From Fertility Struggles to Skincare Innovation: The Power of Peptides Ft. Whitney Kendrick of Routine Skin

14:18Ekta:So I want to actually like kind of pivoting off of that, talk to you about, you know, where you felt like there was a gap, you know, because like you said, you know, peptides are coming up, but like, where did you want to create in this space? Because yeah, skincare is very cluttered. It's a very difficult category. So.

14:33Whitney Kendrick:It is. I mean, the nice thing is we've been able to go very slow with the development of the brand with getting a lot of feedback. I would say it's less competitive in the general skincare. I mean, maybe the closest is people considering, you know, one skin, which is huge now. I think they've done a lot of development in the space and in particular with OS01 and very helpful. But you have to break through. You have to stay. I think less is more. We really started out with two flagship products to get that feedback and make sure that everyone utilizing it, it was working to the extent of the need, whether it may be rosacea, whether it may be just dryness, whether it was they actually have scarring.

15:21Whitney Kendrick:I mean, it could go all the way from just general daily use to a specific use with the product. And I guess the easiest way to say I didn't start it to be a billion dollar company. I started it because there was just nothing in the market. And now it's popping up all over. Like there's GHKCU products, you know, some great brands out there that are starting to incorporate it. It is a very expensive peptide when you're formulating. And so you see high prices. Like I'm going to say most of the serums that are truly out there are in the 120, 130 range when you go and actually find real GHK-CU. And there's a difference.

16:02Whitney Kendrick:You'll see one at Walmart and it says GHK or Amazon. It's like 15 bucks. It doesn't have the CU. It doesn't have the color. That's what makes it blue. So that's the biggest difference. That is the peptide, the added to the peptide to be able to signal your skin for that regenerated, healing collagen production. Otherwise, it's like a broken fragment. It's really not going to be very beneficial, a little anti-inflammatory. So when people, I'd say for listeners, when you're looking at that, you're going, well, this one's 15 bucks. I can get it at Amazon. It's not blue. It doesn't have the entire, you know, ingredients.

16:38Whitney Kendrick:Usually it has some oil-based something in it that's not great for your skin. Not to say that expensive is better. It just you need to really, you know, use an app, like scan the ingredients, just take a look at what they are and what it means. There's tons of apps now that you can just literally scan a label and it'll tell you all benefits if any of them conflict with each other. I mean, use chat GPT.

17:00Ekta:like yeah no i mean i agree with you i think that's a big topic and it's something i really did want to get into as well with you it was this idea of when we look at ghk copper formulations there's a huge night and day difference and you immediately can tell by the efficacy that's the number one thing it's either going to work for you or it's absolutely not going to work i had a listener chime in once he was asking about and this was interesting to me because it was a man and they never chime in about skincare so he chimed in he was like hey if i want to use this after I shave. What do you think about that?

17:31Ekta:Yeah. And so I was like, this is awesome. I never even thought about that. So I feel like if you're a consumer, like understanding the real role of this kind of ingredient and like where you can see results, that'll kind of separate it out for you immediately, you know, in terms of what's going to work and not.

17:46Whitney Kendrick:I love that you brought that up because actually one of our biggest markets that we didn't anticipate, we anticipated the men in that market because I would say men have skin too. It's growing rapidly for men that are interested in skincare, but a lot for shaving. They're doing more beard care, more maintenance, and there's just a lot more focus on them in marketing as well. But the most of our customers are men. And it's because of ingrowns, the shaving, they're rough on their hands a lot of the time. And they don't want something oily and gunky and like doesn't rub into their arm hair. That's been the biggest feedback when we went through a lot of the trialing and testing is like it just absorbed instantly.

18:33Whitney Kendrick:Again, it was, I'd say just an afterthought because that was just what the ingredients did. It didn't leave residue. But then it was interesting hearing such positive feedback from the men because they were like, I'm glad it doesn't have a fragrance. I'm glad that it rubs. And not to keep talking specifically about the product so much, but it's just we should all be thinking about that in the formulary stage as opposed to what we're so inclined to the silky and I feel hydrated all day. And it's like if it's working right, you probably shouldn't even notice it's on you at all.

19:05Ekta:Yes, exactly. I could not agree more with you. And I think that's also a big topic in regenerative skincare because you don't need 50 ingredients with a regenerative skincare product. We need to start wrapping our head around that. If you really want efficacious skincare, you need to start figuring out what ingredient am I looking for and why is it formulated the way it's formulated?

19:25Whitney Kendrick:Yeah, I'd say work backwards instead of like letting the marketing come to you or, you know, you scroll, you see marketing hit you, someone putting stuff on their face. They may be 20, they may be 50. I mean, the targeting is all over the place. But I would say if you have a skin condition or you have problem with anything, whether it's dry, whether it's acne, whether it's, you know, redness, inflammation, maybe you get hot more frequently, whatever the case is, put the ailment in or the issue in first. And you're right, like look at a specific ingredient that may solve that verse as a whole, because then it's going to narrow it down to a couple brands.

20:05Ekta:Yeah, on that topic, what were some like non negotiables with the formulation process for you that were like, you know, we just can't do it? Because I mean, you've been in peptides for a while. So you know how finicky they are. And I a really, really good GHK copper product is not easy. I'm sure the formulation process was tough. Where were some of those points where you were like, we got to make sure that we don't compromise on our efficacy and the viability of the formula?

20:27Whitney Kendrick:I mean, I was in a really strong position with having chemists in the team. So I'd say, you know, actually having the raw peptide and the capability of having my mass produced GHKCU in-house has been really great for just being able to develop it out the gate and mess around with it. But non-negotiable was 100 % fragrances. My team went back and forth, back and forth, even natural ones, right? They're kind of like, what if we put this essential oil? What if we just a little, little and no. And they're like, well, we'd sell more, right? I'm like, I don't care. I don't care. It was one of those things that I went, if more brands were doing that, it wouldn't be sought after.

21:12Whitney Kendrick:And I think collectively, as, you know, anyone putting out, whether it's skincare, cosmetics, vitamins, anything, I think that all of that should be considered first versus what sells more.

21:25Ekta:Yeah, I couldn't agree more. And hats off to you for being so adamant about that because

21:29Whitney Kendrick:that's unnecessary.

21:31Ekta:Yeah. And it's lying to the audience, you know, and what you said really kind of hit home. I think it hits home for a lot of us when you have a situation where you're looking for a solution, right and you're going to pharmacies you're trying to find a solution and you keep running into products that are literally lying you know what i mean and they're saying like oh this is gonna help you and then you see nothing and you're in an actual position where you need the help because it's not for vanity you know like that's what i think gets me so much about this industry and i've had this conversation with a couple like you know even like medical professionals that have come on where it's like guys like we're finally blurring the line i feel like with skincare and like true skin health we're blurring that line in dermatology and plastic surgery this is not the time to keep formulating products that are riddled in fragrance, riddled in essential oils, riddled in ingredients that do absolutely nothing for us.

22:18Ekta:Like we got to separate this out at this point. So yeah, really hats off to you for that. I hope poor brands follow in that direction because that'd be amazing.

22:26Whitney Kendrick:You know, it's more cost effective too for them. Less ingredients, less sourcing. Honestly, I think we get stuck and it could have been that easy because yeah, When I did smell tests and all of our team did, of course, I was drawn to the one that maybe smelled a little more like an echinacea or, you know, soothing, calming. But again, it's just it's not necessary. And yeah, I just hope that more brands go down that line. There's a few out there that are that are starting to. And I think this big shift in this space and longevity and people acknowledging that I know it's only going to get more and more.

23:07Whitney Kendrick:But there's going to be a lot more battling on, like you said, marketing. Like it used to be a very sacred space, I'd say, in like biohacking, longevity. And now in the last couple of years, it's just like, oh my God, like who's sponsored? You know, is this going to work? And then it used to be there's one product, this works really good. And now the bandwagon is happening where they go, okay, now there's 20, now there's 50. And then we have to kind of sort through the differences and see which one's real, not real. like we're doing the same thing in this space too. It's inevitable. It's human nature.

23:40Ekta:I know it is. And I want to ask you like, what are your thoughts on this whole like, like biohacking and where we're going now with longevity? What are your thoughts on that? Like with all the stacks and all the craziness that we're seeing now?

23:52Whitney Kendrick:I mean, loaded question. There's so many. I mean, you could break that out in what's happening medically, what's happening, aesthetics, what's happening. I mean, the biggest talk right now is all the weight loss and, you know, everything out there in the peptide space. I think the future really is more getting better at very simple tasks. Very simple daily tasks is probably the best way that we're going to see long-term results, you know, even down to not wearing sunglasses. Like I think people are becoming more aware when historically skin cancer started happening. And it really became not just our food, but certain sunscreens.

24:34Whitney Kendrick:But in this space, I mean, lasering is becoming huge. There's so many machines that are coming out that are able to just completely resurface your skin. In 10 years, it's going to be, I think, light years of what it is even today.

24:49Ekta:No, I mean, it's definitely growing at a faster pace. We're putting the cart before the horse, in my opinion. I think there's a lot to be figured out. And there's a lot that needs to be like debunked, you know, in my opinion, because the longevity spaces, it's actual medicine. It's not supposed to be marketing. It's not supposed to be, oh, cool. This is a wellness trend. Let me get some methylene blue and, you know, like pretend like this is going to fix me. That's not going to fix you. These are drugs. These are things that work biologically, physiologically, cellularly, you know what I mean?

25:15Ekta:And they're not supposed to be just, we're peptide stacking to oblivion and we're going to expect us to not have an immunological reaction to it at the end of the day. You know, that's where I get very lost in this space. Yeah.

25:27Whitney Kendrick:With people that are going and using peptides without rhyme or reason, or just because, again, they were told that they would have muscle growth, they would lose weight, they're going to feel better. It definitely has to start with the why. And when you're considering peptides, especially injectable peptides, you need to do it in the care of medical professionals. You need to do that with the guidance. There's a lot more of them out there. I know it used to be like, who, where, like, how do I even get that? But at least, you know, get your labs, get your baselines. I mean, most of the time, it's not even a peptide that you may need.

26:02Whitney Kendrick:It's hormones. Yeah. It's just, yeah, you need to start with the baseline. And I would say even before you consider injecting yourself with something, you need to go and make sure that your vitamin D is even on the right track. Consider what supplements you're taking. And also don't, you know, you don't need the whole kitchen sink and 50 of them. Just why? just isolate it down to a handful and most people just throw everything in at the same time they're

26:29Ekta:like i don't know which one no but i think that's a good point right where it's like we are throwing the kitchen sink at everything and we're like okay something's gonna work but then in that mess it's like yeah i mean speaking to your point it's like we don't have to do that and and you know also going back to like what you were just saying where if you don't know what your vitamin d levels are if you don't know what your baseline labs are for you to then go to a doctor and be like give me like five peptides, you know, it's like, that's what really gets me with people is like, you guys need to, let's just go back to medicine.

26:59Ekta:You know, like, let's go back.

27:00Whitney Kendrick:No, instead of really, you can walk in somewhere. I mean, I was just at a conference and they were just doing right there. They were just, you know, offering an injection right on the spot.

27:10Ekta:Oh my God.

27:11Whitney Kendrick:And I was like, what is happening? I mean, I get it. It's popular, but that is just wildly inappropriate.

27:19Ekta:No, it's terrible. It really worries me a lot. And I know a lot of people feel like this in the space because it is unregulated. And that's one of the questions I had for you because you do come from a space where you've worked in industries that are very highly regulated, telemedicine and even with Soma. Can you talk to us a little bit about that in terms of where do you see the regulatory bodies in all of this? And where do you think there needs to be improvement or there needs to be an acceleration with the way that things are being handled, whether that's skincare, whether it's in the peptide lane, you know, on the longevity side, what are your thoughts around that?

27:49Whitney Kendrick:Yeah, I mean, it is starting to happen. We're seeing a shift with this most recent administration that's considering, you know, what has the FDA been doing for the last, you know, 50 years? Let's take a look at it. Let's unpack it. And that's the best part is I think more and more eyes are going, we care less about the money and let's unpack it. And so I hope that that dialogue continues to happen. And especially in administration and going forward that they challenge each other. Because I think so often, it's just kind of like if you have a partner or business partner at home or anything, if you guys were the same, there's not a lot that gets done.

28:27Whitney Kendrick:Like the same thing gets done, the same agenda gets done. You don't really grow because you're just saying the same thing. You're getting each other hyped up about probably something you shouldn't be. So I think, you know, the more that the consumers even can continue to challenge that they can show up, you know, outside of just political movements, but show up and, you know, talk about the efficacy behind these things, ask those questions, you know, don't come in and you're not always the expert. I'm not always the expert, but at least ask questions, ask why. And I think we forgot to do that along the way.

29:01Whitney Kendrick:I think we just got so used either hearing our own voice or talking, talking just to be heard that if we continue to push on those narratives, then we'll at least keep peeling back. Technology is scary and beautiful, but it has helped us dig deeper into the trail of why certain things may have happened along the way. So I mean, in the space of peptides, in the space of longevity, I can only hope that, you know, traceability just becomes better. Like that there are certified established facilities, you know, required staff and certifications that is in every other space. I don't know what happened along the way with supplements and all these other things.

29:45Whitney Kendrick:They were just like, whatever.

29:46Ekta:Yeah.

29:47Whitney Kendrick:Because FDA couldn't really have oversight over it, right? You just put a label and not FDA approved, yada, yada. And like, you can do whatever.

29:55Ekta:Yeah.

29:55Whitney Kendrick:It's the only market I've been in. I've been aviation and wealth tech and all these others that are like, if you do this, you will get in trouble.

30:02Ekta:Yeah, it's very black and white.

30:04Whitney Kendrick:And this is the only area that's been like the most impactful to consumers that you're kind of just like, why wasn't this validated and checked? And there's traceability certificate of authentication. I know physically, the facilities that this is coming from, I guess, that all of those stamps of approval happened before it went out to a retail center.

30:27Ekta:Yeah, exactly.

30:29Whitney Kendrick:It doesn't.

30:29Ekta:No, not even close. Like, it's not even asked. Like, the questions don't even get asked. I completely agree with you. And you know what's crazy is it's not like there's not money to be made. There's plenty of money to be made from the regulatory side. It's a booming industry, especially supplements. Yet we don't even have somebody starting the process. Like, the FDA is just sitting around. It's like, are you guys going to step in at any point? You know, like, are we going to say it could be I agree.

30:52Whitney Kendrick:I think it could be such basic things like even just if this is being made this staff member with this certifications required. Yeah, it's like, I mean, just the simplest things where at least it changes it a little bit to where it can't be anybody anywhere, you know, that bought a piece of equipment that seals, you know, bottles.

31:13Ekta:right now it's it's i could yeah you're literally like speaking the truth on this like i literally created and this is just i'm just telling for our audience i created the safe seal because of this reason we are the only efficacy seal in the skincare and beauty industry and it's exactly for this reason like and it's difficult as hell i'll tell you right now like it's to start a regulatory thing right now in this space is like an uphill battle because not only is it hard to get people to understand why you're doing it. Brands don't want to open up their books and be like, here you go. Here's all my information.

31:45Ekta:And I don't want, I don't understand that at this point. Right. It's like, I speak to founders like yourself. You have a very strong background. You're coming into the space with, but then I look at other companies who are claiming adjacent things, right? Like they're coming in just as strongly, but then they're, they're not ready to open up their, you know, like the backend of it and be like, this is what I did. Here you go and I have nothing to hide. I'm claiming such and such. Here's how I can prove it. You know what I mean? Here's who's working on it.

32:11Whitney Kendrick:Here's where things came from. There should be no question on being able to point at that information. It's just if you're making anything correctly, that's either able to be put on you, consumed, injected, whatever the case is. There should be complete traceability. It just doesn't make sense to me.

32:32Ekta:I completely agree. Now, coming back to routine skin though, what are your future goals with the brand? Are you guys going to expand beyond copper-based products or where do you want to take it?

32:42Whitney Kendrick:Yeah. I mean, we'll stick to our core, which is peptide-focused. And there's not too many that can be used topically just because most are large molecule. We are figuring out more ways to be able to have it. Your skin's largest organ. It's very porous. So there's things that we are formulating to be able to rapidly absorb into the skin. So it's not going to all be copper based because I don't think that's effective for every person in every need, but definitely peptide focused. So we'll expand a few more items, more like a toner or cleanser. I don't even like saying toner. It falls more into like a debris cleansing, an overnight or a vitamin C.

33:23Whitney Kendrick:All of it though is just we've taken our time and made sure whatever we release is purposeful. So that's cool. No, I like that. Then the next six months, we'll have more products being released.

33:34Ekta:That's awesome. No, I think that's really cool. And I wanted to ask you because biotechnology is being so it's coming in strong, you know, in the skincare space. And like when I look at routine skin, like you guys are a very, very forward thinking brand. So like, what are your thoughts on biotech as it pertains to like things like encapsulation or whatever it is to really stabilize ingredients, make them more efficacious? How do you approach that when it comes to the development.

33:57Whitney Kendrick:Sorry, you mentioned like capsule. And so, I mean, capsule, like we'll see a lot more go liposomal. Everything's going small molecule, like that's Switzerland and over there's kept it really close to their chest. So there's a ton of bioregulators. I think it needs a lot more studying. But there's great products that are coming out of there. I'd say the biggest changes I think we're going to see is more in like topical pain management. And that's something that we're seeing work really well with bioregulators. But as far as the aesthetics, everyone's going to always go after the collagen building.

34:32Whitney Kendrick:So the sooner we can determine the best way to really shrink down like, you know, nano that can go through that skin barrier or something that may be in saliva or, you know, a drop or a tincture, a lot more of that coming.

34:46Ekta:But yeah, it's exciting. It's an exciting space. I'm just curious, like how we're going to see this evolve. Because you're right, there's a lot coming out of Swiss. Like I always hear this, like swiss brands are phenomenal like no it's just because they don't share they don't i appreciate

35:00Whitney Kendrick:them they do they start over and then they kind of go europe and then you know usually they end up even going to africa and then making it into the u.s but to get anything over into the u.s is i mean just with importing in general right now isn't easy so i'm sure it'll be quite some time until we see like a mass boom of that coming over but it's exciting like i implore everybody like just think a little bit more about why you're paying 50 60 for something i see people scoop the collagen and do all that stuff too and i'm like and your gut just ate that right yeah you

35:36Ekta:just wasted 70 bucks on nothing maybe mind over matter that works a little bit no but you know that's interesting you bring that up because like going back to we were talking about data and how like there's so much that's actually data back and then even when you give people data that says this doesn't work. They're like, I don't care. It's part of my routine. I'm doing it.

35:55Whitney Kendrick:I don't give a crap. I feel better. I do this. It's affordable. It's fine. Yeah.

36:00Ekta:I swear I'm glowing from it. My hair is growing. I'm like, I promise it's not, but okay. We'll ride that out.

36:07Whitney Kendrick:Yeah. Probably something else in there that's doing that, or you're more hydrated. I think people don't give themselves credit for that too. Just because you did a scoop of something means you're having more electrolytes or water.

36:18Ekta:No, God forbid. It can't be simple.

36:20Whitney Kendrick:It can't be simple.

36:22Ekta:It has to be like that new Himalayan derived extract, whatever. Yeah. Yeah.

36:29Whitney Kendrick:I've been there. I think we've all been there. Like I used to buy really expensive lines when I was younger and just try like, oh, this came from a farm and it was cured over this amount of time. No, like it's definitely marketing.

36:43Ekta:No, I agree. But no, I really, really admire what you're doing and i think that it's really important to have this kind of background when you come into skincare like i am not lying i've i've interviewed so many brands at this point where i as a consumer i usually when i'm shopping for myself i always look at the background of the brand you know what i mean like i always try to like figure out like why did you guys even make this product like you know that kind of thing and i think consumers are finally getting there that's why i asked all those questions at the beginning because i'm like tell us you know because you have that background and i really urge everybody listening like when you guys are shopping for any ingredient.

37:16Ekta:It doesn't matter what it is. It could be niacinamide for health sake, you know, but you need to know where the origins of that brand come from. Why are they making what they're making? Are they going to prove it to you? Are they going to back it up with data or that, you know, even talk about it on a podcast or anywhere? You know, I think that's an important question. So yeah, I really, I applaud you for doing this right and keeping your science forward above all of so.

37:39Whitney Kendrick:Oh, thank you. It means a lot. Again, excited. I hope more brands just catch on and do that as well.

37:46Ekta:Well, thank you so much. This has been so fun and I loved our conversation and I know a lot of people probably learned a lot from it. So I can't thank you enough. And for everyone listening, make sure you guys check out Routine Skin. I'm going to be linking everything in the show notes of this episode. So scroll down, check them out and leave us some feedback. Thank you so much. Thank you.