Founder Story

Every formula begins with a reason. This is mine.

I grew up watching my mom take care of her skin religiously. In the 90s, skincare meant Avon parties in living rooms and Mary Kay reps pulling up in cars full of boxes and samples. They’d bring catalogues, pass around creams and lipsticks, and talk about what was “new and improved.” I loved sitting next to my mom at those little gatherings, watching her light up when they talked about beauty and self-care.

She’d leave every time with a bag full of products, hopeful that this next one would be the one. Back then, there was no Google, no YouTube reviews, just trust, word of mouth, and a dream that skincare could hold time still.

Every morning she’d follow her ten-step ritual, then finish with her bright blue eyeshadow and red lipstick. She was radiant in her own way, but one night at dinner, I remember looking across the table and for the first time noticing how much she had aged. I must have been in my early teens, but that realization hit hard. It wasn’t vanity, it was fear. The reminder that she wasn’t eternal. That none of us are.

It wasn’t that the products didn’t work. Time simply does what time does, and that realization made me want to understand skin at the molecular level.

I never said anything to her. She was doing everything she could, following every bit of advice those reps gave her. But I saw how products came and went, how promises were made and forgotten, and how loyalty was built on hope rather than truth.

That memory stayed with me. Years later, it became the reason I started reading ingredient lists, researching formulation science, and learning what actually makes skincare work. I realized how often brands rely on “ingredient dressing,” adding a trace amount of an active and building entire marketing campaigns around it. It’s legal, but it’s misleading.

DERMA-CODE was born out of that frustration and love.

I wanted to build something that would honor people like my mom, who believe in the power of skincare, who show up for themselves every day, and who deserve to know exactly what’s in the bottle they’re trusting their skin with.

I can’t stop time. But I can make sure what you’re using is honest, stable, and backed by real science, never fairy-dusted, never dressed up.

DERMA-CODE is my promise to do better, for her, for myself, and for everyone who believes that truth and transparency are the most powerful ingredients of all.

Gabrielle M.

Founder & Formulator, DERMA-CODE™