NIOD: Reviews & Best-Sellers Overview – Before/After Photos 3 Weeks

NIOD is a brand from DECIEM, which also includes Hylamide, The Chemistry Brand, and The Ordinary in its lineup. DECIEM is a Canadian company based in Toronto. All products are still manufactured in Canada.

The Story of DECIEM

The story of DECIEM is the story of its founder, Brandon Truaxe, who unfortunately left us too soon. After several years at Indeed Labs, he decided to leave and start his own company, DECIEM (a Latin word meaning TEN, like the TEN brands he would create). Due to his previous experience at Indeed Labs, he had a 3-year non-compete clause preventing him from creating any facial products. So instead, Brandon launched dietary supplements, body, and hair products. Success came quickly with The Chemistry Brand. Their anti-aging hand cream was so effective that women also used it for facial wrinkles.

During interviews, journalists frequently asked Brandon if he used his own products, and the answer was no. Because Brandon was always in the lab, he had access to the most advanced technologies.

After a few years of “do you use your own products?”, Brandon launched NIOD, which was his answer. He could now say he uses SS, CAIS , and MMHC from Niod.

NIOD stands for Non-Invasive Options in Dermal Science, which in French translates to “options dermatologiques non invasives,” implying it’s as effective as invasive options.

Initially, he didn’t expect such a craze for Niod, because NIOD was first intended for the very specific demands of Brandon and his colleagues, a sort of cosmetics for cosmetic geeks. NIOD targets a niche: skincare-addicts who seek products with long-term effects, who enjoy reading labels & deciphering ingredients, all while trying to understand how such-and-such active is delivered to the epidermis, and how it remains stable in its container and on the skin.

But users have decided: CAIS receives numerous glowing reviews and cosmetic awards.

Brandon noticed that many cosmetic brands tout the merits of well-known actives like Vitamin C or niacinamide, talking about them as if they were newfangled and selling them at a premium.

In contrast, NIOD, which is a true powerhouse in the industry with technologies years ahead, isn’t given its due credit. So he decided to launch The Ordinary, the 11th brand, with very accessible prices to show us “look, timeless actives should cost this much. If NIOD costs that much, it’s because there’s real technology behind it, along with expensive ingredients.” The best-selling serum from The Ordinary, the Niacinamide 10% + Zinc 1% costs $1 in ingredients, and DECIEM sells it for $5.6 overall while still making a margin (Brandon claims The Ordinary has higher margins than Niod).

The genius idea behind The Ordinary was to get the public interested in actives, and then get them interested in Niod. This strategy worked perfectly for me at least; after being blown away by the copper peptides from The Ordinary Buffet + Copper Peptides 1%, I wanted to find a better-formulated product and bought my first NIOD: CAIS 2

In short, if The Ordinary only sells highly concentrated actives, some as old as time, Niod (and Hylamide) offer products completely formulated, highly concentrated in active ingredients, and ultra-innovative.

NIOD is Brandon’s vision. It’s the brand that resembles him the most, it’s his ideal of cosmetics.

Whereas with The Ordinary, for business reasons, he released products to please users that he doesn’t believe in, like the highly concentrated acids AHA + BHA and retinols.

Is it effective?

I’m just posting the photo before/after 6 weeks : 3 weeks of using CAIS 2 and MMHC 2, then 3 weeks of using other NIOD products to repair my skin barrier (full routine here). That’s why I love this brand so much. I hope I don’t shock anyone. It’s my skin, it’s not perfect but it’s healing. The breakouts are gone even on days when I wear a mask all day long. Maskne is behind me, hallelujah, I just need to take care of the dark spots now.

The best-sellers at Niod

If you don’t feel like getting a PhD to understand and use these products, here’s a simple description of the best NIOD products, where reviews are almost unanimous on their effectiveness.

This is a summary of the notes I took after reading many blogs, forums… and watching many videos I could consult before choosing which products to buy for myself at NIOD.

The products are already listed in order of application

Note: this post is not NOT sponsored

NIOD France doesn’t exist, their official website website is only available in English. But I’ll show you with screenshots at the bottom of the article how to place an order.

NIOD products are classified into 4 categories:

1. CORE REGIMEN: these are basic products that all skin types need
2. SUPPORT REGIMEN: these are products that correct a specific problem: dark spots, congested skin, texture…
3. SURVIVAL: products that protect the skin against external aggressions, they’re full of antioxidants
4. YEŠTI: formulations grouped under the code name YEŠTI. These are very deep cleansing products

Classifying these products into categories makes the choice even harder and confuses users. So I just mentioned it in case you’re wondering, but we’re just going to list the best-sellers without worrying about categories here.

Step 1: Facial Cleansing

Step 2: Serums

FECC – FRACTIONATED EYE CONTOUR CONCENTRATE

• Eye concentrate
• Not intended for signs of aging (for aging, CAIS 2 and MMHC2 can be used on the eyes too)
• It is intended solely for puffiness, dark circles & dehydration lines
• Can be used generously, without stinging the eyes
• General review: people are delighted and see a real difference with this product
• pH: 4.00-5.00
• Price: €51 for 15ml (Deciem link), $39.16, i.e. -25% with the code NEWFAN at Lookfantastic (link)

Evenings only

Step 3: Emulsion / cream

MG – MODULATING GLUCOSIDES

• Skin barrier repairing emulsion
• Reduces signs of irritation, discomfort, redness, rosacea
• Highly concentrated product: 4 drops are enough for the whole face
• does not contain niacinamide or hyaluronic acid
• General opinion: those with rosacea love this product.
• pH: 4.50-5.50
• Price: $27 for 30ml (Deciem link), $19.16, i.e. -25% with the code NEWFAN at Lookfantastic (link)

Niod offers the HV – Hydration Vaccine, which seals in hydration. It’s not moisturizing, mind you, it’s meant to seal in moisture, and for extremely dehydrated skin.
Reviews are mixed on this product, so I’d advise you to stick with your current moisturizer.

Recommended routines

In bold, you have the NIOD products for which you won’t find dupes elsewhere
The order of application of NIOD products is clearly indicated in the routines below.

Note: All products are so liquid that you shouldn’t be afraid to slather on several products at once. Everything will be absorbed by the skin.
However, you should only use 3 to 4 drops per product because they are highly concentrated. The scents are super discreet (no added fragrance).

Anti-aging:
Morning: SDSM 2 – CAIS 2 – MMHC 2 – NEC – MG – moisturizing cream with sun protection
Evening: Makeup removal – SS (every other day) – CAIS 2 – MMHC 2 – NAAP – NEC – MG – moisturizing cream

Redness / Acne:
Morning: SDSM 2 – CAIS 2 – MMHC 2 – MG – moisturizing cream with sun protection
Evening: Makeup removal – SS (every other day) – CAIS 2 – MMHC 2 – MG – acne treatment on spots + moisturizing cream

Damaged skin barrier:
Morning: SDSM 2 – CAIS 2 – MMHC 2 – MG – S20
Evening: Makeup removal – SS (every three days) – SDSM 2 – CAIS 2 – MMHC 2 – MG – S0

Dark spots:
Morning: SDSM 2 – CAIS 2 – RP – MMHC 2 – MG – S20
Evening: Makeup removal – SS (every other day) – CAIS 2 – RP – MMHC 2 – NAAP – MG – moisturizing cream – S0

What should you buy?

I recommend, in descending order of WOW effect:

1. SS – SANSKRIT SAPONINS (detailed review)
2. CAIS 2 – COPPER AMINO ISOLATE SERUM 2:1 (detailed review)
3. S0 – SURVIVAL 0 (detailed review)

Then, two other products I really appreciate, whose effect is visible in the long term, are:

1. NAAP – NON-ACID ACID PRECURSOR 15% (visible effect after 2 weeks, detailed review here)
2. MMHC 2 – MULTI-MOLECULAR HYALURONIC COMPLEX (detailed review here, if the skin is hydrated underneath, no effect at all, but it’s the only hyaluronic acid serum that’s this liquid, which is great for layering other products on top)

Personally, I bought it SS – CAIS 2 – RP – MMHC 2 – NAAP – S0 and recently S20
I fill in the rest (makeup remover, actives, moisturizer and spot treatment) with my anti-acne routine outlined here or my simplified “skin barrier” routine here

Where to buy NIOD?

1. You can buy it directly from NIOD’s official website here. It’s a site I recommend without hesitation—I’ve placed several orders with them, they have more stock than resellers, and on top of that, shipping is free and fast (from the UK), with no customs fees. Plus, if you’re not happy with the product (especially at that price), you can send it back within 365 days of purchase and get a refund even for opened products (the product needs to be at least half full, more info). Pay for all your purchases on the official site with PayPal, that way PayPal also reimburses you for return shipping costs to England (learn more here)
2. There’s a site where the range is less extensive (for example, most products come in 15ml rather than 30ml), but the price is consistently lower than the official site, and that’s Lookfantastic. It’s an official retailer. They often have deals (for example, right now it’s 20% off sitewide). You can check out NIOD products on Lookfantastic here. Shipping is from the UK, and it’s free on orders over 40€. I’d only recommend this option if you’ve already tried the product, because returns aren’t accepted.
3. If ever the products are out of stock on these two sites, you can always count on FeelUnique, another official retailer. The price is slightly higher, but you get 10% off forever on your two favorite brands, so feel free to pick NIOD as one of them. I can also refer you on FeelUnique (click here)

How to place an order?

Head over to the official NIOD website here.

Click on a product, then choose the size and click “add to basket” to add it to your cart

Once your cart is full, click on the cart icon in the top right corner

Then click “Checkout”

Fill in your details and tick “agree to terms” then “review summary“

Then pay with PayPal or your credit card. Shipping is free on orders over 25€

No account was created on their site. If you want to create a customer account, you’ll need to add a password; in that case, click on “Yes Please” on the left. Otherwise, you can check out as a guest—there’s absolutely no impact.

You’ll then receive an email saying “thank you for your recent deciem purchase”
A few days later, you’ll get another email letting you know your parcel has been shipped, along with a tracking number.

The parcel is shipped from the UK, so this tracking number allows you to follow it up to the UK/FR border.

Once the package arrives in France, it’s either Chronopost or Colissimo that takes over. You will then receive an email from Chronopost or La Poste with the tracking number and a more precise delivery date. Since it comes from the UK, the average delivery time is 4-5 business days and with no customs fees.

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All products are sealed with a protection seal. It’s very easy to tell if a product is fake or already opened. Look at the photos.
Before opening, the seal is grey. After opening, you can see NIOD written all over the seal. It’s impossible to reattach the seal and lie by saying the package is “brand new, never opened.”

Note: keep your NIOD boxes, they’re super nice, sturdy, and great for storing your The Ordinary / NIOD products