su:m37° Secret Essence
Read by Its Ingredients

Updated July 2026 · Beauty Dupe editorial

su:m37° Secret Essence shows its character in the ingredient list itself. After water and a few humectants, the list fills with fermented ingredients. More than ten ferment filtrates run in a row, made from pear juice, barley, ginseng and soybean fermented with lactobacillus or yeast. That block of ferments is what sets this essence apart. Niacinamide, hyaluronic acid and a ceramide follow, and how much of each is present only shows as you read down the order.

The basics

The signature blend

This essence is light and water based, without heavy oils or butters. It opens with water, then humectants like dipropylene glycol, glycerin and butylene glycol fill the top of the list. A meadowsweet flower extract and ferulic acid, an antioxidant, come next.

After the humectants, the ferment filtrates begin. More than ten sit near the front, made from pear juice, barley seed, ginseng root, soybean and rice fermented with lactobacillus or yeast, and placing that many ferments this high is what marks the formula. Plant extracts like licorice and centella come after them, then ceramide NP, cholesterol and phospholipids bring in barrier lipids, with niacinamide and hyaluronic acid nearby.

The core: ferments, hydration and barrier

The ferments stand out most. Saccharomyces ferment filtrate comes from yeast fermentation and is common in essences meant to smooth skin texture. Ferments from pear, ginseng and soybean sit alongside it. Ferment ingredients are common in K-beauty essences, but what they do on the skin varies by ingredient and the evidence is still limited. None of them is a brightening or anti-wrinkle active notified by Korea's MFDS.

Ferulic acid handles antioxidant care. It comes from plants and is known to help stabilize vitamins C and E when used together. It is not a notified functional active either, and at ninth on the list it sits fairly high, ahead of the ferments.

Hydration is shared across several ingredients. Hyaluronic acid pulls in and holds water, so it forms a thin film of moisture and helps skin feel soft and smooth. Rice extract is used for tone and hydration, and glycerin and betaine add water alongside them.

Ceramide is a lipid that helps form the skin's outer protective layer and holds water in, and it is often suggested for dry or sensitive skin. Here it comes with cholesterol and phospholipids, so the formula carries a few of the lipids that make up the skin barrier.

Where the ingredients cluster, and where they don't

Sorted by what they target, the ingredients cluster around hydration and the skin barrier. Several humectants hold water, ceramide and cholesterol add barrier lipids, and the ferments fill the middle of the list. Niacinamide and licorice root add a mild brightening role, and centella and purslane add some soothing.

Exfoliation and UV are not represented, and there is no retinoid or acid, the actives with a deeper research record.

Amount matters too. Ingredients are listed from most to least, but below 1% the order stops tracking the amount closely. Here the fragrance components, usually used well under 1%, gather near the end around 44th, while the actives people look for sit ahead of them: niacinamide at 31st, hyaluronic acid at 32nd and the ceramide at 33rd. The ferment filtrates and ferulic acid sit higher still, between 9th and 20th. Order alone cannot pin down the amount, but the marquee ingredients are not pushed to the very bottom of the list.

So it reads less as one strong active and more as a spread of ferments with hydrating and barrier ingredients, weighted toward moisture and skin texture. If you want the rule behind reading a list, the 1% rule on ingredient lists covers it.

What to note

This essence contains fragrance from plant oils like lavender, bergamot and geranium, and scent components such as limonene, linalool and citronellol are listed too. If you are sensitive to fragrance, check the list before you use it. It does not use parabens, silicones or mineral oil.

Whose skin it suits

The texture is light and water based, so it layers well on skin that finds oil heavy or in a routine of thin layers. It is worth a look if you want ferments together with hydrating and barrier ingredients.

It has fragrance, so if you are sensitive to scent or have reactive skin, try a small amount first. On its ingredients alone, it reads as an essence weighted toward ferments and hydration.

How to read this blend

So Secret Essence reads as a light essence led by ferment filtrates, with hydrating and barrier ingredients on top. The number of ferments stands out, but the niacinamide, hyaluronic acid and ceramide are not hard to find in essences from other brands. If you want to check what is in a product you already use, the button below runs the AI breakdown.

Frequently asked questions

This analysis is for general information. Check the product packaging for the actual ingredient list.
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