Bits + Pieces 092

💭 These Days, It's Hard to Trust Brands + Thoughts on Successful Brand Events.

Mar 11, 2025

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These days, it's hard to trust brands. Just because something looks beautiful doesn't mean it’s made with good ingredients or backed by real science (despite the claims).

In the U.S., cosmetic products don’t need FDA approval before hitting the market. That means brands have the freedom to put almost anything in their formulations. Compare that to Europe, where over 1,300 chemicals are banned from cosmetics due to their potential to cause cancer, genetic mutations, or reproductive harm. In the U.K., products must comply with strict safety regulations, ingredient disclosure rules, and Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP). Meanwhile, the U.S. FDA has only banned 11 chemicals.

With all that in mind, how do you actually trust a brand?

Last week, I went to an event hosted by Cool as a Cucumber, a brand founded by Eda and Serra.

The panel lineup was stacked. Four women from different fields: a journalist, a product formulator, a somatic skincare specialist (which, side note what even is this??), and a gynaecologist.

When I think about what makes a brand trustworthy, I look at what they do, not just what they say.

The fact that Cool as a Cucumber brought together such a diverse set of panelists already said a lot about what they cared about, before they even opened their mouths.

The event wasn’t about selling products—it was about education, transparency, and industry-wide change. They started with a short intro, then dove straight into bigger conversations about skincare, less about their brand and more about why skincare needs a holistic approach eg. gut health, brain-skin connection, hormone shifts, and environment.

That told me something important:

They had a real problem
They really wanted to solve it
They brought in the right experts to back it up

When I left, I wasn’t thinking “That was a great PR moment”. I was thinking, “Damn, they’ve really done the work.”

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So…If you're planning a product launch event, here’s what I’d take from Cool as a Cucumber’s approach:

Bring in experts beyond the beauty industry. Go beyond influencers and industry insiders. Bring in medical professionals, researchers, and specialists who can speak to the deeper aspects of your product’s impact.
Make it about education, not just promotion. A strong launch isn’t just a sales pitch—it’s a conversation. Build dialogue that positions your brand as a thoughtful solution in the industry.
Don’t avoid regulatory conversations—address them head-on. Transparency around ingredient sourcing, testing, and regulations builds trust. Show how you’re exceeding the minimum requirements, not just meeting them.
Show your values through your actions. The diversity of your panel, the topics you discuss, and how you engage with attendees all communicate what your brand stands for.
Create space for real conversations, not controlled messaging. The best events don’t feel scripted, they allow genuine discussion that shows confidence in your product.
Position your product within a bigger wellness conversation. Show how your brand fits into holistic health, whether it’s skin, gut health, mental wellbeing, or lifestyle.
Bring receipts. Back up your claims with research, testing, and expert validation. Consumers are done with vague marketing. They want real data and proof that you’re different.

When a brand gets it right, you feel it.

Bits + Pieces

Bits + Pieces 092

💭 These Days, It's Hard to Trust Brands + Thoughts on Successful Brand Events.

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