Every formula needs a backbone. You know, the ingredient everything else is built around. When I set out to formulate The Everyday Face Cream, I knew the backbone had to be a butter. The question was which one.

The obvious candidates were shea, cocoa, and mango. They are everywhere in skincare for a reason. For a face cream, I kept coming back to the comedogenic rating. This is the scale (from zero to five) that tells you how likely an ingredient is to clog pores, with zero being the least likely and five being the most. This product was formulated specifically for the face, and the face is where clogged pores show up most prominently. Kokum butter carries one of the lowest comedogenic ratings of any butter. The richer and heavier options work beautifully on the body, but on facial skin they can sit in pores instead of fully absorbing.

Kokum surprised me the first time I worked with it. For a solid butter, it is remarkably soft to handle. It melted into the oil phase without a fight, and the result was a fantastic emulsion on the very first batch. 

What It Does for Your Skin

So what does it actually do on your skin? In plain English, kokum is a deep moisturizer and an emollient. It softens, smooths, and helps lock moisture into the skin while supporting elasticity and the skin's natural renewal cycle. It forms a light protective layer without the greasy film heavier butters leave behind.

Here is the part the pharmacist in me finds genuinely cool. Kokum butter melts at skin temperature. It begins to melt the moment it touches your skin, which is part of why it absorbs so well. Its fatty acid profile closely resembles the lipids naturally found in your skin, so it does not feel foreign on the surface. It is also unusually high in SOS triglycerides — a structural quirk that gives it outstanding emolliency, a uniform texture, and natural stability. That stability matters more than it sounds. It means a longer shelf life without leaning on synthetic stabilizers, which is exactly the kind of standard I built this brand around. 

The Four-Part System

Kokum does not work alone in The Everyday Face Cream. The formula logic is a four-part system. Kokum butter is the foundation. It provides the structure of the cream and the moisture barrier on your skin. Jojoba oil is the conditioner. Its composition is remarkably close to your skin's own sebum, so it absorbs quickly and keeps the whole formula lightweight. Grapeseed oil is the finisher — light, fast-absorbing, rich in vitamin E and antioxidants that help defend the skin's surface. Argan oil is the nourisher — cold-pressed, dense with fatty acids and vitamin E. It helps soften skin and supports a smooth, even texture over time. Together the four work as a system: hydration, conditioning, antioxidant defense, and deep nourishment without heaviness or grease. The cream is soft and cushiony the moment you open the jar. Then it melts and disappears into your skin. That is not an accident; it's kokum doing its job alongside everything it was paired with. 

Now the honest part, because I promised transparency when I started this brand. Kokum butter is currently in a worldwide supply shortage and is genuinely difficult to source right now. That is the reality of working with a natural ingredient instead of a lab-made substitute. I would rather tell you exactly where things stand than pretend sourcing is effortless. It is the ingredient this formula is built on, so I source it carefully and do not cut corners to make it easier on myself. 

Choosing kokum made this formula harder to build and harder to source. It made every batch more work and every restock less certain. I would not change a thing, because the difference shows up on your skin. That is the only place it counts.

— Josh Cullen, PharmD 
Founder, PharmEssence