Skin Ninja aims for accountability in skincare
by Startacus Admin
Skin Ninja - The health-tech startup that'll help you make informed decisions when buying skincare products and cosmetics...
We all know that cosmetics are packed full of harmful ingredients such as parabens, allergens, and carcinogens like formaldehyde. Despite this, we - and we’re going to go out on a limb here and say most consumers - slap it all over their faces on a daily basis. Although the manufacturers are obligated to list ingredients, there are problems. Methylene glycol, Methanal, Methanediol, Formalin: these are just a handful of the names for the same ingredient in different forms - formaldehyde. Companies can basically hide the worst of the ingredients they put in products by using names that people will not instantly recognise. Add to this the fact that labels such as ‘hypoallergenic’ do not actually have official, legal meanings, and consumers can very easily be led astray.
London-based Sciapps (Scientific Applications) is a health-tech startup formed to help people better understand what is in their cosmetics and make informed decisions. This goes not just for potentially harmful ingredients, but also for any ingredients that consumers would like to avoid, such as animal-based. The way Sciapps founder Jo Osborne is doing this is through a free app, SkinNinja.
SkinNinja is simple to use: just scan your product’s barcode and the app will display its ingredients, along with a green, amber, and red coloured warning. The app tells you why the ingredient is flagged as potentially harmful, along with a source of the information. Users can then see alternative products free from these ingredients, with 
links to buy them. SkinNinja takes a cut of these sales from the retailer, which is where their income comes from and thereby allows the app to remain free.
Of course, with so many products available, not all will be listed on the app. But users who find this to be the case can submit their product to Sciapps for investigation and addition to the app’s library.
Earlier this year, Sciapps closed a $1m funding round led by the UK’s first women-run and female-focused venture capitalist, Voulez Capital. This money will go towards expanding the app’s library of products and adding functionality. Going forward, the startup will be trying to work with cosmetics companies to find what ingredients consumers do and don’t want in their products and making partnerships rather than rivalries with these brands.
We are very much in favour of a startup helping people to make informed decisions about what they put on their skin every day, and we hope SkinNinja goes far.
Subscribe to our newsletter
If you would like to receive our startup themed newsletter, full of the latest startup opportunities, events, news, stories, tips and advice, then sign up here.
.jpeg)
If you're considering starting up an online business, here are a few of the key ways that you can intensify what you do to sell more
If your business is going to survive, here are some of the key areas where compliance is essential and where negligence could cost you...
Justin Nihiser, CEO of kids coding specialist, Code Ninjas, is about to discuss, there are multiple advantages to starting a business later in life
The lowdown on Cash Flow Revolution, the new report from Asto, outlining the key issues currently being faced by small businss owners in the UK
Recruiting can be a tad easier if you focus on these key areas when you're reviewing a Candidate's CV or resume
Kind Bag is a startup that’s on a mission to “combat plastic pollution accelerating the use of recycled material in the fashion industry”.
.jpeg)
Beam, the training platform for homeless people is announced as the best emerging tech startup to bring positive social change through technology
Businesses are adapting as it appears as though instant online payments seem to be the way forward, in all sectors and markets
The Hertfordshire-based startup that's created a plant-based substitute for people who can’t, don’t, or won’t eat eggs
The Femtech startup that’s transforming healthcare for women with its AI-driven app to connect users with personalised daily wellness solutions
Published on: 30th September 2018
If you would like to enable commenting via your Startacus account, please enable Disqus functionality in your Account Settings.
- New report reveals British business owners are craving financial control 19th Nov 2020 The lowdown on Cash Flow Revolution, the new report from Asto, outlining the key issues currently being faced by small businss owners in the UK
- Beauty company run by entrepreneurial teen supports #BeautyBacked campaign 16th Nov 2020 The 14-year old entrepreneur who started a beauty business this year and is now supporting the #BeautyBacked campaign to help those adversely affected by the latest lockdown
- New Work Mindset Report reveals 88% of UK want to be in the office at least once a week 12th Nov 2020 Huckletree, the leading Coworking accelerator launch new report revealing the experiences and learnings of working from home and the shift in attitudes to returning back to offices
- Heroes secures major funding to supercharge leading Amazon brands 11th Nov 2020 Heroes, a new UK-based ecommerce business, focused on acquiring and scaling high performing Amazon businesses closes $65M in seed funding
