Skincare has a habit of making people feel stupid. Too many products. Too many steps. Ingredients lists written in what might as well be a foreign language. Brands that sell the same basic moisturiser in five different versions with five different sets of claims, none of which actually tell you what it does to your face.
Go-To Skincare was built specifically as a response to that frustration. And the person who built it had an unusually good position from which to do so.
How It Started
Zoë Foster Blake spent more than a decade as the Beauty Director at Cosmopolitan and Harper’s BAZAAR Australia, which meant testing more skincare products than most people would see in a lifetime. Through all of that, she kept hearing the same thing from women: skincare is baffling. Too many choices, too much jargon, too little clarity about what any of it actually does.
She agreed. And in 2014, she did something about it.
Go-To launched in April 2014 with a straightforward idea: make genuinely effective products, explain clearly what they do, keep the range tight, and don’t bore people to tears in the process. The brand’s voice matched that philosophy from day one. Funny, direct, irreverent in a way that felt genuinely Australian rather than forced. The packaging was peach. The product names were things like Transformazing and Properly Clean. It was resolutely unintimidating.
It worked. By 2024, the brand had shipped over 1.5 million products and Face Hero, its bestselling face oil, was selling at a rate of one unit every two minutes and had accumulated more than 45,000 five-star reviews. Mecca inducted it into their Beauty Election Hall of Fame in 2023.
The business had a complicated few years in between. In August 2021, BWX Group purchased a 50.1% stake for $89 million. BWX subsequently went into voluntary administration, and in December 2023, Foster Blake and co-founder Paul Bates bought the stake back for $21.8 million, a fraction of the original sale price. Go-To returned to full founder control and has stayed there.
“It is my joy and privilege to give both my full focus and attention,” Foster Blake said at the time. It read as genuine. The brand’s voice and direction has not wavered.
What Go-To Is Actually About
The philosophy is simple enough to say in one sentence: great skincare should not require a PhD to understand or a personal stylist to use.
Every product fills a specific gap. Foster Blake has been clear about not rushing out new things for the sake of it. The range stays deliberate and relatively contained compared to most skincare brands. Formulations are built around clinically proven, effective ingredients, including Australian natives like Kakadu plum, finger lime, and kaolin clay, alongside well-established actives like retinal, niacinamide, and BHA. Nothing is in there for decoration.
Go-To also became a certified carbon neutral business in January 2018, and the brand participates in a TerraCycle recycling programme through Mecca stores so empty packaging can be processed rather than landfilled. The packaging performance rating from the Australian Packaging Covenant Organisation has reached “Leading” level.
The Products Worth Knowing About
Face Hero
The one that made the brand’s reputation. A restorative dry face oil built around moriche palm, rosehip, and a blend of nourishing fatty acids that soothes, revitalises, and protects against free radicals. It suits every skin type, which is why it has the review count it does. Mecca’s Beauty Election Hall of Fame. Over 45,000 five-star reviews. One sold every two minutes. It is not overstating things to call it a modern Australian skincare icon.
Properly Clean
A silky mousse cleanser that removes makeup, oil, and the day’s general accumulation without stripping or irritating. Gentle enough for sensitive and mature skin. It’s refillable, which matters, and it’s vegan. One of those products that seems unremarkable until you’ve used something worse and remembered why you liked it.
Transformazing Sheet Mask
A serum-drenched sheet mask packed with Kakadu plum, finger lime, niacinamide, and finger lime AHAs that takes about ten minutes and leaves skin noticeably brighter and more hydrated. The name came about after the brand’s first choice was already trademarked by a deodorant company. It has over 2,300 reviews and is a perennial sell-out.
Very Useful Face Cream
Exactly what it sounds like. A properly hydrating moisturiser that does the job without excess. A sensible daily choice for most skin types.
Exfoliating Swipeys
Pre-soaked exfoliating pads with willow bark, lactic acid, and fruit enzymes. Simple to use, effective, and a good option for anyone who finds liquid exfoliants fiddly to apply.
Very Amazing Retinal
Go-To’s first retinal product, which emerged from early development work on an eye serum. Retinal is a step up from the retinol most people are familiar with, converting to retinoic acid faster in the skin. Worth knowing about if you’re looking at a results-driven anti-ageing step in your routine.
Bro-To and Gro-To
Go-To has also extended into a men’s line (Bro-To, launched 2016) and a children’s bath and body range (Gro-To, launched 2019). Both follow the same principle of effective, uncomplicated formulations with the same no-nonsense communication style.
Where to Buy in Australia
Go-To is available through Mecca in stores and online across Australia and New Zealand, as well as directly through the Go-To website, which offers free shipping on all Australian orders. The brand is also stocked in the US through its own site and selected retailers.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who owns Go-To Skincare?
Go-To Skincare was founded by Zoë Foster Blake in 2014 and is majority founder-owned. In 2021, BWX Group purchased a 50.1% stake for $89 million. Following BWX’s entry into voluntary administration, Foster Blake and co-founder Paul Bates repurchased that stake in December 2023 for $21.8 million, returning the brand to full founder control.
Is Go-To Skincare cruelty-free?
Yes. Go-To Skincare is PETA-certified cruelty-free. None of their products or individual ingredients are tested on animals, and this applies to their suppliers as well. The brand has confirmed its cruelty-free status through PETA’s Beauty Without Bunnies programme.
Is Go-To Skincare Australian owned?
Yes. Go-To Skincare is Australian-founded and Australian-owned. Zoë Foster Blake founded the brand in 2014 and, following the buyback from BWX in late 2023, it is once again majority-owned by its founders.
Is Go-To Skincare made in Australia?
Yes. Go-To products are formulated and manufactured in Australia. The brand has consistently positioned itself as Australian-made throughout its history, and maintaining local production is part of its identity.
Is Go-To Skincare organic?
No. Go-To does not hold organic certification and does not market itself as an organic brand. The focus is on clinically proven, effective ingredients rather than organic positioning. Many formulations incorporate natural and native Australian ingredients, but the brand is explicit that efficacy, not certification, is the priority.
Is Go-To Skincare vegan?
Partly. A growing number of Go-To products are suitable for vegans, including Face Hero, Properly Clean, Transformazing, Juicy Gel, Very Lightweight Moisturiser, Very Amazing Retinal, and several others. The brand is entirely cruelty-free, but some products contain animal-derived ingredients, so vegans should check the individual product pages or the brand’s vegan product list before purchasing.
Does Go-To Skincare test on animals?
No. Go-To is PETA-certified cruelty-free and states clearly on its website that none of its products or ingredients are tested on animals. The brand is also a carbon neutral certified business.
Is Go-To Skincare good for sensitive skin?
Generally yes. The range is built around the principle that skincare should not irritate or overwhelm. Products like Properly Clean and Face Hero are specifically noted as suitable for sensitive skin, and the brand avoids parabens and sulphates (SLS and SLES) across the range. If you have a known sensitivity to a specific ingredient, checking individual product pages is always worth doing.
What is the difference between Face Hero and Clarifying Face Hero?
The original Face Hero is a rich, restorative dry oil designed for all skin types and focused on nourishment, hydration, and free radical protection. Clarifying Face Hero is a newer, lighter formula built specifically for blemish-prone and oily skin, with a balancing rather than nourishing focus. Same format, different intent.
Is Go-To Skincare worth it?
That depends on what you’re comparing it to. Within the Australian market, Go-To sits at a mid-range price point. Products like Properly Clean and Transformazing are genuinely affordable. Face Hero is around $45 to $55 depending on size. The formulations are well-regarded, the brand is transparent about its ingredients and ethics, and the products have the kind of repeat-purchase review history that usually signals real-world results rather than just good marketing. The 30-day money-back guarantee, which applies to opened and used products, suggests the brand is confident enough in what it makes to back it up.
