Reduction of Skin Surface Roughness via Facial Moisturizers

In 2021, the skin care industry had a market size value of $115 billion dollars. Product competitiveness has yielded a sub-market of alternative products or  “dupes” that challenge high-end competitors while offering similar product benefits for a fraction of the cost. However, the question of how effective these dupes are compared to their competitors arises. Using a synthetic skin model, I examined Olay’s Regenerist Micro-Sculpting Cream and two comparable skin moisturizer brands of a higher and lower cost to test if both alternative products are comparable by measuring surface roughness reduction over a measured period of time via atomic force microscopy.