When a medical enthusiast invented an herbal oil for scars (and more) and a cosmetics company was born

The figures speak for themselves: is the leading cosmetic company in France and in many other European countries in the sale of skin care products, is distributed in 150 countries and has 8,500 employees. Not only. In 2023, its makeup products were up a whopping 40%. We’re talking about Clarins, which this year celebrates its 70th birthday. But he doesn’t show them, especially if we chat with his general director, La splendid and bubbly Virginie Courtin-Clarins, thirty-eight year-old co-owner of the brand together with his father Christian, his uncle Olivier, his sister and his cousins.

Clarins effectively it has been a family business since its origins: founded by grandfather Jacques, who opened his beauty salon in Paris in 1954 and created the first, iconic products to best treat customers, then managed by his two sons, it is now passing into the hands of the third generation, made up of four girls, one more charming than the other.

Jacques Courtin-Clarins with his sons Christian on the left and Olivier on the right

«In fact, grandfather was very proud of us granddaughters. He took us to lunch at Racing (a super chic tennis club in Neuilly, just outside Paris) and said that everyone envied him because of how pretty we were. I’m the eldest of the four. And since he had only had two sons, he was very close to me. He was a brilliant man and taught us everything, also because he loved telling and explaining.”

Jacques Courtin-Clarins with his four granddaughters

Let’s start from the beginning. «Grandpa wanted to become a doctor. But he came from a very modest family and he had to interrupt his medical studies to start working. However, while he was interning in the hospital immediately after the war, he noticed that the wounds were stitched up without any attention to aesthetics. So, when he opened his salon, he started doing massages to improve scars, removing edema and adhesions. AND he understood that taking care of the aesthetic aspect is essential for well-being. Therefore from the scars he moved on to taking care of the beauty of the face and body. And since he was not satisfied with the products he had available, he decided to create the ones he needed himself. Thus the first Clarins oils were born, the formula of which has remained unchanged. He was a great scholar of plants and their properties, so he wanted products based on natural extracts. She also created the 90 specific gestures to apply his soin and explained them to the trainers until the end.”

What are the most important products designed by your grandfather Jacques? «First of all, the Double Sérum. He had created a formula with two textures that he couldn’t mix. The suppliers told him it was impossible to do so. He didn’t give up and put the two emulsions on sale in two separate vials. The customer then had to mix them with a dropper. Today, obviously the Double Sérum is all in a single bottle and with each press the right dose of serum comes out, but his way of proceeding taught me not to be discouraged, to think that we can get there where it would seem impossible. Grandfather’s other stroke of genius was inventing an anti-pollution complex thirty years ago. He had a white car, with which he traveled every day. One evening he noticed that a dark patina remained on the bodywork and he thought about the leather, which needed to be protected from dust and polluting particles. He formulated this complex and Clarins was the first company to include it in a cosmetic. Even today, moreover, all our day creams contain it, in a version improved over time.”

Which the secret of success so broad and durable of this cosmetic company? «Listening to everyoneof customers as well as employees and respect for everyone, even in prices. We want to give the best ingredients at the best price. For us, the quality and naturalness of the products are very important. Unlike many others, we have our own laboratories, with 120 researchers and we develop our own ingredients. To avoid waste, we have been recovering parts not used by the food industry for some time (avocado, raspberry, coffee grounds, saffron) and obtaining treatment active ingredients from them.” So use upcycled products. «Yes, but not as a marketing argument, but because we really believe in sustainability and in our duty to contribute to it.”

I know you are also very involved in charity. «We believe a lot in “give back”, in giving back at least part of what we earn. And we have always had three pillars that represent us: the protection of children, health and biodiversity. As for children, in the last ten years we distributed 41 million meals in schools in around twenty of the poorest countries in the world. Sometimes it’s the only meal they have during the day. In my travels to Benin and Zambia I saw children crying before holidays, because they know that they won’t eat outside of school.”

Virginie Courtin-Clarins

«In this way, however, there are countries where even girls who were not sent there before have come to attend school. This is how they feed themselves and become literate at the same time. And we want to reach 80 million meals in the next few years. We also support women with cancer and we have a foundation, created by my grandfather, which finances research into arthritis, which my grandmother suffered from.”

As far as sustainability is concerned, «Clarins has opened an ecobar in Paris, in the worldly Marais district, where you can refill the Eau Dynamisante and the Eau Extraordinaire. Detergents and lotions are now also refillable and from next year all our packs will be recyclable. Furthermore, empty plastic bottles can be deposited at our stores: in 2023 we collected 42 tons and we have agreements with local companies for recycling.”

Finally, what is your favorite product? «Huile Tonique, without a doubt. I had a twin pregnancy and I gained 32 kilos. I was terrified of stretch marks, which had already occurred to me in adolescence. Therefore I used I don’t know how many bottles of Huile Tonique and not a single one came on my stomach. The midwives told me I was a unique case. It has remained my favorite product and I still use it every day.”