LE ROUGE FRANÇAIS

Founding stories are often marked by a personal «disruption». This is also true in the case of Le Rouge Français and Elodie Carpentier. A biotech engineer, she first had the idea of creating decorative cosmetics using botanical colorings and treatment ingredients when she was pregnant with her daughter. During that exceptional period she began to look more closely and carefully at the ingredients of the products she was putting on her skin every day. She studied the list of contents and discovered that over 90 percent of the pigments used to color conventional make-up products are based on mineral oil. Elodie Carpentier had worked for a long time in the pharmaceuticals industry and had a keen interest in health and botany – a firm foundation for the development of a make-up line that goes well beyond mainstream standards.

It would be three years before the innovative technology behind Le Rouge Français was patented. The brand blazes new trails in decorative cosmetics, using pigments from purely botanical sources, such as red radish, violet corn and elderberry, all of which bring special treatment benefits as well. The absolutely innovative approach results in formulations that are not only more environmentally friendly than conventional lipsticks, they also pamper the lips with high quality vegetable oils. As a formally trained druggist, I find a further aspect especially compelling: in keeping with the credo of phyto-therapy, Le Rouge Français goes out of its way to always use the plant in its entirety. So instead of just using the parts required for pigmentation all active ingredients that offer skin and application advantages are also added to the mix. That is, in addition to the colorful blossoms, the leaves, roots or even bark of the plant are included.

Le Rouge Français goes one step further, doing away completely with mica, a whole class of mineral-based pigments often added to conventional formulations to affect a radiant glow. That looks nice, but has a significant drawback: mica is a non-renewable resource that is also mined under controversial conditions. Le Rouge Français has thus determined to forgo the mineral glimmer. A good decision! Another bonus: the products are vegan and are not tested on animals.

Le Rouge Français is also uncompromising when it comes to the packaging. Every lipstick color can be refilled in a reusable transparent case made of a castor oil-based plastic.

In the fall of 2023 the curtain rose on the debut of Rouge Opéra. Le Rouge Français, in collaboration with the Opéra national de Paris, created a make-up collection inspired by the characteristic red of the famous Palais Garnier opera house. The iconic red lipstick in the shade Alizarine appears in a vegan wrap made of patented apple skin leather. Here, too, a renewable raw material – coupled with a luxurious feel on the lips!

My résumé: with its game-changing approach Le Rouge Français displays 360˚ savoir-faire and is an ideal addition to the Spitzenhaus assortment. The brand proves that it is possible to successfully meld clean formulas, sophisticated aesthetics and luxury – utterly without compromise. Once you’ve seen the colors shine “in person” and have felt the textures for yourself I’m sure you’ll agree. Stop by for a visit!