Everybody's free to wear sunscreen — but now it’s a beauty status symbol

With skin-first formulas and design-led packaging, SPF is suddenly desirable

- BY ROSE BEER

Once upon a time, not too long ago, SPF sat in a tricky spot in the beauty space.

Dermatologists and skincare experts were unequivocal that we must wear it day in, day out, come rain or shine. But although we knew we should, very few of us actually wanted to. So sunscreen remained something we mostly bought from pharmacy aisles and saved for holidays and heatwaves.

There is still much to do to get compliance to where it should be. Daily sunscreen use is still inconsistent, as many of us continue to associate it with sunshine rather than cumulative, year-round exposure. But the tide is turning. Walk through any good beauty retailer now and you'll find row upon row of perfectly packaged SPF bottles vying for space and attention. No longer solely functional, sunscreen is becoming one of beauty's most desirable and dynamic categories.