The Ultimate If You Know, You Know Skincare Product, P50 1970, Is Leaving the Us Market. Panic Has Ensued
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Sometimes you don’t realize how much you love something until it’s gone. But that has never been the case with P50 1970, a singular skincare product that has been called “Jesus in a bottle” “Monet in a bottle,” and “facial in a bottle,” as well as less flattering honorifics such as “husband repellent” thanks to its noxious smell. This pungent potion, which helps with everything from fine lines, wrinkles, acne, skin texture, tone, brightness, and more, has been a large part of the French professional skincare company Biologique Recherche’s international renown, and now it’s going away.
P50 1970 is technically a toner but in company parlance, it’s referred to as a lotion, and it has been one of Biologique Recherche’s most beloved and controversial items. That’s because it contains phenol, an antiseptic and antibacterial compound that numbs and stings the skin in ways people have come to love, but it also carries with it safety concerns. “I think we all knew the day was coming where the 1970 formula was no longer a viable product for the brand,” says Skin Rocks founder and aesthetician Caroline Hirons, who has been a vocal proponent of all the P50 formulas for years. “As with anything that is discontinued, it’s sad, but should be seen as progress.”
“It’s the end of an era,” says Danuta Mieloch of Rescue Spa. She and her team have been fielding “thousands and thousands of phone calls and emails and chats” since they sent an email on Friday announcing P50 1970’s “retirement.” “Sheer panic” is how she describes the reaction.
Biologique Recherche P50 1970 hasn’t been available in Europe for over a decade due to EU regulations that ban phenol, making the United States the only place you could purchase it. But in January, the company quietly shared plans to phase it out entirely, citing “re-alignment regarding worldwide existing and evolving practices and regulations.” Phenol has been allowed in cosmetics at low concentrations in the US, but there is word that those FDA regulations are changing.
There are six other P50 lotions still available, including four for the face, one for the scalp, and one for the body. But it’s cold comfort to those in mourning for their phenol-powered love. “I may be dressed in all black over the occasion,” said entrepreneur and philanthropist Harry Slatkin when our editor-in-chief Stellene Volandes checked in. He quickly stocked up on 20 bottles.
You can still stock up...
Lotion P50 1970 Original Formula
Slatkin purchased it from uber facialist Aida Bicaj, who is equally despondent. “I just made a short announcement and my voice started to crack as I shared the news,” says Bicaj, who, along with Mieloch, deserves credit for its proliferation across the United States. “It was my past, it was my best friend, it was my confidence. I’ve been using it since 1993.” She, too, has a 20 bottle stock, one she estimates will last until 2028.
The orders have been pouring in. Over at Rescue Spa, the limit is three bottles, but that hasn’t stopped people from placing multiple orders, one after the other. “I have clients who have four, five houses,” says Bicaj. They say, “‘Send me 30 for Aspen, send me 30 for the Hamptons, send me 30 for Palm Beach.’ 90 bottles for three houses.”
Here’s the good news if you haven’t purchased yet (although as of publication, there is still stock): The P50 Lotion, which is not going anywhere, contains many of the same ingredients as P50 1970, including lactic acid, sulfur, and salicylic acid, with vinegar and horseradish root extract instead of phenol. “And you can still use the technique,” says Mieloch, who recommends applying it to cotton and using an intense pressing and lifting motion as you go. She wonders if this super strong product going away is a wake-up call of sorts, that perhaps we’re all doing too much to our skin. “There’s always cause and effect with skincare,” she says. “Clients are using too many things, it’s too much of a buffet. Their skin is saying ‘Hold it, I just want to breathe and live and enjoy my time.’ It’s too much!” She’ll be switching to her own Danucera D22 Tonic, as well as recommending P50 PIGM for hyperpigmentation.
Slatkin was relieved to learn he’s been using both P50 1970 and P50, which he didn’t realize were two distinct products. “I just thought some French woman is making this potion in between baguettes,” he says. “When I used the 1970, I would just think to myself, ‘This batch is very strong!’” The good news, to him, is that “they’re both magical.” And now he’s all stocked, although he could do well on the black market in resale.
Bicaj, too, is coming to terms with the news. “A friend once said to me, ‘You know, men hate the smell. You’re going to have to stop using it when you meet someone,’” says Bicaj. “I said to her, ‘I’d rather not date.’” But, she admits, perhaps it’s time for a new chapter. “Now I'll have to look for a boyfriend.” That is, once her stash runs out.
Once it's gone consider...
Lotion P50
Hyalogy P-effect Refining Lotion
Hydrating & Lifting Toner
D22 Tonic
The Resurfacing Tonic
serotoner
Active Treatment Essence™ 50ml
$230.00 at vintnersdaughter.com
The Gentle Acid
Acid Potion
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