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Most skincare brands promise transformation. Eluxier promises something different: acceptance. The brand’s tagline, “beautiful as is,” challenges an industry built on making people feel inadequate.
Behind this philosophy are Praveen Singh and his wife Priyanka, both pharmacists who spent nearly two decades in pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies. Their entry into skincare wasn’t driven by market research or funding opportunities. It started with a childhood medical condition and years of frustration with products that created more problems than they solved.
When sunscreen becomes the problem
Priyanka developed a sun allergy after a bad makeup incident in school. For years, she relied on prescription corticosteroids and sunscreens, common solutions in India where sun protection products were primarily medical, not cosmetic. But extended use took its toll.
“We were looking for safer options for sunscreen. We couldn’t find any.”
Their first product, now called helioSHEAR, took multiple iterations. The initial version worked but was sticky with poor shelf life. They added modern ingredients while maintaining their commitment to 100% natural formulation. When they sent samples to friends and relatives, feedback was encouraging enough to formalise the business in 2023.
But Eluxier didn’t position their sunscreen around SPF ratings like everyone else. The team coined a different framework: “sun care beyond SPF.”
“Protection from the sun, no matter what you do, is not possible and not recommended.”
Complete sun blocking disrupts circadian rhythms, mental health, and vitamin D synthesis, involved in over 400 bodily functions. Their approach: shield from harmful UV while continuously healing sun damage.
The dirty thirty
During their research, Praveen and Priyanka identified 581 chemicals commonly used in skincare products. They categorised the worst offenders into 30 buckets, calling it the “Dirty 30.” Their product line commits to avoiding all of them.
This principle extends to their entire manufacturing process. When they couldn’t source high-quality oils, a partner in Indore set up an oil mill specifically for Eluxier. They use first-press, unrefined oils despite the cost and waste from settlement.
“Every millilitre that we put into our products is pure extracted oil. We don’t refine because refining is a high-pressure, high-temperature process that destroys everything except the fat content.”
The research background shows in unusual detail. Their face serum, Sabi Face Elixir, recreates the skin’s natural moisturising factor by studying sweat and sebum samples from 72-75 people across different skin types. Another product, Isobiome, maintains skin pH gradients to support beneficial bacteria.
When developing their shampoo, Usawa (Swahili for “equality”), a low-pH, all-natural shampoo, they tackled hard water damage by targeting hair cell membrane complex deterioration. Curly hair, naturally drier and more vulnerable to mineral buildup, became their focus case.
Why skincare works differently than you think
Praveen challenges fundamental industry narratives. The biggest? Skin types.
“Ninety-five per cent of the market believes oily skin needs different products than dry skin. This is purely a marketing narrative.”
In clinical trials, he explains, researchers never recruit based on oily versus dry skin. The only distinction: healthy versus diseased skin.
His perspective on skincare’s role is equally contrarian. Products should be a nudge, not the hero. Mental health, diet, and sleep matter more than any cream.
“The best skincare product is when you apply for 21 days, then don’t put anything on for seven days, and your skin can still take care of itself.”
He warns about synthetic polymers, carbomers and acrylates found in virtually every commercial cream. They create a layer on the skin that feels smooth to the touch but prevents absorption and environmental communication. When you switch products, your skin feels worse, not because the new product is inferior, but because the artificial layer is gone.
The regulatory gap and bioaccumulation risk
Coming from pharma’s stringent regulatory environment, Praveen finds cosmetics alarmingly loose. The industry can make hydration or “boost” claims without proving them, as long as they avoid treatment or transformation language.
He points to a telling example: in 2019, the US FDA withdrew “generally recognised as safe” (GRAS) ratings from 19 chemical sunscreen filters, excluding only titanium dioxide and zinc oxide. Industry pressure delayed implementation indefinitely.
Chemical UV filters absorb into the skin, then absorb UV radiation. In the process, they break into fragments that travel through the blood, binding to proteins and receptors. Unlike ingested substances processed by the liver, topical applications bypass this filter. Up to 65% can enter the blood directly.
“There are no well-defined metabolic pathways to excrete them. Every time you apply, some part will bioaccumulate.”
Traction without noise
Eluxier sells through their website and Amazon, growing month-over-month within a community of skincare enthusiasts. They haven’t launched an aggressive promotion yet.
“I want customers to buy based on the product’s merits. They should carry the same enthusiasm for skincare that we bring.”
The team of five outsources design, marketing, and manufacturing to partners who share their sustainability principles. They prioritise vendors using green chemistry: fermentation-based products, ambient temperature processes, and no harsh conditions.
If given unlimited funding, Praveen would build an R&D facility first. With products containing 19-27 ingredients each, they need capacity for extensive synergy testing and safety qualification. Current resource constraints limit this ambition.
The positioning challenge
Their biggest obstacle isn’t product development. It’s being heard in an overcrowded market with 2,500 well-funded brands telling loud stories.
“In cosmetics, any story that could be told has been told with a lot of money. Finding your differentiated voice is the biggest challenge.”
Coming from pharma’s evidence-based culture makes this harder. They want to prove claims, not just make them. But proof is expensive and quiet compared to marketing narratives.
They’re betting on gradual trust-building through skin enthusiasts who understand ingredients and care about safety. The goal: to become the first name when people think of safe and clean skincare.
“If it’s on Eluxier’s label, it must be safe; that’s the place we’re working toward.”
Read more about them here:
Eluxier is featured in The First Brick series. The series highlights promising early-stage companies.
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