Dermatologist-Founded Sun Care Brand Lightsaver Launches At Sephora

Sephora is upping its authority in sun care by introducing Lightsaver, a brand started less than a year ago by dermatologist David Kim.

The beauty specialty retailer has launched two Lightsaver sunscreens online priced at $45 each: Shade 0 – Activated Non-Tinted Mineral Sunscreen Broad Spectrum SPF 33 and Tinted – Activated Mineral Sunscreen Broad Spectrum SPF 33. Driven by the launch, the brand expects its sales to double in 2024.

“To my knowledge, this is the first dermatologist-founded sun care brand to ever enter Sephora,” says Kim, who practices at Idriss Dermatology in New York City. “It’s a very mutually beneficial relationship. Having a clinical sun care brand in their portfolio I think will be great for them. For us, the exposure and opportunity to educate further and have a bigger audience will be a game changer. It’s a huge milestone. This is just the beginning, so we’re excited to see how it all unfolds.”

While Lightsaver may be the first dermatologist-founded sun care brand in Sephora’s assortment, dermatologist-founded brands are common at the retailer (see Dr. Idriss, Murad, Dr. Brandt, Dr. Dennis Gross Skincare and Rose Ingleton MD), and it’s hardly a stranger to emerging sun care brands. Hello Sundays and Soleil Toujours are emerging sun care brands that entered Sephora’s selection prior to Lightsaver, and the chain has been building its sun care offerings from established sun care players like Supergoop and Shiseido as well as makeup and skincare brands like Mara, Glow Recipe, Kosas and Summer Fridays.

The proliferation of sun care offerings reflects a bet that sunscreen usage will become less seasonal, and sales in the sun care segment, small compared to the skincare segment generally, will surge as a result. According to market research organization Straits Research, the global sun care market was valued at $11.08 billion in 2022 and is projected to accelerate at a compound annual growth rate of $3.7% to reach $15.37 billion by 2031. By contrast, the firm Allied Market Research values the global skincare market at $146.7 billion in 2021 and projects it will accelerate at a CAGR of 6.7% to reach $273.3 billion by 2031.

There’s still a long way to go until the average American consistently wears sunscreen. A survey commissioned by Advanced Dermatology in 2022 showed only about a third wear sunscreen year-round. Perhaps surprisingly, gen Z consumers, who live in world in which the sun worship of their parents’ generations has been resoundingly criticized, aren’t necessarily enthusiastic sunscreen wearers. A survey by the American Academy of Dermatology cited last month by The New York Times revealed 37% of gen Zers use sunscreen only when nagged about it.

“This is the first dermatologist-founded sun care brand to ever enter Sephora.”

Kim believes Americans will increasingly sport sunscreen daily, but acknowledges regular sunscreen adoption could be a “slow change.” He explains, “It’s about making it a habit, educating about it and hearing it more and more, and I think this is a great opportunity for Lightsaver. The goal is that hopefully we create a brand that others don’t have to nag you about, and I think gen Z will catch on and understand the importance of sunscreen.”

From Lightsaver’s look to its formulations, Kim emphasizes the brand is dedicated to making the incorporation of sunscreen easy for consumers’ routines. It puts skincare benefits at the center of its approach to products. The products contain an ingredient complex Lightsaver calls Light Activated Repair Complex with photolyase, niacinamide, squalane and lingonberry for brightening, moisturizing and addressing signs of sun damage.

“We hand-select ingredients that will deliver skincare benefits so it’s more than just UV protection. The key ingredients are used in clinical levels, so they’re not used in marketing levels,” says Kim. “We focus not just on ingredients because, even if the ingredients are great, if it’s not fun or if it doesn’t feel great on your skin, no one’s going to use it. So, we focus on texture and on tint, and we focus on ingredients. We try our best to make a very distinct, innovative product that doesn’t exist on the market that people will discover and enjoy.”

Before attending medical school at Stanford University, Kim, who immigrated to Canada from South Korea at the age of 14 and came to the United States for college at Duke University, interned at the fashion label Jason Wu, and he’s freelanced for the fashion labels Celine, Jacquemus, Alexander McQueen, Rick Owens, Haider Ackermann and Prabal Gurung as well as Jason Wu. He has a passion for understated design that guides the aesthetics of his brand.

“We try our best to make a very distinct, innovative product that doesn’t exist on the market.”

Lightsaver’s sleek tubes are intended to not appear out of place on elegant vanities or in makeup bags alongside premium skincare and makeup brands. They’re constructed from 70% post-consumer recycled (PCR) content, and they’re caps are 100% PCR. Lightsaver has a subdued color palette of yellow, gray and white that separates it from flashier beach-oriented sun care brands.

Suiting Kim’s interest in design, Lightsaver scouts content creators in fields beyond beauty like floral and interior design to spread its message. It works organically with content creators that speak to its core demographic of consumers aged 28 to 50 years old and is extending its influencer outreach to members of the Sephora Squad, the retailer’s community of content creators, to support its presence at Sephora.

“Skincare at the end of the day is something that everyone uses, and as long as people appreciate beautiful products that feel luxe, that are accessible, that are beautifully designed, I think it will resonate with them,” says Kim of his brand. “We’re reaching a broader community and different demographics, too, younger, older and different ethnicities. Our tinted product has a very sheer tint that blends with multiple skin tones.”

Kim’s content creation is also a critical awareness vehicle for Lightsaver. He has 90,400 followers and 1.7 million likes on TikTok and 76,600 followers on Instagram. A recent video of Kim’s on healing facial scars went viral with over 3 million views. Kim typically posts four to five times a week and delves into a wide array of skincare topics with his posts, from his favorite retinol products to remedies for hyperpigmentation.

Lightsaver’s product pipeline sticks to sun care for the foreseeable future. Kim is adamant about every product the brand releases becoming a hero product. Lightsaver has an exclusive arrangement with Sephora for its launch in brick-and-mortar distribution. Although it was in discussions with multiple retailers in advance of the launch, it’s holding off on expanding outside of Sephora for now. Kim says, “With Sephora’s support, we are 100% invested in that relationship and making that as successful as possible.”