This CBD-infused Skin Care Line Makes It Easy to Avoid Harmful Ingredients

Courtesy No, Thank You

Zain Pirani and Graham Smith are bringing us all together one skin care product at a time.

In 2020, Pirani and Smith, two lifelong friends, came together to form No, Thank You, a new kind of beauty company that celebrates our differences and lets every individual's unique beauty shine through. Each product does just that with a little help from the magical and ever-popular ingredient cannabidiol, otherwise known as CBD.

"It was really the efficacy of CBD [in] our Cream for Relief that turned us onto this great ingredient," the duo shared in a joint email to Travel + Leisure. "Its anti-inflammatory properties worked instantly and not just on general aches and pains. We got curious about how else we could use this ingredient in other topical products and started our journey to build this brand with CBD at the heart of the formulations."

Though the research on CBD is relatively new, studies have shown that it could indeed help with everything from anxiety to insomnia, and in the case of topical skin care products, it could help reduce inflammation, which in turn keeps our skin calm and healthy.

The only issue now is that CBD is everywhere, meaning so are the posers claiming to have the best product, something Pirani and Smith had to contend with on their founder journey.

"When we started looking around this industry, there was immediate frustration because one product would work great and then another wouldn't work at all," the duo said. "There was so much inconsistency and no real standard. When it worked and did what it was supposed to, it was incredible."

A lot of the frustration, Pirani and Smith said, stemmed from how easy it is to misrepresent the ingredient or cut corners because it's trendy to leverage CBD in skin and body care, but "the injustice of not adding the proper amount or proper quality of it really blew our minds — and not just for CBD, but for any ingredient, so we made it our goal to help become more educated on the category without compromising quality and efficacy."

Maria Hedrick/Courtesy No, Thank You

Beyond making sure their product worked, Pirani, an immigrant woman of color, and Smith, a member of the LGBTQIA community, wanted to ensure their product could be enjoyed by all.

"Quality, inclusivity, empowerment, and transparency are No, Thank You's primary brand pillars along with truly believing it's not our skin that makes us different, rather it's what brings us together," the twosome shared. "The name says it all. At No, Thank You Skincare: No means no."

To them, this means saying "no to ingredients that don't belong, unhealthy industry fads/trends, limited transparency, gender-based branding, and lack of inclusivity."

Courtesy No, Thank You

No, Thank You takes special care in sourcing its CBD from a reputable farm out of southern Oregon, which breeds its plants to come with higher than average levels of CBDa, a cannabinoid with a higher concentration of anti-inflammatory properties. (So potent, the founders added, that it's being studied as a cancer treatment.)

"Our philosophy is simple. We produce skin care products that contain the highest-quality ingredients available at affordable price points," Pirani and Smith said, "We sell those products to our customers at a price that demonstrates considerable value compared to other premium skin care brands."

Pirani and Smith are also here to help your skin and body while you're on the road. The company recently released a series of seven sets to address traveler concerns, ranging from dry lips and visible facial redness to sore hands and feet. Thanks to their miniature versions, many of the sets are TSA-friendly, including the best-selling Cream for Relief.

If you're just setting out on a CBD journey, Pirani and Smith suggest snagging the company's CBD Relief Travel Set. It comes with a full-size lip balm, a mini oil, and their mini Cream for Relief, all of which they say will "help you cut down some of the holiday stress." Sign us up.

Learn more about No, Thank You products here.