Korres, the Greek Pharmacy Brand That Began With a Syrup

George Korres was a pharmacist in Athens who began working at an old homeopathic pharmacy in 1989. He took it over in 1992, built a lab, and in 1996 launched the first product under his own name: an aromatic herbal syrup with honey and aniseed, inspired by the rakomelo his grandfather made on Naxos. That is the origin of korres, and it explains a lot. The brand still talks like a pharmacy, with the ingredient named first and the product built around it. Greek Yoghurt, Black Pine, Santorini Grape, Wild Rose and Golden Krocus are all Korres lines.

You can see that in how the range is organized. That habit is why the range is easier to shop than most. You are choosing an ingredient story first, and a product second.

The first grid is the face care, from a foaming cleanser to a saffron serum. The second is everything else: body creams and oils, lip products and two fragrances.

Here is a trick I like: choose a line, not a single product. If you try the Greek yoghurt cleanser, gel-cream and serum together, you will know in two weeks whether the idea suits your skin, and you will not have a shelf of half-used experiments.

The Korres Greek yoghurt line is the gentle one. The Probiotic Foaming Cream Cleanser is a soap-free cream to foam formula with upcycled oat milk that the brand says is suitable even for the eye area. The Probiotic Gel-Cream is a lightweight moisturizer for all skin types, including sensitive, built around what the brand calls Smart Yoghurt Technology. The Probiotic Super Serum uses the same technology for hydration and soothing.

Black pine is the firming line. The Bounce Firming Moisturizer is meant to plump and reduce the look of fine lines, with black pine polyphenols. The Plump-Up Sleeping Facial is a rich night cream in a jar, made to refill hydration overnight.

The Santorini Grape Poreless Skin Perfecting Toner is the exfoliating one, with AHA and BHA to tighten the look of enlarged pores. The brand warns that it can increase sun sensitivity. The Apothecary Wild Rose Brightening Sleeping Facial is the one described as a cult favorite, a night cream meant to brighten dull skin by morning.

Golden Krocus Ageless Saffron Elixir is the most unusual. The brand says the saffron extract is harvested only one day per year from the Golden Krocus flower and captured immediately.

Here is a pairing I like: yoghurt cleanser at night, then one of the sleeping facials.

What I would skip: the grape toner if your skin is easily irritated. If you do use it, wear sunscreen, since the brand warns it can increase sensitivity to the sun.

The Korres body care leans on Greek olive. The Pure Greek Olive Body Cream in Olive Blossom is a fast-absorbing lotion with pure Greek olive oil. The Pure Greek Olive 3-In-1 Nourishing Oil is described as an all-in-one for skin from head to toe. The Body Milk Mediterranean Vanilla Blossom is a silky, fast-absorbing milk with organic Greek almond oil that the brand says locks in moisture without heaviness.

The Aegean Bronze Shimmering Dry Oil is a lightweight multi-use oil with fine shimmer for a sun-kissed glow. It is scented with the same Aegean Bronze signature as the Eau de Parfum, which adds notes of cedar, bergamot, freesia, vanilla, burnt sugar, frangipani and musk. The Eau de Toilette White Tea is the fresher one, with bergamot, neroli, jasmine, peony, white tea and cedarwood.

For lips there are two. The Lip Butter Stick in Wild Rose Tinted has Greek balsam oil and vitamin E for dry lips. The True Lip Shine in Pomegranate is a glossy balm with pomegranate flower extract and castor oil, with no silicones, mineral oil or talc.

Here is a test I like: layer the body milk or cream with the matching scent and see if it lasts through the day, before you commit to a perfume.

What I would skip: wearing the Aegean Bronze dry oil and the Aegean Bronze parfum on the same day unless you really love that scent. One is plenty, and it makes the scent easier to judge.

I think Korres is at its best when you treat it like a pharmacy: pick the one thing you need. The Greek yoghurt gel-cream if your skin is easily upset, the olive body cream if you are dry, the lip shine if you want something small.

My rule is one new product at a time, for two weeks. Add the second only when the first has earned it, and stay inside the same line so you can tell what is working. Then the next Korres jar is a choice, not a guess. If you want to keep browsing, I also put together Mykonos Perfume.