topic Re: Expiring products in Beauty

Expiring products

FLGranny — Fri, 08 Aug 2025 15:28:01 GMT

Just telling you all what happened to me so maybe it won't happen to any of you. I had purchased a rather pricey eye cream duo some months back. I didn't open it right away because I wanted to use up what I had. I went to start using the new one this morning and the smell was horrible. I opened the other one and same thing. I called the company and read off the numbers she asked for and turns out it expired April 2025. She was very nice and sympathetic but made no offer to give me a discount or compensate me in any way, which I guess I shouldn't have expected. I never had this happen before and I feel pretty stupid at myself for not being a more informed consumer. Is it common practice for companies to sell products cheaper when it's near the expiration date and have no obligation to advise the consumer? Any one else have this happen? Now I'm not sure I want to buy my beauty products unless Im almost out.

Re: Expiring products

Shelbelle — Fri, 08 Aug 2025 15:32:31 GMT

I cant imagine anything that expied just a couple of months ago could be that bad, I keep some creams ands serums for very long beyond that as long as smell is fine, consistency is fine and color is fine. For my money that should not happen so soon after the date. It could have been mfg with no preservatives in it.

Re: Expiring products

SilleeMee — Fri, 08 Aug 2025 15:39:51 GMT

Some companies will have sales to reduce their older stocks. When buying close-to-exp products use them quickly and store them in a cool place, possibly a fridge, to help keep them from going bad. Most products containing 'actives' should not be bought and stored for long periods. Actives should be purchased when needed, don't stock them or buy mega sizes.

Re: Expiring products

Shelbelle — Fri, 08 Aug 2025 15:41:30 GMT

I have to agree, I never order mega sizes, but I do have a bad habit of ordering not when needed but when a great deals comes my way. I can open my own Sephora !!!

Re: Expiring products

RespectLife — Fri, 08 Aug 2025 15:49:40 GMT

@FLGranny

It would be helpful to me at least if you stated the product name/brand and where you purchased it from.

You have me wondering which vendor/store may be selling older stock.

Re: Expiring products

santorini — Fri, 08 Aug 2025 16:15:24 GMT

I wish that whole process could be changed to make it mandatory to place "Mfg on ___; Use by _____" on the bottom of all cosmetic products that expire with time.

I notice how they are very vague when asked on air about how long they should last. Most of them cut it short and say "2 year shelf life." Well that's great but that's from the original manufactured date. How long has it been sitting on YOUR shelf before you shipped it to us? If that info was included on the bottom of the jar, we could see for ourselves.

Re: Expiring products

SilleeMee — Fri, 08 Aug 2025 16:29:46 GMT

Products shipped during the hot summer months means they are exposed to heat which means it's possible that some ingredients can be affected. Heat destroys and alters ingredients making them less effective plus heat can deactivate the preservatives used in skincare products. That means some products will spoil sooner in those situations. We have no idea just how long products sit in a hot delivery truck. It's probably better to purchase skincare products during the cooler months of the year whenever possible.

Re: Expiring products

Tinkrbl44 — Fri, 08 Aug 2025 17:37:31 GMT

@santorini wrote:
I wish that whole process could be changed to make it mandatory to place "Mfg on ___; Use by _____" on the bottom of all cosmetic products that expire with time.

I notice how they are very vague when asked on air about how long they should last. Most of them cut it short and say "2 year shelf life." Well that's great but that's from the original manufactured date. How long has it been sitting on YOUR shelf before you shipped it to us? If that info was included on the bottom of the jar, we could see for ourselves.

@santorini @FLGranny

It's a good idea, but not really possible, since products make many little transfers along the way before it ends up on your bathroom counter.

Example ... The XYZ Company makes a good skin care product. They ship it out to many retailers, often by trucks, which might not be refrigerated.

The trucks drop the large boxes of those items to a warehouse, which might not be temperature-controlled.

They may ship those boxes out AGAIN to retail locations .... OR the products could sit in a hot warehouse for many months.

A retailer might have excess inventory and it ends up being shipped to a Marshalls or T J Maxx ... it happens all the time.

While cosmetic manufacturers might think 2 years is a reasonable use-by recommendation, they cannot guarantee how products are handled getting to their final destination.

It's just not possible, IMO.

Re: Expiring products

santorini — Fri, 08 Aug 2025 18:15:00 GMT

@Tinkrbl44 it seems easy enough for me. The info on the bottom doesn't change no matter how many places it gets shipped. Place it on there once and it remains accurate no matter who is selling it.

Re: Expiring products

SilleeMee — Fri, 08 Aug 2025 18:26:56 GMT

Cosmetic companies use batch codes as their way to keep track of their manufacturing dates. Each company uses their own coding method and there isn't a universal system in the industry. If you know the code and the company phone number/email address then you can ask them what the expiration date is for the product in hand by giving them the code. Batch codes are not the numbers under the bar code. Batch codes are usually a string of less than 10 or so numbers and are printed on the bottom of the container or somewhere next to the barcode.

Re: Expiring products

santorini — Fri, 08 Aug 2025 18:39:33 GMT

@SilleeMee wrote:
Cosmetic companies use batch codes as their way to keep track of their manufacturing dates. Each company uses their own coding method and there isn't a universal system in the industry. If you know the code and the company phone number/email address then you can ask them what the expiration date is for the product in hand by giving them the code. Batch codes are not the numbers under the bar code. Batch codes are usually a string of less than 10 or so numbers and are printed on the bottom of the container or somewhere next to the barcode.

Yes but I know they do that for a reason and the reason is not nice to us. They would have more returns if we all knew the truth and I guess that's why they aren't up front and straight-forward about it. We shouldn't have to jump through hoops and decypher their codes to find out this information.

Re: Expiring products

SilleeMee — Fri, 08 Aug 2025 18:59:36 GMT

@santorini

Some companies are moving towards using QR codes instead of tradition batch codes. That way customers can scan the QR codes and get info such as manuf/shelf life dates plus their ingredients and their authenticity. That's still not a universal standard but it's a step in the right direction.

Re: Expiring products

Kachina624 — Fri, 08 Aug 2025 19:03:07 GMT

Anything with a high oil/fat content is subject to becoming rancid with age. Don't buy quantities of such products and use them promptly.

Re: Expiring products

cindyNC — Fri, 08 Aug 2025 22:32:23 GMT

When I read reviews on Amazon, see this a lot or else products that were previously used and shipped as new.

Re: Expiring products

FLGranny — Sat, 09 Aug 2025 14:36:12 GMT

RespectLife: It was Elemis Peptide4 Eye cream. I got it from QVC. The thing is that I didn't have this happen before so it's unsettling.

Re: Expiring products

Carolina925 — Sat, 09 Aug 2025 14:50:49 GMT

Something like that happened to me. I love Tweak'd Rescue cream and used it as my night cream for a couple years now. When I was getting low on my last jar, I ordered a duo from HSN. A few months later, I opened the new jar and not only was there no scent (which wasn't a deal breaker because I don't believe his scents are all that good anyway), but it had little white plastic specks throughout. I tried rubbing the cream and they still were there. I checked the sell by date and it was over a year old! I know for certain I'd not had the jars over a year. After reading more reviews on HSN, I realized this wasn't just me. I have quite a few different bottles of his hair products, not using them daily. They were not full bottles but the conditioner had hardened and wouldn't come out the bottle. I have never ever had anything like this happen with any products. I'm extremely hesitant to purchase anything from this line any longer, and it was one of my favorite lines offered. I'm guessing they're clearing out their warehouses and selling old stuff. If there's any way to tell what we're buying online before a purchase, I'd love to know.

Re: Expiring products

Sooner — Sat, 09 Aug 2025 14:59:57 GMT

I have tried really hard to stop buying new things. That's what gets me into clutter and half used things. None of it really makes that much difference anyway.

Re: Expiring products

Venezia — Sat, 09 Aug 2025 15:32:27 GMT

@FLGranny - I had a similar issue with the last duo of Mally's primer that I ordered from QVC. (Quite a while ago now.)

She had changed it from the great pump bottles it used to come in, to just regular small tubes.

I didn't even let it sit for any length of time, as I was almost out of the remaining bottle I had. I was surprised, when the primer had separated. I know I should've sent it back, but I didn't have anything else and I liked the product so I just kept shaking it, so I could use it.

Definitely old product or a change in the formula, not for the better. I think that line is disappearing anyway.

I also sent back a 3-pc set of her products that were obviously old. A lip gloss that smelled and was tacky, mascara that was dried out. (No wonder it was on a "special sale price".)

The manufacturers know the "use by" date of their own products. They should be disposed of, not sold, IMO.

Re: Expiring products

SportyShorty07 — Sat, 09 Aug 2025 15:50:54 GMT

@FLGranny wrote:
RespectLife: It was Elemis Peptide4 Eye cream. I got it from QVC. The thing is that I didn't have this happen before so it's unsettling.

@FLGranny This happened to me too with the same Elemis eye cream duo! I opened it up and put it around my eyes and it smelled like old smoked salmon 😮🤔. I'm sorry that it happened to you too. Its a great eye cream, but it smells bad when it expires.

Re: Expiring products

San Antonio Gal — Sat, 09 Aug 2025 18:08:06 GMT

@SportyShorty07 wrote:
@FLGranny wrote:
RespectLife: It was Elemis Peptide4 Eye cream. I got it from QVC. The thing is that I didn't have this happen before so it's unsettling.
@FLGranny This happened to me too with the same Elemis eye cream duo! I opened it up and put it around my eyes and it smelled like old smoked salmon 😮🤔. I'm sorry that it happened to you too. Its a great eye cream, but it smells bad when it expires.

Were you able to return yours @SportyShorty07 or did you wait a while before using it?