Looking to Level Up Your Body Care Routine? Meet AKT London
Sadaf Razi is Adore Beauty's Senior Beauty Editor.
She's a former fashion editor (who worked at various glossy mags) and stylist-turned digital beauty and lifestyle writer. She has been in the lifestyle/media industry for over 10 years and her work has also been featured on international covers like Elle France and Vanity Fair Mexico.
Some of her fave Adore Beauty products include Cicaplast B5, CeraVe Cleansing Oil and Lancôme Renergie Triple Serum.
It’s not often these days my head is turned by a new beauty launch, but when I spotted AKT London’s bold, cool packaging in the office, it quickly caught my attention.
The bright orange, punctuated by sleek black lettering, was hard to miss, so when I heard murmurs in the office, I wanted to know what all the fuss was about.
As it turns out, there’s much more to AKT than its eye-catching aesthetic.
The London-born brand’s hero product, a natural deodorant balm designed to keep you feeling fresh all day, has a rather brilliant origin story: it was created by West End performers Ed Currie and Andy Coxon, who met while performing eight shows a week under hot stage lights and realised their deodorant simply wasn’t cutting it. So, they decided to create something that would.
But it’s not just their star product taking centre stage.
If you’re in your body care era like me, AKT London should be on your radar. Because, aside from looking very cool on your vanity, the brand has a lineup of body washes, scrubs, balms and oils that take the everyday body-care ritual to a whole new level.
What is AKT London?
Performing, rehearsing and dancing under hot stage lights eight shows a week, mainstream deodorants simply weren’t cutting it for AKT London founders Ed Currie and Andy Coxon, who met while performing in London’s West End.
So, the performers decided to take matters into their own hands.
They spent three years researching, developing and formulating, collaborating with leading experts in fragrance and cosmetic science, all while bringing their exacting standards and a whole heap of creativity to the process. And finally, The Deodorant Balm was born.
Their brand ethos? NATURAL. PLASTIC FREE. GENDER FREE.
AKT London Reviews
AKT London The Deodorant Balm - No Notes Sc.00, $44
Key features of this AKT London Deodorant Balm:
- A multi-award-winning deodorant balm that delivers professional-grade odour protection while keeping skin dry, comfortable, and nourished all day.
- Has a revolutionary aluminium salt-free formula developed and tested by performers to deliver long-lasting protection under the most demanding conditions.
- Is powered by AKT's exclusive Deo-Barrier Complex™, this luxurious balm transforms into a dry, invisible powder on the skin to help neutralise odour and absorb perspiration.
- Gentle enough for daily use and versatile enough for multiple areas of the body, it's your everyday performance essential.
- One tube lasting approximately 6-8 weeks with daily use.
Mini AKT London deodorant balm review by AB staffer Ada:
"I love the scent! It's subtle but lovely and not overpowering.
I had no odour all day, which is exactly what you want. The application is a bit to get used to at first, but you get used to it quickly. Overall, a great product I'd happily repurchase, the back story is so cool."
AKT London The Body Wash Concentrate - Orange Grove Sc.01, $54
Key features of the AKT London Body Wash Concentrate:
- A 3x concentrated body wash that gently cleanses, supports the skin microbiome, and leaves skin feeling soft, hydrated, and beautifully scented.
- Skin-microbiome friendly: Prebiotics in the formula help support a healthy, balanced skin microbiome and help support the skin’s natural moisture barrier.
- Key ingredients: olive squalane and vitamin E leave skin feeling soft and hydrated.
- Scent: SC.01 Orange Grove blends sparkling mandarin, petitgrain and delicate neroli for a bright, sun-drenched citrus hit.
- Packaging: The water-free, sulphate-free formula comes in 100% plastic-free, recyclable packaging.
- Is it vegan? It’s vegan and cruelty-free, with a concentrated formula designed to minimise waste.
My AKT London Body Wash Concentrate review:
I know $54 seems like a lot for a tube of body wash, but here’s what surprised me about this product: a little really does go a long way. I squeezed just a tiny amount onto my shower net sponge and, once activated with water, it transformed into the rich, generous lather I wasn’t expecting.
It did come out a little grainy at first, so for a second I wondered if it was going to feel rough on my skin. But once lathered with water, that grainy texture melted into a soft, creamy foam that enveloped my skin and felt less like a quick shower and more like a little spa experience.
An added bonus? Knowing this citrus-infused formula is made with lightly exfoliating grains of sugar and sea salt makes me love it even more. I'm sloughing away dead skin cells while also getting a gentle clean.
You get that gentle exfoliation as you lather, but it doesn’t feel gritty or abrasive on the skin, instead, it melts into the rich foam that feels lovely on the skin.
I’ve paid more for body washes where I’ve had to squeeze out endless amounts of product only to get the tiniest lather, so the fact that you need such a small amount of this one definitely helps justify the price for me.
AKT London The Everyday Encore Body Oil - Orange Grove Sc.01, $72
Key features of the AKT London Encore Body Oil:
- A lightweight dry body oil with a non-greasy formula that absorbs quickly without leaving skin slippery.
- Leaves skin looking luminous, soft and beautifully nourished.
- Contains skin-loving oils such as squalane, rosehip, sweet almond and jojoba oils to replenish moisture and soften dry skin.
- Is antioxidant-rich: Powered by Vitamin E and botanical oils help support the skin barrier and protect against dryness.
- Has an Orange Grove scent. Petitgrain, mandarin and neroli create a bright, citrusy fragrance that feels like sunshine in a bottle.
- How to use: Can use alone or over body moisturiser for an extra hit of hydration.
- Is AKT London body oil vegan? Yes it is vegan, cruelty-free and packaged in plastic-free, recyclable packaging.
My AKT London body oil review:
This body oil left my skin feeling nourished without any greasy residue, which can be hatred to find in a body oil. I did find the scent a little more masculine than I personally prefer, but if you lean towards woody, more unisex fragrances, I think you’ll love it. It kind of reminds me of those earthy scents one might find in Aesop body care wash. If those are your vibe, this will be too.
I also loved that the oil comes with a dropper. It made dispensing the perfect amount completely fuss-free, with no risk of accidentally pouring out half the bottle in one go.
Finally, come for the deodorant and stay for the spa-like feel of AKT London's extended body care products.
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