Imagine a shop with the same beauty products carried at Sephora and department stores, but with seriously low prices. Am I speaking your love language yet? Because it sure sounds like mine. And as it turns out, this is actually a totally legit, real thing.
Akira Beauty allows you to buy from luxury beauty brands – think Origins, La Mer and Lancôme – at anywhere from 10–40 percent off regular prices. Like, Glamglow’s Illuminating Moisturizer usually retails for $49, but it’s selling for $36 on Akira’s website right now. There are no membership fees or codes, just a variety of high-end beauty products that you don’t have to pay full price for.
Naturally, I had a lot of questions about how Akira manages to keep prices so low, so I chatted with Yin Yin Liow, Akira Beauty’s Chief Marketing Officer, about what goes on behind the scenes.
Here’s how they do it
“We keep our margin slim in order to offer affordable pricing – by staying simplistic, reducing costs from advertising, samples, and gift wrapping,” Liow cites as the main reason Akira is so accessible. Avoiding excess samples, advertising and waste allows Akira to cut down on costs and even better, cut down extra waste and trash.
My take is that this still sounds too good to be true. But it turns out Akira only sources their products from the brand’s manufactures, so you don’t have to worry about getting fake goods. “We source and purchase our products directly from the original manufacturers, authorized distributors or high-end department stores. Each product goes through a rigorous quality control program to ensure we are offering fresh and premium quality products and prices,” Liow tells me. Basically, you never have to worry about compromising price for quality when you shop.
Akira has buyers located all over the world to negotiate with brands and manufacturers, so if you notice different packaging, you may have the French version of your favorite moisturizer. If you’re still unsure, Akira offers returns for up to 30 days after your purchase, as long as the products are unopened and unused.
What to shop
Akira carries products from Dior, Caudalie, Clinique, Kiehl’s, Urban Decay, Glamglow, Laura Mercier and basically every prestige brand you can think of. They also carry some exclusive and discontinued products like the OG Naked Palette, which I’m obviously adding to my cart immediately.
My final take is that, honestly, this is so worth it. It’s difficult on a college budget to splurge on high-end beauty products, but the best part about Akira Beauty is that it makes shopping fancy skincare and makeup possible for our age group. And I love that you don’t have to wait for a sale or scan the internet for a coupon code every time you want to try something new, because the reduced-prices are always on.
Akira won’t carry every product out there, and I’m definitely sticking to the drugstore for some of my usual staples, but next time you’re looking to treat yourself, definitely take a look at the website to see what piques your interest.