If you’ve ever buffed your lips with a grainy sugar scrub, you’ll know the familiar cycle: smooth for an evening, then dry again by morning. It’s the ritual many of us accepted as lip care, until recently. This is where The Ordinary’s New Lip Exfoliator Serum review comes in—not as another gimmicky launch, but as a quiet marker of change in how we treat one of the most noticeable parts of our skin.
Launching on 24 September, the PHA 5% Exfoliating Lip Serum isn’t just a new addition to The Ordinary’s already viral lineup. It’s also a signal of the industry’s pivot away from abrasive scrubs and toward science-backed, gentle formats. At SGD$15, the serum undercuts luxury competitors and makes clinical-grade lip care accessible to the same audience that made The Ordinary a household name. But beneath the pink hue and approachable price tag lies a larger question: are we witnessing the end of the traditional lip scrub?
Why the Humble Lip Scrub May Be Losing Its Grip
In recent years, lip scrubs have steadily risen to beauty stardom, moving from DIY recipes on YouTube to luxurious, shelf-ready versions lining beauty aisles. Their appeal was tactile—you could feel them working. Yet dermatologists and skincare scientists have long warned that the lip’s thin skin barrier is especially vulnerable to over-exfoliation. Unlike the face, which has 16 cellular layers, lips have only 3 to 5. That delicate structure explains why lips dry out so easily and why harsh friction often does more harm than good.
Consumers are beginning to catch on. Global search interest in “lip skin” has now outpaced “lip scrubs,” according to The Ordinary’s release, suggesting a shift in how people think about care for this area. Where a scrub once seemed enough, a growing base of users now expects the same kind of evidence-based solutions they’ve adopted for their face.
Science-First Lip Care
The Ordinary’s latest launch is positioned squarely at this intersection. Instead of sugar crystals or walnut shells, the serum leans on polyhydroxy acids (PHAs), specifically gluconolactone, to dissolve dead skin cells gently. The ingredient’s larger molecular size means it penetrates more slowly, reducing the risk of irritation while supporting hydration. Added alpha hydroxy acids—citric, malic, tartaric—help smooth and renew. A carrot extract lends the bright pink colour, which disappears once applied.
Unlike a scrub that gives immediate but short-lived results, this serum works gradually, hydrating while it exfoliates. In other words, it reframes lip care not as an occasional fix, but as part of an ongoing regimen.
This is where The Ordinary’s New Lip Exfoliator Serum review becomes instructive: it shows how beauty consumers, especially Gen Z and younger millennials, are moving past the thrill of sensory rituals and towards products that promise longer-term benefits.
The Bigger Market Picture
Lip care is hardly niche anymore. Valued at $2.5 billion USD in 2024, it is projected to grow to $3.6 billion USD by 2033. That expansion isn’t fuelled only by seasonal dryness or cold climates. It reflects the way lips now sit at the crossroads of skincare and makeup — both a health essential and an aesthetic statement. TikTok tutorials about “lip slugging” or “lip masks” rack up millions of views, while designer houses like Dior and Chanel position tinted balms as prestige accessories.
By pricing its serum at SGD$15, The Ordinary again disrupts an industry segment that has, until now, skewed heavily premium. Laneige’s cult Lip Sleeping Mask retails at around SGD$30, while Dior’s lip care hovers above SGD$50. In contrast, The Ordinary’s strategy places scientific credibility within reach of everyday consumers.
Why Now?
The timing feels deliberate. Travel is back on the agenda, and with it, concerns about dryness across climates. At the same time, the pandemic left many people with a sharpened awareness of skin health, particularly in areas that were covered by masks. Lips, once overlooked, suddenly became a focus of self-care.
But more than trends, the serum reflects a deeper cultural appetite for products that are efficient, multi-tasking, and credible. In a saturated beauty landscape, gimmicks fade quickly. What sticks are solutions that make sense scientifically while still offering that touch of aesthetic pleasure—in this case, a pink formula that looks chic on a vanity but performs like a lab-tested treatment.
So, Are Lip Scrubs Over?
It may be too early to call the lip scrub obsolete. There will always be consumers drawn to the instant gratification of a textured polish. Yet The Ordinary’s entry into the category suggests the balance is shifting. Where once scrubs symbolised fun and indulgence, serums now stand for knowledge, care, and longevity.
For Singapore’s beauty community, this shift matters. In a climate where humidity and heat often mask how dehydrated lips really are, gentle, science-backed solutions may resonate more strongly than abrasive fixes.
In the end, the PHA 5% Exfoliating Lip Serum is more than a pink bottle with acids inside. It represents where lip care is headed: away from scrubbing, toward smoothing. And that direction could well define the next decade of beauty shelves.