The valley where French beauty is invented

As effective as thermomix, the robot no longer than a hand designed by Nelly Pitt is used to make at home creams, makeup remover, shampoos and other beauty hygiene products from recipes developed with a cosmetologist.All in less than 10 minutes."The longest is the weighing of the ingredients", explains this thirty -year -old engineer smiling, working in the nursery of young shoots of beauty installed in one of the classified hangars of the former CM 101 military camp of Chartres.Presented at the last CES of Las Vegas, the must in innovation, Beautymix has recently marketed online.And soon a Bluetooth version of the robot should see the light of day!

About a hundred kilometers to the south, in Orleans, Elodie Gataud made the honors of the production laboratory for the first rechargeable lipstick."From the composition of the grapes to that of its rechargeable leather and metal setting, everything has been designed for a more virtuous production, without microplastics, without preservatives and with a minimum of waste," explains the young woman who joinedThe red mouth as director of the color workshop in 2017, a year after its creation by a former marketer of L'Oréal, Nicolas Gerlier.In place of the traditional silicone teats that must be replaced all ten colors, the sticks are formed in a patented metal mold, inspired by those used for the manufacture of the shells of the First World War!

Elodie Gataud and her three colleagues actively prepare the writers intended for the launch of the brand in Hong Kong at Lane Crawford.In June, it will be Harrods then, at the end of the year, probably Japan and Korea.A rapid and promising international expansion for a luxury make -up accessory sold in a deliberately limited number of selective brands in France (cheap in Paris, jogging in Marseille) and New York (Barneys and Forty Five ten).

Beautymix and the red mouth did not choose their random implantation.In Chartres as in Orleans, these beauty start-ups have found the means to express their creativity and gain visibility, based on an ecosystem conducive to the development of French know-how that isExport: the Cosmetic Valley.On his own, the croissant formed by Chartres, Orléans and Tours ensures today the production of fifteen brands: Dior, Guerlain, Shiseido, but also Paco Rabanne and Nina Ricci (Puig group), Sisley or Caudalie produce herefor the whole world.Besides these well-known claws, a cloud of subcontractors has been established to provide raw materials, various tests, labels, packaging and logistics services.Today, start-ups flock, with the support of local authorities, specialized schools, CNRS, industrialists and universities in Tours and Orleans.The valuation of plants, respect for the environment, personalization and digital are at the heart of the purpose of this Cosmetic Valley.In total, 224 companies in the region, including 80% VSE-PME, participate in the reputation and Inteenrational success of beauty "Made in France".A reality very often overlooked by the general public, whose origins however go back to the Thirty Glorious.

The history of this valley begins while decentralization becomes the watchword of industrial policy and regional planning wanted by General de Gaulle.The big names in cosmetic perfumery will gradually transfer their production outside Paris, while remaining near the capital and its international airport, Orly.In 1973, Jean-Paul Guerlain was a part with Dior des pioneers of the Cosmetic Valley.It will be Chartres for Guerlain - Les Mesnuls, the immense family property, is located in the Rambouillet forest.The same year, Dior left Rueil-Malmaison for 55 hectares in Saint-Jean-de-Braye, a suburb of Orleans.The presence of a renowned university campus has also played a role in Dior's decision to implement the production of all its beauty range, research and part of the commercial services.

The ecosystem is gradually densified.On the model of the district of Udine furniture in Italy, which had made itself known to export by establishing a catalog common to all local artisans, Jean-Luc Ansel, director of economic development of Eure-Et-Loir, in 1994 went up a local network of around twenty players in the sector to develop orders including abroad.Jean-Paul Guerlain becomes the president, a master card to convince other companies.Dinners, business visits, congresses, participation in professional fairs, regulatory watch, job offers, the service range to ever more numerous members is enriched over the years.In 2005, the Professional Association became a program of competitiveness extended to seven departments (Eure-et-Loir, Indre-et-Loire, Loiret, Loir-et-Cher, Val-d'Oise, Yvelines, Eure) and three regions(Center, Île-de-France and Haute-Normandie)-totaling 800 companies-, adding to its production vocation a dimension turned towards research with the support of the CNRS and seven universities, Orleans at.With the progress of biology, genetics and neuroscience and this new public-private alliance, cosmetics confirms its scientific base.

Today, most brands capitalize on the solid growth of 5 to 7% per year of the global market fired by Asia and have means to support the movement both production and research.Among the most significant investments in the past three years: Guerlain has opened a factory in 2015 in Chartres dedicated to the production of care and makeup intended for export.With its 50 white rooms and its almost -sterile ventilation system, close to pharmaceutical standards, the hive - a nod to the bee's house emblem - is the ultimate in cosmetic production.

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Right opposite, Dior settled in 2018 in the former Korean premises Amore Pacific to produce its most upscale perfumes (Christian Dior house collection)."By the end of the year, the workforce of Chartres will almost double to reach a hundred people," notes Jean-Dominique Bosq, director of perfume operations Christian Dior.On the main site of Saint-Jean-de-Braye, the house on avenue Montaigne-which is the largest private employer in the department-provides for new developments, pending the acquisition of bordering plots.The packaging workshop of perfumes such as I love, joy and wild - among others - will multiply by two its surface.An innovation and industrialization platform will be implemented in September.Objective: bringing development and production teams closer upstream, while the innovation cycle is shortening and manufacturing is more and more complex.

Depuis l'ouverture en 2013 d'Helios, le centre de recherche commun à toutes les marques de parfumerie-cosmétiques du groupe LVMH (par ailleurs propriétaire des Echos), le processus de R&D a déjà bien évolué.Gathered under the same roof, the expertise of chemistry, physics, optics, materials, dermatology or biology combine to develop more "holistic" products, which are not only effectiveBut also bring well-being.Criteria claimed by the consumer."The latest generation of anti-aging Dreamskin care is particularly emblematic of this trend," says Bruno Bavouzet, director of the Christian Dior perfume research.As a makeup, this hybrid product brings brilliance to the skin in the short term by masking its imperfections thanks to the optical properties of three materials, while acting as a long -term care.

Reinforced competition

The big international names are not to be outdone, starting with Shiseido who aspires, under the keen on his new president Masahiko Uotani, to become world number 3. Entre le site de Giens ouvert en 1996 et celui d'Ormes - inauguré trois ans plus tard au nord-ouest d'Orléans -, l'Hexagone fabrique déjà les parfums maison (Serge Lutens, Shiseido) et les licences (Dolce & Gabbana, Narciso Rodriguez, etc.) for the whole world.Since 2016, Ormes has also been hosting the Group's World Perfumes Innovation Center.His team of researchers will double in two years to reach around sixty people.Their lines of work: performance in terms of outfit, remanence and wake.One of the major launches this year will mark, according to the President for the Europe-Africa region of North-Middle-East Franck Marilly, "a gesture revolution".A whole program, but this veteran of cosmetics will not say more, competition obliges.

This accent on innovation and the "made in France" is essential for France - the world's leading exporter of -cosmetic perfumes (25% market share) - to combat reinforced competition.In Japan, South Korea, China, Taiwan, Thailand and soon in Russia, the concept of the Cosmetic Valley is a school.In a “soft power” approach, French network managers willingly play the role of advice when they are asked, as in Japan.They also organize each year since 2013, Cosmetic 360, an innovation fair in perfumery-cosmetics, to continue to give the la, including on the theme of digital."The rise of China has changed the proportions of the world market, but on the quality side, France still has a train in advance," says Marc-Antoine Jamet, president of the Cosmetic Valley.If we do not arrive first in slalom or downhill, we win the events combined with the best value for money.Our talisman on external markets: the authenticity of products, performance, quality of innovation and consumer safety."To remain the leader," we have to be good in congresses, training, scientific research, applied research as well as in our ability to take SMEs to export, "he insists.

The very recent designation by the State of the Cosmetic Valley as a national coordinator of the perfume-cosmetics sector gives it even more legitimacy and visibility.Ultimately, nearly 1,500 companies throughout the territory it can offer its services.This new mission naturally helps the competitiveness center in its international ambitions.He has already taken the initiative in 2016 to establish a cooperation network for innovation with very varied actors: Japan Cosmetic Center, Beauty Valley in Taiwan, Center for Tissus and Development Engineering and TestsSwitzerland, cluster of essential oils in Madagascar.Each year, the members of this Global Cosmetics Cluster meet on the sidelines of the Cosmetic 360 show.Since 2016, the network has been enriched with three new clusters in Canada, Bolivia and Malaysia.

In Europe, the Cosmetic Valley is also mobilizing."We strive to become a European pole, points Marc-Antoine Jamet, relying in particular on the Beauty Cluster of Barcelona, the Lifestyle cluster in Romania and the Region Beira Baixa association in Portugal."Objective:" Supporting SMEs to the Great Export markets by developing innovative transversal partnerships between cosmetics and health, food or even digital transition.»Quest for new raw materials and technologies, network with research organizations, market prospecting and export training, the range is wide in the name of a well understood mutual interest.