Seven years. That's how long it took us to perfect British Summer Time SPF. So when we tell you Bonne Nuit took nearly as long and almost broke us in the process, you'll understand we don't do things by halves.
This is the story of our first night cream. A formula so ambitious it pushed our London lab to its limits.
The night cream that wouldn't sleep
"Ironically, the process of getting this product right caused a few sleepless nights for many of us," says Kasia, Pai's Production Manager. "We could all have done with using Bonne Nuit back then. But now I can relax, knowing that my skin is being treated the best possible way overnight."
Every Pai launch brings its own drama. We've reformulated products 14 times before getting the texture right. We've sourced ingredients from five continents to find the exact extraction method we need. But Bonne Nuit was different.
This wasn't just another moisturiser with "PM" on the label. We were creating something that works with your skin's circadian rhythm. A cream that filters blue light from screens. Natural peptides that stimulate collagen while you sleep. Melatonin-mimicking ingredients that help both you and your skin properly rest.
Why we don't do standard night creams
"A luxurious, all-natural night cream was an obvious next step for us," explains Sarah, Pai's Founder. "But as a long term urticaria sufferer, I know first-hand that happy, healthy skin needs to be tackled from inside and out and back to front. You can't only consider topical ingredients."
Here's what most night creams miss: sleep quality affects skin health as much as any serum or cream. Poor sleep triggers inflammation. Blue light from screens disrupts your natural repair cycle. Your skin has its own circadian rhythm, and if you're not supporting it, you're fighting with one hand tied behind your back.
"Bonne Nuit isn't just our first night cream. It's our first ever product that considers the important role of sleep in supporting ageing skin. So it is holistic and multidimensional in its approach."
The formula that broke our factory
Our Research & Development team spent years on this. Not because we're slow, but because we're stubborn about doing things properly.
"We had to do something new and innovative to set ours apart from other night creams," says John, our Head of R&D. "We identified some key areas to target and had to find the right ingredients to deliver these benefits."
The shopping list was ambitious. Natural peptides (most are synthetic). Blue light protection. Microbiome support. All while maintaining our COSMOS organic certification. Finding ingredients that tick one box is hard. Finding ones that tick all four? That's why it took years.
"As we only use natural and organic ingredients, we go the extra mile to find the very best compared to what is widely available in the cosmetics industry," John explains. "Although this makes it more difficult, it is very satisfying when we do develop a product that meets all of our strict certifications, and is still in our opinion better than ones made by global luxury brands."
The formula they created was brilliant. Getting it out of the lab? That's where things went sideways.
When 500 litres won't behave
"Bonne Nuit has been the most difficult product so far to scale-up from lab to large-scale production," admits Kasia. Translation: what works in a 100ml beaker doesn't always work in a 500-litre tank.
The high oil content was the culprit. In small batches, everything blended beautifully. Scale it up, and the oils refused to cooperate. We tried our smaller vessel first. Two batches failed.
"As the product contains a high amount of oils, we decided to reduce the batch size to the minimum that can be produced, for more power during homogenisation."
Good theory. Still didn't work.
By this point, we'd announced the launch date. Told our retail partners. Scheduled the marketing. The entire team was holding their breath.
"We tried different speeds of mixing, and different cooling processes," says Kasia. "Then we moved on to our new 500-litre product mixer, as the complexity of the formulation and the manufacturing process would obviously not work in our smaller vessel."
The new equipment helped, but it still wasn't perfect. The Ops Director, Head of R&D, Ops Manager, Quality Manager and Production Manager spent days watching cream spin in circles, adjusting temperatures by single degrees, changing mixing speeds by tiny increments.
"The R&D team did some more work on the formula, considering what could be done using our equipment. And that's when we got our first successful large-scale batch. And I guess the rest is history!"
The ingredients worth waiting for
While production wrestled with physics, our supply chain team sourced ingredients we'd never used before. This wasn't just finding suppliers. This was finding partners who understood why we needed CO2-extracted gardenia, not steam-distilled. Why the peptides had to come from yeast fermentation, not synthetic production.
"As a skincare brand, we need to continually evolve with the technology and ingredient advances out there, delivering the best that natural science can offer," Sarah explains.
The final formula reads like a wishlist of biotech innovation. Natural peptides that actually exist (rare). Gardenia extract that filters blue light and delivers microbiome-activated melatonin-mimicking molecules (unprecedented in natural skincare). Zero waste oils. The most sustainable natural ingredients, with almost zero carbon footprint.
"We are one of the only brands using all-natural peptides that come from biotechnology, which is the future!"
It comes back to our philosophy: sensitive skincare without compromise. Just because your skin is reactive doesn't mean you should miss out on cutting-edge actives.
A name born from exhaustion
After years of development and months of production trials, choosing the name was surprisingly simple. Ed, Pai's Co-Founder, explains how it came about during peak chaos.
"At the time of coming up with the name we were in lockdown, raising money for the business, dealing with Brexit and homeschooling. Neither Sarah nor I were sleeping well for the first time ever."
Running a business with your partner during a pandemic while your factory can't make your most ambitious product? The stress was showing.
"It was the realisation that we were running on empty, we had to make some time for ourselves, had to separate work from home life, and had to find moments where we could relax and de-stress. Difficult when you live with your business partner!"
"What we really needed was a good night's sleep. Or as my parents used to say, Bonne Nuit. It was the perfect name."
Pai means 'good' in Māori. "This was also our way of saying we wanted a 'Pai night'. Not a one-dimensional anti-ageing cream, but a product that worked for us and our customers. One that helps with skin, helps with sensitivity, helps with sleep, helps with mood, helps with life."
Sometimes the best ideas come when you stop trying so hard. After years of complexity, the simple truth won. Everyone needs better sleep. Your skin included.
Ready to give your skin the rest it deserves? Shop Bonne Nuit BioPeptide Night Cream and discover what a proper nighttime routine can do for your complexion.
Frequently Asked Questions
What makes Bonne Nuit different from a standard anti-ageing night cream?
Bonne Nuit is multidimensional. Beyond hydrating and helping to smooth fine lines, it includes melatonin-mimicking Gardenia extract that filters blue light and supports the skin's overnight repair cycle. As Pai's founder Sarah explains, it's the brand's first product designed to consider the role of sleep itself in supporting ageing skin, not just topical treatment.
Why did Bonne Nuit take so long to develop?
The formula's complexity made scaling from lab to full production extremely difficult. Two initial batches failed because the high oil content required more power during homogenisation than Pai's smaller vessel could deliver. The team ultimately moved to a new 500-litre mixer and worked with R&D to adjust the formula before achieving a successful large-scale batch.
What kind of peptide does Bonne Nuit use, and why does it matter?
Bonne Nuit contains Hexapeptide-11, a yeast-derived natural BioPeptide that's COSMOS approved for certified organic formulations. Published research shows it stimulates collagen and elastin synthesis and promotes fibroblast function. Most peptide-driven night creams rely on synthetic peptides, so using a biotech-derived natural alternative at this performance level is genuinely unusual.
Is Bonne Nuit suitable for sensitive skin?
Yes. It's been 96-hour patch tested for tolerance, including on volunteers with reactive skin. The formula is certified COSMOS Organic, free from parabens, silicones, sulfates and other common irritants, and is dermatologist tested and approved. Pai's founder developed the brand specifically because of her own urticaria, so sensitivity is baked into every formulation decision.
How does the Gardenia extract in Bonne Nuit support better sleep?
Gardenia jasminoides extract is rich in crocin, which physically absorbs blue light wavelengths that disrupt your skin's natural melatonin production. Once on the skin, crocin is converted by the skin's microflora into crocetin, which binds to melatonin receptors with affinity close to melatonin itself. Clinical testing showed a 21% reduction in wrinkle number versus placebo at 56 days.
