Our Commitments
We Were Told Not to be “Too Transparent” …
...but We’d Rather Stay Committed to Our Pledges.
There Is No Such Thing as "Cruelty-Free"
Acknowledging The Past So That They Are Never Forgotten
Considering the beauty industry’s history, no product on the market can be truly “cruelty-free”. This is because most ingredients used in today’s formulas were once tested on animals, and no brand should hide that fact behind "cruelty-free" claims.
Although we are Leaping Bunny-certified, which means we don't test our final products on animals, we believe in acknowledging our industry's past that is often left out: In the mid-20th century, animal testing was common practice. To check for toxic effects of cosmetics, ingredients were tested in painful, often lethal ways and even force-fed to animals. These tests ensured that the products we use today are safe, but they came at a great cost to countless animals.
Fortunately, the cosmetic industry is allowed to utilize this historical data rather than have to repeat those tests with the exception of China still requiring animal testing for imported products such as sunscreens, and hair dyes.
We do not want to ignore this past but rather honor and ask forgiveness from the animals who suffered in the name of public safety. And as a commitment to them and to you, our parent company Xylyx Bio is developing novel cell-based assays that have the potential to replace animal tests in the field of regenerative medicine while improving predictiveness and decision-making in drug development. In this way we go beyond "cruelty-free" claims in striving to effect actual change.
Let’s Talk Product Prices
We understand that our products can seem high at first. Once we gain enough traction through higher production quantities, we are hoping to lower them by continuing to follow a dynamic pricing model. This way, we aim to become accessible to more people.
How We Price Our Products
Instead of using market-driven retail prices, we simply add our operating margin on top of our cost of goods to come up with each product’s retail price.
The Reason Behind Our Prices
So how come our products are more expensive than the average serum and moisturizer on the market? Allow us to explain with the help of our brand values:
Formulation Integrity
All of the dermatological and certified-organic botanical actives in our products are formulated at functional levels to optimize their efficacy. This means you are getting more dermatological and botanical actives, including our proprietary polypeptides which are developed and produced in our 2,200 sq ft NIH-funded research lab and ISO 9001-compliant production facility located within the SUNY Downstate Medical Center in Brooklyn, New York.
Apart from that, organically-farmed ingredients are 40% more expensive than conventionally-grown botanicals. And while our products have a significantly higher cost of goods, we believe the results you will see in your skin are worth it.
We Do Not Chase Ingredient Trends
Before adding ingredients to our formulas, we carefully consider their social, ethical & environmental impact.
Botanicals From Organic Farms
We source all of our botanical actives from certified-organic farms. This means they are kind to the earth, the farmers, and free from harmful microbiome-destroying conventional pesticides.
Sustainability Through Upcycling
Our Matrikynes® Regenerative ECM Polypeptides are derived from ethically sourced, upcycled bovine bones from the food industry that would otherwise go to waste.
Conservation Through Regenerative Agriculture
We source as many of our ingredients as possible from farms that practice systems-based, holistic regenerative agriculture. This way, we are able to foster cultivation that is in harmony with nature
Glass That is Lighter Than Plastic?
Despite being ultra-light, our bottle is made of carefully crafted low-weight Italian glass. It uses an average of 87% less plastic by mass than plastic airless packaging and is free of leachables like BPA and PFAS.
All ingredients inside our airless glass pump bottle are protected from oxidation and minimally exposed to air thanks to a narrow stem and small plastic overcap that make sure all actives remain stable across uses.
Our bottle’s low weight help us manage carbon emissions and the cartons we use to ship are made from post-consumer materials. Compared to virgin raw materials, this helps us save energy and ultimately conserves resources for everyone.
Our Social Responsibility Efforts
Empowering young thinkers & creators
Contributing to the Sciences and the Transformative Arts brings healing, meaning, and beauty to our lives, yet science and art education remains significantly underfunded for many youth.
That is why we donate 1% of our sales to programs that nurture young scientists and artists striving to create a more beautiful world.
We are also passionate about supporting our parent company's dedication to discovering novel ways to repair and regenerate damaged human organs for transplantation.
Using our brand as a platform to bring awareness and advocacy to the work that Dr. John O’Neill, his team at Xylyx Bio, and their partners at Columbia, Stanford, and Vanderbilt University are doing, inspires us to grow Sweet Chemistry into a brand that helps redefine what beauty means.
YoungArts identifies exceptional young artists, amplifies their potential, and invests in their lifelong creative freedom. It envisions a world that embraces artists as vital to our humanity.
The iResearch Institute is a study program for high school students without access to advanced science education - founded by the godmother of science research, Dr. Serena McCalla.
“Most people say that it is the intellect which makes a great scientist.
They are wrong: It is character.”
ALBERT EINSTEIN