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The cost of a multistep skincare routine can quickly add up. But have you ever wondered what would happen if you simply stopped? This weekend, a TikTok creator went viral for discussing her controversial Caveman Method, which she claims is helping restore her skin barrier after years of picking at her skin. In a video that has since racked up nearly 10 million views, Tia Zakher announced she had cut out everything from her beauty routineeven water. @tiazakher its SO tempting to not pick at it but so far so good I Love It (feat. Charli XCX) – Icona Pop What you are seeing is dead skin thats going to flake off eventually while healthy skin forms underneath, she posted in response to questions about the texture on her face. In a separate video, she explains that the look of her skin is due to retention hyperkeratosis, in which the skin holds onto dead cells instead of shedding them immediately, as a result of years of overpicking and removing texture manually. While some accused the creator of rage-baitingpretending not to wash her face, or creating the look with a clay mask and powder just for views (she has since reintroduced water back into her routine)others were curious about the validity of the so-called Caveman Method. Rather than rely on TikTok diagnosis, Fast Company reached out to aesthetician and skin specialist Dr. Ellie Sateei for her expert opinion. Washing your face at night isnt just a beauty ritualits a fundamental part of skin health, Sateei explains. Cleansing your face at night is essential, and not just for removing makeup, sunscreen, and pollution, but for allowing your skin to properly repair itself overnight. While the Caveman Method suggests skipping this step to reduce irritation and reset the skin without interference from products such as retinol and moisturizerwhich didnt exist back in the Stone Ageits not backed by science. Sateei warns that it can lead to congestion, dullness, and breakouts, much like going to bed without brushing your teeth affects your oral health, she adds. While some claim that a back-to-basics approach helps the skin barrier, the buildup of oil, dirt, and environmental pollutants can actually end up damaging it further. Most peoples skin also doesnt benefit from a 14-step beauty routine before bed, as some skin-fluencers might suggest. Instead, Sateei recommends a minimal but balanced routine. Use gentle products that support the skins natural processes without overwhelming it, she says. Its about respecting your skins needs, not neglecting them.
Category:
E-Commerce
The past 12 months have been rough for many retail chains. Major names like Big Lots and Joann filed for bankruptcy, resulting in the closures of hundreds of locations. In Joanns case, those locations are gone for good, while some Big Lots locations have been reopened under new ownership. Unfortunately for another retailerthe fast fashion chain Forever 21it seems like none of its more than 350 stores in the United States will get a last-minute reprieve. Instead, it now appears likely that all Forever 21 stores in the U.S. will suffer the same fate as Joanns stores. Heres what you need to know about the Forever 21 store closings. Whats happened? Earlier this year, a company called F21 OpCo, LLC filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. While you may not have heard of F21 OpCo, LLC, you’ve surely heard of the retailer it operates: Forever 21. F21 OpCo is the licensee of the Forever 21 brand inside the United States (international stores are operated by other entities). As part of its bankruptcy, F21 OpCo announced it would close its Forever 21 locations in the United States unless a buyer could be found. In a memo from F21 OpCo, LLCs chief financial officer, Brad Sell, posted on the companys website, Sell said the reasons for the companys bankruptcy were rising costs and increased competition from abroad that has made the companys current business model unsustainable. In a March press release announcing the bankruptcy, F21 OpCo also stated that while it was beginning wind-down procedures for its stores, it would at the same time continue to try to find a buyer. In the event of a successful sale, the Company may pivot away from a full wind down of operations to facilitate a going-concern transaction, it said at the time. In other words, Forever 21 could live on if another entity bought F21 OpCos operations. But it has not announced a new buyer since then, nor has it responded to requests for comment. More than 350 Forever 21 store closings Throughout April, F21 OpCo held store closing sales at all of its 356 Forever 21 stores in the United States. According to court documents, those sales would conclude no later than April 30, 2025,” which the documents refer to as the “sale termination date.” That means that as of today, May 1, all Forever 21 stores in the United States are likely to have closed, although individual stores did have the option to extend the sales and stay open for longer. Fast Company reached out to F21 OpCo and Forever 21 for clarity on whether any U.S locations would continue to operate beyond this week, but we did not hear back. The only thing that could have kept any of these stores from shuttering was if F21 OpCo found a buyer, but the company has made no public announcement that it has done so. List of Forever 21 store closings According to its store locator tool, F21 OpCo operated 356 Forever 21 stores across 43 states and Puerto Rico. The states that had the most Forever 21 stores were California, with 57 locations, Texas, with 32 locations, and Florida, with 23 locations. The number of locations in each state is listed below. You can click on a states name to be taken to F21 OpCos online store locator tool to see each of the individual stores in those states. Currently, the listing for individual stores does not list any of the locations as permanently closed (although recent user reviews on Google and elsewhere have indicated that many have shuttered). Unless F21 OpCo found a last-minute buyer, or unless certain individual stores agreed to extend their sales, it is likely the below locations are now shuttered for good or soon will be. Alabama (3) Arizona (8) Arkansas (2) California (57) Colorado (5) Connecticut (6) Delaware (2) Florida (23) Georgia (18) Idaho (1) Illinois (15) Indiana (6) Iowa (2) Kansas (2) Kentucky (3) Louisiana (6) Maryland (6) Massachusetts (11) Michigan (9) Minnesota (1) Mississippi (1) Missouri (5) Nebraska (1) Nevada (6) New Hampshire (3) New Jersey (15) New Mexico (3) New York (21) North Carolina (10) North Dakota (1) Ohio (9) Oklahoma (2) Oregon (5) Pennsylvania (17) Puerto Rico (5) Rhode Island (1) South Carolina (3) South Dakota (1) Tennessee (6) Texas (32) Utah (3) Virginia (9) Washington (9) Wisconsin (2) Is Forever 21 closing globally? No. It’s important to note that the Forever 21 brand is not going away entirely. The Forever 21 chain will continue to operate in other countries. That’s because Forever 21 is licensed by other operators in those countries and not by F21 OpCo, LLC. In the memo posted on the Forever 21 website, F21 OpCo’s Brad Sell noted that “Forever 21 stores outside of the U.S. will continue to operate business as usual.” But unfortunately for its U.S.-based fans, Forever 21 is yet another American retailer that has succumbed to changing consumer habits and a shifting economic landscape.
Category:
E-Commerce
After months of tense negotiations, the U.S. and Ukraine signed a deal that is expected to give Washington access to the country’s critical minerals and other natural resources, an agreement Kyiv hopes will secure long-term support for its defense against Russia.According to Ukrainian officials, the version of the deal signed Wednesday is far more beneficial to Ukraine than previous versions, which they said reduced Kyiv to a junior partner and gave Washington unprecedented rights to the country’s resources.The agreementwhich the Ukrainian parliament must ratifywould establish a reconstruction fund for Ukraine that Ukrainian officials hope will be a vehicle to ensure future American military assistance. A previous agreement was nearly signed before being derailed in a tense Oval Office meeting involving U.S. President Donald Trump, U.S. Vice President JD Vance and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.“We have formed a version of the agreement that provides mutually beneficial conditions for both countries. This is an agreement in which the United States notes its commitment to promoting long-term peace in Ukraine and recognizes the contribution that Ukraine has made to global security by giving up its nuclear arsenal,” Economy Minister Yulia Svyrydenko, who signed the deal for Ukraine, said in a post on Facebook.The signing comes during what U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said would be a “very critical” week for U.S.-led efforts to end the war that appear to have stalled. Ukraine sees the deal as a way to ensure that its biggest and most consequential ally stays engaged and doesn’t freeze military support, which has been key in its 3-year-old fight against Russia’s full-scale invasion.“This agreement signals clearly to Russia that the Trump administration is committed to a peace process centered on a free, sovereign, and prosperous Ukraine over the long term,” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who signed for the U.S., said in a statement.Here is a look at the deal. What does the deal include? The deal covers minerals, including rare earth elements, but also other valuable resources, including oil and natural gas, according to the text released by Ukraine’s government.It does not include resources that are already a source of revenue for the Ukrainian state. In other words, any profits under the deal are dependent on the success of new investments. Ukrainian officials have also noted that it does not refer to any debt obligations for Kyiv, meaning profits from the fund will likely not go toward the paying the U.S. back for its previous support.Officials have also emphasized that the agreement ensures full ownership of the resources remains with Ukraine, and the state will determine what can be extracted and where.The text of the deal lists 55 minerals but says more can be agreed to.Trump has repeatedly expressed interest in Ukraine’s rare earth elements, and some of them are included in the list, as are other critical minerals, such as titanium, lithium and uranium. What are rare earth elements? They are a group of 17 elements that are essential to many kinds of consumer technology, including cellphones, hard drives and electric and hybrid vehicles.China is the world’s largest producer of rare earth elements, and both the U.S and Europe have sought to reduce their dependence on Beijing, Trump’s chief geopolitical adversary. They include elements such as lanthanum, cerium, and scandium, which are listed in the deal. How will the fund work? The agreement establishes a reconstruction investment fund, and both the U.S. and Ukraine will have an equal say in its management, according to Svyrydenko.The fund will be supported by the U.S. government through the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation agency, which Ukraine hopes will attract investment and technology from American and European countries.Ukraine is expected to contribute 50% of all future profits from government-owned natural resources into the fund. The United States will also contribute in the form of direct funds and equipment, including badly needed air defense systems and other military aid.Contributions to the fund will be reinvested in projects related to mining, oil, and gas as well as infrastructure.No profits will not be taken from the fund for the first 10 years, Svyrydenko said.Trump administration officials initially pushed for a deal in which Washington would receive $500 billion in profits from exploited minerals as compensation for its wartime support.But Zelenskyy rejected the offer, saying he would not sign off on an agreement “that will be paid off by 10 generations of Ukrainians.” What is the state of Ukraine’s minerals industry? Ukraine’s rare earth elements are largely untapped because of state policies regulating the industry, a lack of good information about deposits, and the war.The industry’s potential is unclear since geological data is thin because mineral reserves are scattered across Ukraine, and existing studies are considered largely inadequate, according to businessmen and analysts.In general, however, the outlook for Ukrainian natural resources is promising. The country’s reserves of titanium, a key component for the aerospace, medical, and automotive industries, are believed to be among Europe’s largest. Ukraine also holds some of Europe’s largest known reserves of lithium, which is required to produce batteries, ceramics and glass.In 2021, the Ukrainian mineral industry accounted for 6.1% of the country’s gross domestic product and 30% of exports.An estimated 40% of Ukraine’s metallic mineral resources are inaccessible because of Russian occupation, according to data from We Build Ukraine, a Kyiv-based think tank. Ukraine has argued that it’s in Trump’s interest to develop the remainder before Russian advances capture more. Samya Kullab, Associated Press
Category:
E-Commerce
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