And the prestige cosmetics industry has benefited – extensively – from our laziness, our need to feel good about ourselves, and let’s be honest, our snobbery. But a new transparency is seeping into the industry, based entirely on the belief that great beauty products should be available to everyone, regardless of income.

High price to pay

In a world where a certain oceanic moisturiser sells for £1,370 in Harrods, new budget ranges are refashioning the beauty landscape and sweeping beauty editors like me off our feet. Enter The Ordinary, a skincare brand costing between £3 and £13. It offers a 25-strong line up of impressive formulas including ingredients and technology that mimic serums costing 10 times as much. And here’s the thing: they really work.

Founder of The Ordinary, Brandon Truaxe explains: “The reason we price our brand like we do is because we’re targeting a more educated audience that doesn’t require a tremendous amount of brand marketing to make them buy into the product.” It’s a brand born of the digital age, targeting consumers who google before they buy: “We’re talking about a group of people who, when they walk into store to buy a product, know more about that product than the person selling it.” And he’s on to something. When we know what we’re buying, we know how much we want to pay for it. Think about it; if you were ill, and a doctor offered you a treatment costing £500 and another costing £5, you’d buy the expensive one without question. But if you knew what was wrong with you, and knew that either treatment would work, you’d pay £5. Education has freed us from the shackles of over-paying.

Would you buy this lipstick if it was £2.56? The psychology behind the price of beauty products