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Rachael Parnell

When a consumer learned a discounter was selling a fresh product collection that appeared akin to products from luxury brand Augustinus Bader, she was "incredibly excited".

The shopper rushed to her closest store to purchase the Lacura face cream for £8.49 for 50ml - a tiny percentage of the £240 price tag of the luxury brand 50ml item.

The streamlined blue tube and gold cap of both products look strikingly alike. Although she has never tried the premium cream, she claims she's satisfied by the product so far.

She has been purchasing beauty alternatives from high street stores and grocery stores for some time, and she's not alone.

Over a fourth of UK shoppers say they've tried a beauty or cosmetic alternative. This jumps to 44% among millennials and Gen Z, based on a February poll.

Alternatives are beauty items that imitate established companies and present affordable alternatives to high-end products. They frequently have comparable labels and design, but occasionally the components can change substantially.

Victoria Woollaston

'Costly Is Not Always Superior'

Skincare professionals argue many substitutes to luxury brands are good quality and aid make beauty routines cheaper.

"In my opinion higher-priced is always superior," says skin specialist one expert. "Not every low-budget product line is bad - and not all high-end beauty item is the top."

"Certain [dupes] are truly excellent," adds a skincare commentator, who runs a show about celebrities.

A lot of of the items based on high-end labels "disappear so rapidly, it's just unbelievable," he observes.

Scott McGlynn

Aesthetic and dermatology doctor another professional thinks dupes are acceptable to use for "basic skincare" like moisturisers and cleansers.

"Dupes will do the job," he says. "They will do the basics to a satisfactory degree."

Ketaki Bhate, suggests you can save money when searching for simple-formula items like hyaluronic acid, Vitamin B3 and squalane.

"If you're buying a simple item then you're likely going to be alright in opting for a dupe or a product which is very inexpensive because there's not much that can go wrong," she adds.

'Don't Be Sold by the Container'

But the specialists also recommend consumers investigate and note that costlier items are sometimes worthy of the additional cost.

Regarding luxury skincare, you're not only funding the name and promotion - at times the higher price also comes from the ingredients and their standard, the concentration of the effective element, the technology utilized to develop the product, and trials into the item's efficacy, she explains.

Beauty expert she argues it's valuable considering how some dupes can be offered so at a low cost.

In some cases, she states they may include less effective components that lack as many positive effects for the complexion, or the components might not be as high-quality.

"One big doubt is 'Why is it so cheap?'" she remarks.

Commentator Scott admits sometimes he's bought skincare items that look comparable to a well-known label but the actual formula has "no resemblance to the luxury product".

"Do not be convinced by the container," he warned.

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For potent items or those with components that can irritate the complexion if they're not made correctly, such as retinols or vitamin C serums, the specialist recommends using medical-grade companies.

She says these typically have been subjected to comprehensive studies to determine how effective they are.

Skincare products are required to be assessed before they can be marketed in the UK, notes skin doctor another professional.

When the brand makes claims about the performance of the product, it needs research to back it up, "but the manufacturer doesn't always have to do the trials" and can alternatively reference evidence conducted by other firms, she says.

Read the Label of the Bottle

Is there any components that could indicate a product is inferior?

Components on the back of the tube are ordered by quantity. "The baddies that you want to avoid… is your mineral oil, your sodium lauryl sulfate, fragrance, benzel peroxide" being {high up