Our Founder on After Hours: Everything You Need to Know

Results require consistency, but tolerability is just as important.

We created After Hours so you wouldn’t have to choose between the two.

Gentle yet effective, this nighttime treatment bridges the gap between visible benefits and barrier support, making consistency realistic. To explain how After Hours fits into nearly anyone’s routine, we asked the woman who knows it best: our founder-CEO, Maegan Griffin.

Who is After Hours best for?

After Hours is best for those who want visible improvement in tone, texture and firmness without irritation, peeling or a complicated routine. I think about it for:

• Early signs of aging plus uneven tone
• Background redness and reactive skin
• Congested, textured skin that cannot tolerate harsh exfoliation
• Retinol-intolerant patients or anyone who needs “nights off” but still wants progress
• Pregnancy and breastfeeding when retinoids are off the table
• Post-treatment or barrier-compromised moments when we want gentle actives, not downtime

After Hours promises to be gentle and effective. How did you strike that balance?

We combined clarifying actives with peptides and barrier support in a way that still feels comfortable enough for consistent use.

A lot of products force you to choose between results and tolerance. Once we landed on the balance of azelaic support plus a gentle salicylic component, then layered in peptides and lipids, it finally became that “in-between” step we kept wishing existed. It’s a nightly treatment you can actually stay consistent with, which is where results come from.

Retinol is a nightly treatment, too. How does After Hours fit alongside or in place of it?

After Hours isn’t a replacement for retinol, but it helps your skin make progress when retinol isn’t the right move.

You can use After Hours and retinol on alternating nights when:

• You want the benefits of retinoids, but your skin hits an irritation ceiling
• You are working on both aging and clarity and want to protect the barrier long-term
• You are newer to retinol and building tolerance You are in a drier season or your barrier feels more sensitive

Use After Hours instead of retinol when:

• You are pregnant or breastfeeding
• You are retinol-intolerant or consistently peel, burn or get inflamed
• You are in a reactive, barrier-compromised or post-treatment recovery phase
• Your priority is progress without downtime

If I’m using Crystal Clear in my nighttime routine, can I still incorporate After Hours?

Yes, but since Crystal Clear is also an active treatment, I wouldn’t stack it with After Hours on the same night. Alternating nights is best. If you only use Crystal Clear a few times a week, think of that as your active nighttime treatment. On the nights in between, After Hours is your supportive treatment that keeps things moving without pushing the skin too far.

If your skin is especially sensitive, I would start with After Hours a few nights per week and then build from there.

What makes After Hours particularly effective as a nighttime product?

Nighttime is when most people are consistent and when the skin is in repair mode. After Hours is designed to support that. The peptides help with firmness and visible signs of aging over time, while the azelaic-salicylic acid blend helps refine tone and texture. The barrier-supporting ingredients are key because they help the skin stay calm while the actives are doing their job.

It’s the kind of formula that works best with steady use, and nighttime is when most people can commit to that.

Where does After Hours fit in your PM routine?

My PM routine is simple. I usually apply After Hours after my serums. Cleanse, Youth Serum, High Beam if I need it, then After Hours as my treatment step. I’ll apply Face Whip last if my skin needs extra moisture.

What visible benefits have you noticed since using After Hours?

This is one of those products where the immediate feedback is “My skin feels good.” The morning after I use it, my skin feels smoother and a little more bouncy. I’ve noticed:

• More even tone
• Less background redness
• Calmer, more refined texture
• My skin feels comfortable, not tight, dry or irritated

The longer-term payoff is more consistent clarity and firmness.