designed to mix and match together at a much higher price. Neither is objectively better, so the smart move is to compare the specific products you are weighing rather than the brands as a whole.

Pick one of its most-loved heroes rather than a full set, so you can decide whether the brand suits your skin before investing further. The Marula oil and the T.L.C. Sukari Babyfacial are perennial reviewer favourites and common entry points. Because some formulas are strong, ease in slowly and patch-test if you are new to acids or retinol.

Stick to Drunk Elephant's official website and authorised retailers such as Sephora, where the brand became one of the fastest-growing skincare lines ever. Buying through an authorised channel keeps the product genuine and your returns intact. There is little reason to gamble on an unknown marketplace seller for skincare you are putting on your face.

Drunk Elephant was founded in Houston in 2012 by Tiffany Masterson, a mother of four, as part of the clean beauty movement, with its public launch following in August 2013. It began with early investments from her brother-in-law and brother, the latter of whom became company president. From those family beginnings it grew remarkably fast.

The founder is Tiffany Masterson, the Houston mother who started the brand in 2012. After Shiseido acquired the company she stayed on as Chief Creative Officer and President. So the person who created the brand remained central to its direction rather than walking away after the sale.

Drunk Elephant is owned by the Japanese cosmetics group Shiseido, which acquired it in October 2019 for $845 million, a valuation estimated at more than eight times the brand's 2018 net sales. Under Shiseido the line expanded into hair and body care in 2020 and launched in mainland China in 2024. So it is now a prestige brand inside a much larger global house.

It became one of the fastest-growing brands ever at Sephora, helped enormously by its appeal to younger consumers and its visibility on TikTok, where short videos of layered skincare smoothies spread widely. That momentum carried it to becoming the fourth most popular skincare brand in the US. The colourful, mix-and-match packaging was tailor-made for that kind of social sharing.

Yes. In the first quarter of 2025 Shiseido reported a 65% year-over-year sales decline for the brand, which it attributed to an identity crisis that alienated its core customer base. It is a notable wobble for a brand that grew so quickly. As always with shifting product line-ups, it is worth checking current reviews for the specific item you are considering.

Skincare tends to move on a seasonal rhythm, so the friendliest windows are usually around major retailer events and gifting periods, when sets and bonus offers appear. Joining the official mailing list is the simplest way to hear about those first. Beyond timing, buying through an authorised channel matters more than chasing any single date.