Bio-scientists have, almost unnoticed, discovered ways to sustainably grow natural molecules. They call it biotechnology. It is a far more sustainable model for skincare than standard methods of farming ingredients. Reliance on natural ingredients taxes precious land, water, energy and labor resources — yet the carbon footprint of these bio-based brewed ingredients is next to nothing in comparison. Brewed bio-based ingredients are also typically safer and more potent than their nature-derived equivalents. Tiny Associates’s formulas contain sustainably brewed natural molecules.

It was recently discovered that human skin is home to billions of microorganisms, including bacteria, viruses and fungi. The skin’s outer layer (the stratum corneum) should no longer be considered a simple layer of dead cells, but rather a layer supporting a complex living ecosystem [3]. Collectively, this is known as your skin’s microbiome and it is important. Scientists uncovered that this microbiome plays a central role in maintaining healthy skin. By strategically eliminating microbiome-disrupting molecules, and adding ones that support it, Tiny Associates formulas work symbiotically with the skin microbiome.

Ingredients matter little. We should be looking deeper—down to the molecular level.

The skin’s corneal layer is remarkably good at blocking molecular penetration. In fact, only molecules smaller than 500 Dalton are able to penetrate skin layers and be absorbed. This is known as “the 500 Dalton rule”, which has fundamental implications for how skincare is designed. This is why scientists advise to restrict the development of new compounds to a molecular weight of under 500 Dalton.[2]

So, Tiny Associates went tiny.