Chantecaille shows how it’s staying ahead of the curve, from using clean ingredients to championing environmental causes through its products.
The ongoing pandemic has changed our lives forever. One thing is for sure though: 2020 will be a year to remember.
But it hasn’t been all gloom and doom. All around the world, lockdowns have resulted in a greener reality: reduced pollution, bluer skies, the return of wildlife.
Even as we marvelled at these changes, we also quickly realised how intertwined our lives are with the environment, and how intricate the relationship between Mother Nature and mankind is.
From skincare and makeup, to food, we asked questions about environmental impact, social causes and sustainability, and what companies are doing in response to these issues.
In fact, a 2018 AC Nielsen global survey found that 80 per cent of Gen Zs (those born between 1995 and 2015) feel strongly that companies should help the environment. And corporations are starting to listen.
The business of beauty: Chantecaille’s way
While some companies are just beginning to look into sustainability, one brand has always been ahead of the curve: Chantecaille. Sustainability has been the French luxury beauty brand’s mission since Day One. And that started 23 years ago, with its founder Sylvie Chantecaille at the helm.
The brand, known for using clean, organic and sustainably sourced active ingredients, pioneered the use of plant stem cell technology in its skincare formulas.
Sylvie says stem cells are the ultimate sustainable active ingredient. The reason: They’re cultivated in the Chantecaille lab, not grown over large swathes of land, which could otherwise be used to plant food crops. There are also huge water savings as well.
This also means that the brand has access to an unlimited supply of active ingredients – without destroying any plants or the land when it comes to harvesting time. It’s a clever way to minimise the environmental impact of producing its skincare products.
In addition, Sylvie explains that when you cultivate a plant in the lab, you can help develop its beneficial properties further – something not easily done if the plants were grown in the fields.
And being grown bio-synthetically allows more control over other aspects, such as consistency, ensuring that the brand is able to not only gather high quality concentrated active ingredients but also create products that deliver real results.
This is where the Chantecaille Bio Lifting collection comes in. Its products utilise the greatest variety of plant stem cells – 15 different ones, such as raspberry, caffeine-free coffee and plantago.
The range addresses the various signs of ageing, from wrinkles and dryness to increased skin sensitivity and inflammation.
In addition to stem cell extracts, the Bio Lifting collection also uses an anti-wrinkle hexapeptide, a chain of six amino acids, to help soften the look of existing lines.
“With stem cells, first it started with the skincare. But now, we’ve included it in makeup as well,” says Sylvie. The Real Skin+ stick foundation, launched in 2019, contains raspberry and hibiscus stem cells, which offer hydrating and anti-ageing benefits for skin, while giving it a flawless finish.
Embracing “Cause-metics”
At Chantecaille, sustainability goes beyond products. Sylvie herself is a professed nature lover and it’s why the brand has been aligning its seasonal makeup collections with different environmental causes since 2006. “You need to protect the wild spaces because that is our wealth,” says Sylvie. “The day that the wild spaces go, we will be gone too.”
To tell these stories, Chantecaille creates beautiful makeup, like eyeshadow palettes, lipsticks and cheek/highlighter duos. The brand is not only a platform for climate change and global issues, it also educates customers on how to become more socially responsible citizens.
For instance, with its Spring 2019 campaign to save the polar bears, Chantecaille pledged to plant a tree in Kenya for every lipstick sold. The aim was to reduce the effects of global warming by lowering carbon dioxide emission. And this year, the brand raised funds for Wildaid and its shark and manta ray programmes, through proceeds from its Summer 2020 collection.
“I love elephants more than anything else, ” says Sylvie Chantecaille, who has dedicated at least six “cause-metics” campaigns over the years to help save these gentle giants and their habitats.
The Anti-Ageing Power Trio
Bio Lifting Serum+, $460
Bio Lifting Cream+, $578
Bio Lifting Mask, $273
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