How Clarins Is Reformulating Its Hero Product (And Its Business)

In Southern France, generations of Provençals have found uses for the region’s bamboo-like “great reeds,” known for their oversized plumes and stubborn spread across gardens, pastures and the coastline-blocking stone cottages from the Mistral wind along with many million-dollar views.

The reeds have been made into fences and fishing poles, pan-flutes and tinctures for treating gout — and now skincare, as French brand Clarins prepares to roll out the ninth version of its flagship Double Serum line. The company claims the great reed activates genes that resist environmental damage to skin, and sought to prove this by carrying out a study on 30 sets of identical twins demonstrating that those who adopted the serum displayed reduced lifestyle impact to skin ageing.

Clarins hopes to boost sales of the Double Serum line by as much as 40 percent in the second half of the year as it rolls out the new formula, associated advertising campaign and study results to its global distribution network (including 135 directly-operated stores) from August. “It’s a big, big launch,” chief executive Jonathan Zrihen said.

First launched in 1985 as a two-step routine, Double Serum cemented its position in prestige skincare’s pantheon in the late 1990s after the company introduced a two-in-one bottle, whose pump mixes water soluble and oily ingredients on the spot. The serum has since grown into one of the world’s best-selling skincare items—it’s the best-selling face serum in Europe, and number 3 worldwide, the company estimates citing data from market research firms Circana and Beauté Research.

Record Results

The hero product has helped to lift sales at family-owned Clarins. Despite a hefty reliance on travel retail and spas, Clarins held up well during 2020′s coronavirus lockdowns as consumers flocked to trusted, established brands and interest in serums and other multi-step skincare routines bloomed.

As the world opened back up, luxury brands and travel shopping both took off. Clarins’ revenues climbed back above pre-pandemic levels as soon as 2021, then continued to grow in both 2022 and 2023, Zrihen said.

Sales rose 8 percent last year to nearly €2 billion ($2.17 billion), the company says – its best-ever year.

While the company has other signature products — a line of lip oils, Total Eye Lift cream, a “firming” moisturiser for men, a body care line known for its tightening sensation — Double Serum has progressively taken the lead to become the company’s hero product by a mile.

The ninth generation of Double Serum is nearly identical in its branding and package design, aside from a thicker bottle with rounded edges (which looks a bit more expensive). But the formula has been updated to keep up with innovations and trends in the skincare space: Vitamin E, peptides, hyaluronic acid and vegetable squalane have been added alongside additional plant extracts including teasel, turmeric in addition to “great reed.” The new ingredients lift the number of active plant extracts in the serum to 22.

The focus on evolution, not revolution, is part of Clarins’ long-time strategy to build a global brand around scientific innovation, natural extracts, Frenchness and luxury. The family-owned company founded in 1954 faces fierce challengers on every side, including from La Roche Posay for science and Frenchness, Tata Harper and Aesop for naturality and Dior and Augustinus Bader for luxury. But the company has been uniquely successful at straddling and blending those commercially potent messages.

Promotions on TikTok have helped the brand reach a new generation of customers, with the hashtag #doubleserum garnering 146 million views, according to social listeninh firm Spate. Clarins is experiencing “strong success” via partnerships with a variety of influencers linked to their various claims, Spate’s founder Yarden Horwitz said. “Someone like Nara Smith tends to represent “clean” products, whereas Mikayla [Nogueira] may be more about efficacy.” Another top voice for the brand, Alix Earle, is more associated accessible luxury beauty brands, Horwitz added.

Next Generation

Like the Double Serum, Clarins’ finances and leadership have also been gradually reformulated behind the scenes.

In 2019, the company sold off its fragrance and fashion division operating Mugler and Azzaro, which then had estimated annual sales of around €400 million, to L’Oréal.

The windfall from the deal has been partly reinvested in the Clarins brand, helping to accelerate retail expansion. The company now operates 135 stores, up from less than 25 when Zrihen took over as CEO in 2015, as well as online flagships in 29 markets.

“Stores allow us to take a holistic approach with customers,” Zrihen said.

The Clarins family also reconfigured its efforts to diversify into other brands, investing in beauty upstarts via their family office Famille C rather than operating them within the Clarins structure. The investment unit has made bets on Pai Skincare, Ilia Beauty, Ceremonia and Joone, as well as marketing data consultancy Launchmetrics and luxury hotel group Evok.

In 2022, the privately-owned business (which delisted from the Paris Bourse in 2008) also passed on control to its next generation: 39 year-old Virginie Courtin now serves as the managing director of Clarins, while her cousin Prisca Courtin leads Famille C.

Courtin-Clarins said the family will never sell the company, and are uninterested in taking on outside investors again. “Being 100 percent family-owned is a big strength. We can really invest in our future,” she said. “Every decision is made with the view of passing to the next generation.”

For now, that future involves putting the company’s full support behind growing iconic lines like Double Serum, while simultaneously ramping up efforts to expand makeup.

Clarins’ hit coloured lip oil, which the company launched in 2015, shows that customers are increasingly interested in items that bridge the gap between skincare and makeup. The brand has followed up with tinted serums, bronzers and SPF foundations, driving makeup sales up 30 percent year-to-date — on top of a 40 percent jump last year — Zrihen said.

Clarins is set to continue its retail push. With direct-to-consumer sales now representing roughly one-quarter of sales, Clarins is targeting a store count of 200 in the mid-term.

Clarins is also working to vertically integrate its supply chain following the acquisition of a second French farm near Nîmes this spring. The company aims to cultivate one-third of its plant ingredients on its own farms by 2030, Courtin-Clarins said.

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Editor’s note: A previous version of this piece referred to Virginie Courtin as chair of Clarins. She is managing director.