Kiehl's Newest Skincare Service Goes Back to the Brand's Roots

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We live in a tailored world, and we're not talking about clothes. Practically everything you interact with today can be customized to give you exactly what you want out of it, and Kiehl's is now applying that to your skincare regimen. Beginning Sunday, May 1st, customers at the brand's OG East Village store can experience Apothecary Preparations, a complimentary service that lets you walk away with a personalized solution to your biggest skincare problems.

To start your appointment, take a seat at the counter in front of a well-lit facial mirror and open up a vintage-style book — it's the manual that the customer service rep will use to guide you to your final product. (If you're wondering why it's so big, it's because the same few pages are repeated in dozens of languages). You'll be asked to compare your skin with a set of images and choose the one that matches best in five different areas of concern: lines and wrinkles, skin tones, texture, pore appearance, and visible redness.

The rep records your answers on an iPad to deduce the two problems you care about most, and what you'll walk away with is a skin strengthening concentrate that's rich in squalane (which soften and smoothes the skin) and a skin lipid complex (a hydrating botanical oils blend) and the two targeted complexes based on your survey results.

These are packaged in a brown cardboard box with a personalized label — there's the brand harking back to its pharmaceutical roots — and instruction card on how to mix the complexes into the concentrate. Once combined, it's usable for six months, and Kiehl's claims that you'll see a noticeable difference after your first use.

Apothecary Preparations will be introduced in other local stores and eventually around the country, but the Third Avenue store is the only place you can find it right now. Call 212-677-3171 or head here to book your appointment. Fair warning: There's already a waitlist.