Pretty Little Liars alum and entrepreneur Shay Mitchell is facing swift blowback after announcing a new venture: a skincare line explicitly designed for children. The star revealed the brand on November 5 via Instagram, teasing an imminent launch and igniting a debate over whether beauty products should be marketed to kids at all.
Shay Mitchell Announces Kids-Focused Skincare Brand rini
Mitchell introduced the company with a soft-launch teaser on her Instagram grid, sharing an image of a young girl — believed to be her daughter — placing a pink jelly face mask on her face. In the caption, Mitchell wrote, "Something gentle, something new — launching tomorrow," and tagged the brand’s official account, @rini.
On its own profile, rini presents its mission without ambiguity. The bio reads: "Consciously Crafted in Korea, Just for Kids!" The account’s first post features a video of Mitchell and her longtime friend and co-founder Esther Song explaining why they built the line, intercut with footage of children modeling what appear to be the brand’s products.
In the clip, Mitchell says the idea stemmed from a moment at home. As her daughter grew older, she began asking to try a face mask alongside her mom. That curiosity prompted Mitchell to read the ingredient lists on the masks she used regularly — and to question why there weren’t options specifically formulated for young skin. The result, according to the video, was to develop kid-safe versions crafted with gentler ingredients.
Backlash Over Marketing Skincare To Children
While Mitchell framed rini as a solution born from a family ritual, the reaction online has been polarizing. Many commenters expressed concern that introducing children to skincare through branded products could inadvertently normalize beauty standards for a demographic too young to need them.
"I’m deeply disappointed. Why are we projecting beauty standards onto children now?" one Instagram user wrote on Mitchell’s announcement post. Another commenter pointed to broader economic pressures, suggesting the timing and positioning felt out of step: "Yikes. Maybe read the room? People are losing healthcare and food benefits… maybe not the best time to sell skin care for toddlers."
The pushback wasn’t limited to individual users. A note from the brand account for Orora Skin weighed in on the post, arguing that children’s skin needs minimal intervention. "Children do not need this kind of skincare. They need very simple ingredients as they are still growing and developing. Of course I’d like to see the ingredients of this before passing judgements but we all need to protect our kids from this skincare trend which is doing more harm than good to them long term," the comment read.
The criticism aligns with a broader, ongoing conversation on social media about youth-oriented beauty trends and the rise of elaborate skincare routines among tweens. Concerns often center on the message such marketing sends, as well as the potential for overuse of products that aren’t necessary for healthy young skin.
Supporters Argue Safety And Supervision Matter
Not everyone saw rini as problematic. Some parents in the comments defended the idea, arguing that if kids are already curious about skincare because they see it modeled at home, having a brand that explicitly formulates for young skin could be a safer alternative than sharing adult products.
"Kids often look up to their parents and want to try the things they do. I don’t think it’s a terrible idea as long as it’s kid-friendly ingredients," one fan wrote. That perspective suggests a supervised, pared-back approach could help avoid harsher actives and unnecessary steps that proliferate in adult regimens.
Mitchell has not addressed the backlash directly, but she has engaged with some of the support. The actor liked several comments defending the concept, including the message emphasizing kid-friendly ingredients and parental guidance. As of publication, neither Mitchell nor the rini account has issued a formal response to the negative feedback or released a complete ingredients list.
What rini Reveals About The Kids Skincare Debate
Mitchell’s announcement taps into a tense fault line in the beauty space: the line between playful self-care rituals and the commercialization of appearance for children. The brand’s "Consciously Crafted in Korea" positioning nods to K-beauty’s reputation for gentle textures and sensorial formulas, while the "Just for Kids" tagline makes its target audience clear. That clarity is exactly what some critics find troubling — and what supporters say could encourage better, safer choices.
Even among adults, dermatologists often recommend simple routines focused on cleansing, moisturizing, and sunscreen. For kids, many experts generally advocate even less: mild cleansers and basic hydration only when needed, avoiding potent actives unless prescribed. Without a full ingredient breakdown from rini, skepticism from commenters isn’t surprising. Conversely, parents open to the idea point to the reality that children frequently emulate household habits, and curated options could reduce the risk of irritation from adult-centric products.
For Mitchell, who has built a reputation as a savvy founder in the lifestyle space, the rollout underscores how quickly brand messaging can collide with cultural flashpoints. Her previous ventures have leaned into functionality and lifestyle utility; with rini, the scrutiny is sharper because the audience is younger and the category is more sensitive.
Mitchell’s original post teased that rini would launch "tomorrow" relative to the November 5 announcement. As the brand moves forward, transparency around formulations, age guidance, and usage recommendations may determine whether skeptics are swayed or the criticism continues. For now, rini’s debut has sparked a heated, highly visible conversation about where childhood curiosity ends and targeted beauty marketing begins.
