Hero Worship: The Rich Cream

Written by Laura Regensdorf
Illustrated by Lydia McKee

When the skin care brand Augustinus Bader debuted in February 2018 during Paris Fashion Week, word of its two introductory formulas had already reached the right circles. The names had an air of inevitability: The Cream was a summerweight formula suited to combination skin, and The Rich Cream doubled down on hydration. VIOLET GREY, with its flagship on Melrose Place, had the stateside exclusive—conveniently close to home for Hollywood devotees who needed an emergency restock. Eight years and dozens of Bader products later, these original blue bottles have earned their laurels, and for the first installment of Hero Worship—a new column about the industry icons in our collective routines—we are singling out the Rich Cream. A cold-weather essential, it’s the definitive fast track to dewy, bouncy skin.

THE GENESIS

There would be no Augustinus Bader the brand without Augustinus Bader the man. The German stem cell scientist, with kindly eyes and a rotation of bow ties, has built his career investigating the mechanisms of tissue regeneration. In 2008, he coauthored a report on mesenchymal stem cells—research that led him to observe healing responses that defied easy belief. (Professor Bader points to his namesake, Saint Augustine, whose fifth-century writings addressed little-understood phenomena: “Miracles are not contrary to nature, but only contrary to what we know about nature.”) A few years later, Bader and his future cofounder, the French financier Charles Rosier, met through a mutual connection. What captivated Rosier’s attention: the remarkable before-and-after photos of burn patients helped by Bader’s breakthrough wound-healing gel. Could he apply similar principles of regeneration to skin care? The scientist’s answer was an unhesitating yes.

THE FORMULA

Bader’s underlying philosophy is straightforward: Give the skin what it needs to facilitate its own repair. What he devised for the initial two creams—a technology now employed throughout the line—is a secret sauce called TFC8®, short for Trigger Factor Complex. This central component is less about a single shiny ingredient than it is about a well-crafted assemblage: a blend of amino acids, peptides, vitamins, and minerals, all to spur the skin’s stem cells into action. The twin creams, each designed for a particular audience using the same core science, “reinforced our belief in building skin care that adapts to individual needs,” says Rosier. Like any good founder, he holds the formulas equally dear—but we are free to pick a favorite child, especially in this wind-chapped stretch. In a four-week clinical trial with the Rich Cream, crow’s feet and forehead wrinkles appeared visibly diminished by 54% and 37%, respectively. Hydration ticked up by 145%; firmness and elasticity saw a 36% improvement. This is what cult creams are made of.

“[Augustinus Bader] was talked about almost like an It bag—a badge of skin care routine envy when you saw it on people’s vanities.” —Cassandra Grey, VIOLET GREY founder

THE MOMENTUM

Before the launch, lab samples circulated among friends for unofficial testing. Rosier gave one to his fiancée’s sister, Carla Bruni, who then reportedly passed a sample to Naomi Campbell. “It was talked about almost like an It bag—a badge of skin care routine envy when you saw it on people’s vanities,” says Cassandra Grey, who recalls hearing about Bader from the stylist Elizabeth Sulcer. By the time Melanie Griffith, an early investor, called to introduce her to the creams, the VIOLET GREY founder didn’t need convincing. The bottom line was clear: “Cell care is the new self-care.” VIOLET GREY secured a six-month exclusive, giving the word-of-mouth sensation a proper megaphone. The recognizable blue cylinders—said to mimic the color of human blood—have since made their way into so many hands. Victoria Beckham and Dua Lipa have signed on as Bader collaborators; even Kendall Roy, the wannabe scion in the Emmy-decorated show Succession, has a bottle on the counter. What is the very best skin care if not an investment in self? The Rich Cream is here to stay.