How To Know If The Beauty Products At TJ Maxx And Marshalls Are Safe

When it comes to skin care products, especially those with active ingredients, storage and handling conditions play a crucial role in their effectiveness. Unfortunately, there’s often no way to know what conditions these products were exposed to during storage or transport before reaching store shelves.

According to cosmetic chemist and licensed esthetician Esther Olu, sensitive actives like vitamin C, retinoids, and chemical sunscreen filters are particularly vulnerable to heat, light, and humidity, which can degrade and destabilize them. This degradation not only reduces their benefits but can also increase the risk of skin irritation and shorten the product’s shelf life.

“Vitamin C, specifically L-ascorbic acid, is highly susceptible to oxidation when exposed to air and light, breaking down into dehydroascorbic acid, a less effective form,” Olu explained. “This degradation is often indicated by a color shift from clear or pale yellow to orange or brown.”

Another concern is shoppers turning store items into testers, either opening them up to smell or dipping their fingers in to test their texture and color. As a board-certified dermatologist and founder of Facet Dermatology Dr. Geeta Yadav points out, “There are many ingredients used in skin care products that are considered volatile or unstable, which is why [products] should only be opened for use. In many cases, exposure to air makes these ingredients less effective over time.”

Air exposure also introduces bacteria. Liquid and cream products, in particular, provide the perfect environment for bacteria to thrive, thanks to their dark and damp conditions. “You don’t know what germs may have been introduced to the product if it’s been opened,” Yadav said.

A company spokesperson from Ross explained their quality control procedures: “Our store associates discard products that arrive in a damaged state and monitor our beauty/cosmetics section to remove products that appear to have been opened and/or reached their expiration date,” they said.

HuffPost also reached out to TJ Maxx and Marshalls for comment about their protocols to ensure quality, but hadn’t received an answer at time of publication.

Here’s what you should look out for before you buy.