At KBX, we don’t simply onboard brands. We take time to understand the questions they are asking and how real users are responding over time. Occasionally, brands share meaningful insights from their own customer experiences. When that happens, we listen closely.
Recently, the team at Percent Science shared an unexpected piece of customer feedback with us.
A customer who had been using Cellinol-5 Serum mentioned, almost cautiously, that while using it, Augustinus Bader’s The Elixir came to mind, followed by a simple but telling comment: it was really good.
This comparison was not intentional, nor was it encouraged. Percent Science made it clear that Cellinol-5 was never designed to resemble any specific brand or product. Still, from a retailer’s perspective, the feedback was worth examining more closely.
Why did two products with entirely different ingredient systems evoke a similar skin reference? And what does that say about skin experience beyond branding or positioning?
Augustinus Bader’s The Elixir is widely recognized as a high-end skincare product, known for its dense, lipid-rich composition and its ability to deliver a sense of support, fullness, and refinement to the skin. Its $550 price point reflects not only formulation complexity, but also a complete luxury experience built around sensorial richness and advanced technology.
What made this comparison notable was not the name itself, but the fact that the similarity emerged at the level of skin feel. This was not a reaction to branding, storytelling, or visual cues. It was rooted in how the skin responded from the first uses. For us at KBX, that distinction matters.
When Percent Science shared this feedback with us, they also shared clarity around their formulation intent. Cellinol-5 was designed around one central question: how does skin structurally change as it ages, and how can that progression be slowed rather than cosmetically masked?
At the core of the formula is high-purity bakuchiol, selected for its role in supporting elasticity and delaying structural decline. Importantly, bakuchiol is not positioned as a standalone hero ingredient. It is supported by functional peptides that work in synergy to reinforce skin structure over time.
SYN®-AKE contributes to refining surface tension and softening expression-related lines, while SYN®-COLL targets pathways associated with collagen degradation. Allantoin plays a stabilizing role within the system, helping the formula remain calm and balanced so active components can function without being perceived as irritation.
Rather than emphasizing immediate visual impact, Cellinol-5 prioritizes how skin maintains firmness, density, and resilience over time.
While users may draw parallels in texture and initial sensation, the philosophies behind the two products diverge clearly. The Elixir follows a technology-driven, luxury-led approach, creating a rich and enveloping environment designed to elevate overall skin condition and luminosity. Cellinol-5, by contrast, focuses on the pathways of structural aging, with less emphasis on sensorial luxury and more on functional clarity and long-term balance.
Even scent reflects this difference. Cellinol-5 does not attempt to mask bakuchiol’s natural profile through fragrance-led design, while The Elixir integrates scent as part of its luxury experience.
As a retailer, KBX receives many stories, comparisons, and claims. We do not share most of them. This one stood out because it was not about imitation, pricing, or positioning. It reflected two distinct formulations arriving at a comparable skin experience through entirely different languages.
That kind of overlap does not happen through marketing alone. It happens when formulation intent aligns with real skin response.
KBX curates brands that can be explained not just today, but years from now. We look for products that respect the long arc of skin aging rather than chasing immediate transformation. Cellinol-5 is a product that asks how skin holds up over time, not just how it appears in the moment.
The customer feedback shared by Percent Science offered one quiet confirmation that this question is resonating. As a retailer, our role is not to amplify comparisons, but to contextualize them thoughtfully. This was one worth sharing.
