Gen Alpha’s love for Drunk Elephant’s adult skincare products sparks backlash—what brands can learn

The average 11-year-old girl might typically put rollerblades, watercolors or other kid-friendly products at the top of her holiday wish list. But this year there’s a new and unlikely product rising to the top for tweens across America—skincare offerings from Drunk Elephant, a brand that sells products such as a $74 retinol cream that claims to “diminish the look of fine lines, deep wrinkles, and sun damage.” It’s not unusual to see members of Gen Alpha (or those born in the early 2010s-2025) and Gen Zers (born between 1997-2012) using the products in their “get ready with me” videos across social media. A 12-year-old user named Evelyn (who is perhaps the most ubiquitous of Gen Alpha influencers) is often seen using Drunk Elephant products in videos on platforms such as Instagram, where she has more than 28,000 followers. View this post on Instagram A post shared by evelyn (@evelyn.grwm_) While tweens (or preteens) and kids are enthusiastic about the brand, some adults are wary about whether the products are safe—or even necessary—for kids to use. @aliciaandersonmakeup Drunk Elephant is one of the most active skincare brands out there. If you have young skin, please make sure you’re using products suitable for you!! #drunkelephantskincare #drunkelephant #skincareroutine ♬ original sound - Alicia Anderson Makeup The brand’s founder, Tiffany Masterson, responded last week in an Instagram post on the Drunk Elephant brand account signed with her initials. In the caption of the brightly colored Instagram graphic that read, “Can kids and tweens use Drunk Elephant?” Masterson wrote, “Yes! Many of our products are designed for all skin, including kids and tweens. First, I would say stay away from our more potent products that include acids and retinols—their skin does not need these ingredients quite yet.” View this post on Instagram A post shared by Drunk Elephant (@drunkelephant) The caption also detailed various Drunk Elephant products that kids and tweens could add to their skincare “routine.” Check out the latest Ad Age events and award programs But the post may have led to more questions than answers, with some users responding with comments such as, “Why are kids using any kind of skincare besides sunscreen. It’s so unnecessary,” and “Is polypeptide OK for children as I bought this cream for Christmas for my 11 year old daughter?” “Imagine buying your 8 year old a $55 face cream.. stop trying to make kids adults let them be kids,” Instagram user @nataliew__ commented. The comment received more than 300 likes. Another user, @inthelineofbeauty, accused the post of “cashing in on Christmas at the expense of” children’s skin. The phenomenon of kids acting like adults is, of course, not new. But the rising popularity of expensive skincare products among young users is a more recent trend—and the Drunk Elephant situation offers some marketing lessons on how brands caught in similar crosshairs should respond. Also read: Gen Z shopping trends to watch in 2024 Experts on marketing to Gen Z and Gen Alpha interviewed by Ad Age gave generally positive reviews on the steps Drunk Elephant has taken so far. They suggested the brand’s recent social media post was not only an ethically responsible way to keep consumers informed, but also a lesson in the benefits of speaking directly to those who love your brand the most. “The brand is aiming to be responsive and take a responsible approach to a phenomenon that’s largely outside its control—very young kids using its products and posting about it on social media, and asking parents to buy the brand for them,” Sky Canaves, senior analyst, retail & e-commerce at Insider Intelligence, said of the Instagram post in a recent email. She noted that Drunk Elephant is part of a “broader trend” of tweens and Gen Alpha becoming more interested in “luxury beauty products, particularly skincare, adding, “they look for inspiration on channels like TikTok and seek to emulate Gen Z beauty creators and influencers and their elaborate routines,” Canaves said. “Young people want to feel old and old people want to feel young,” said Nate Jones, chief relationships officer at JUV Consulting, a Gen Z marketing consultancy. “When you are a tween, you want to feel like your older cousins or siblings, or high schoolers … it does feel sort of more grown up and matured to be using a retinol on your face,” he added. Drunk Elephant’s popularity with the younger segment can at least partially be attributed to that universal feeling, Jones said, as well as its fun, colorful, playful and youthful branding. But the matter also raises potentially serious medical questions. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has only approved some prescription-strength retinoids for use in people ages 12 and up. Vitalogy Skincare, a dermatology practice in Texas, offers this advice on its website: “When it comes to pre-teen skincare, less is more. Keep it simple and opt for products specifically formulated for young skin.” Masterson founded Drunk Elephant 10 years ago as she struggled with her own adult skin issues, including rosacea and visible pores. Its new popularity among tweens can be traced to the younger consumers mimicking older influencers using the products and sharing their experiences on social media. “The conversations that are happening on those platforms are probably why it ended up getting in the hands of younger and younger people,” suggested Jones. Drunk Elephant, which is sold online and in-store at Ulta and Sephora, did not respond to requests for comment. The name Drunk Elephant is rooted in the myth that elephants get drunk eating fruit from marula trees, according to its website. Marula oil is featured in many of Drunk Elephant’s products. Ad Age Gen Z Contributor Column We welcome Gen Zers to submit fresh takes exploring Gen Z within the ad industry Learn more here Best practices Brands that take the Drunk Elephant route and decide to address their Gen Alpha fans should follow a few guidelines to play it safe, experts say. “Beauty brands have to walk a fine line between paying attention to their future consumers and actively marketing what may be unsuitable or unnecessary products for them at this stage in their lives,” Canaves said. As brands become aware of their younger fans, Canaves suggested they be proactive in addressing any potential risks Gen Alpha could run into in terms of product safety for younger age groups. “Brands should be very transparent about which products are suitable for younger users,” she said. “This could include labeling with age recommendations in addition to information about ingredients and intended usage,” Canaves said, adding that “developing dedicated product lines for kids and tweens, with simpler ingredients and formulations” could be a good idea, too. Those tween product lines could be offered at lower price points or in smaller sizes to address some of the ethical concerns around excessive spending on beauty for kids, she noted. Smaller sizes “are already so popular and hold a lot of appeal for younger consumers who have less spending power, are new to beauty and more interested in trying a variety of products,” she said. Shai Eisenman, founder and CEO of the affordable DTC skincare brand Bubble, which has similarly become popular with Gen Z and Gen Alpha, said in an email that Bubble makes sure to “carefully communicate the products young consumers should and shouldn’t use.” For instance, the brand has a “skin school” on its website to educate younger consumers about what’s safe for them. Eisenman said the brand is “vocal about younger consumers only needing a minimalist skincare routine consisting of cleanser, moisturizer and of course, SPF.” Bubble also speaks with its younger fans directly by working with teen influencers, for which they “take parental consent very seriously.” For all communications, a parental email must be provided, and parents are required to sign off on Bubble working with their children. While Drunk Elephant uses influencers, it’s unclear if the brand has ever contracted a creator under the age of 18 for work promoting the brand or its products. “We do not work with anyone who is under the age of 13 years old. For anyone between 13 [and] 18 years old, they need parental consent to be part of the program,” Eisenman said. Starting in 2024, certain perks for ambassadors such as cash and commission will only be available for those older than 18. Read more: How Bubble is challenging skincare mainstays “We’re proud to be able to embrace Gen Alpha and really want to teach them the importance of daily SPF/sunscreen all year round, not simply during the summertime, while also helping them find other products that can be built into their everyday routine to protect their skin, such as cleansing and moisturizing,” she added. Jones from JUV Consulting noted that if brands want to market to Gen Alpha, they need to empower them with knowledge about how to safely use their products. “A lot of times brands blatantly ignore either who they’re talking to or how the people are actually using your product, and it means that the marketing doesn’t land right,” Jones said. He added that one way to get around working with Gen Alpha influencers who still need parental permission to do influencer deals is to work with the younger Gen Z creators that Gen Alpha consumers admire and follow. Jones said that “candidly,” he would “stay away from” working with influencers as young as nine, being that “parents are obviously quite involved, and I think sometimes people then have a resentment later in life if they feel like their parents were commoditizing them.” But he reiterated that “there’s no reason you can’t then work with an older creator or influencer” with a big Gen Alpha audience. Additionally, brands commenting on Gen Alpha posts that tag their product could be a good way to engage with their younger fans, too, per Jones.

Gen Alpha’s love for Drunk Elephant’s adult skincare products sparks backlash—what brands can learn

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