Pharma-Recharge, a refillable beauty initiative in French pharmacies
Photo by Ceyda Çiftci / Unsplash

Pharma-Recharge, a refillable beauty initiative in French pharmacies

Eva Lagarde

Launched in June 2023, the pharma-recharge initiative is led by 5 brands which are mainly distributed in pharmacies. WIth Garancia (Unilever Prestige), Bioderma (NAOS), Pierre Fabre, La Rosée and Mustela (Laboratoires Expanscience), the initiative intends to release a refillable beauty format accessible to all in the french extensive pharmacy network in France. The consortium was first launched in October 2022, with a single objective of boosting refillable beauty solution in the market, and the machine was released less than a year later.

Initially released as a trial test in one pharmacy - Carré Opéra - in the center of Paris. The consortium is working with experts from (RE)SET, a consultancy dedicated to environmental transition.

In concrete terms, they have developed a piece of furniture for product display and bulk delivery for 15 products! The design is from Mobil Wood, a company specialising in eco-designed furniture made from French wood. The refillable structure uses the Jean Bouteille technology, a company with a pioneering impact in the introduction of bulk and re-use solutions, for the fountains. The consortium also selected a common glass bottle for the trial, compatible with most of the products.

This article is part of THE REFILLABLE BEAUTY REPORT

The report has been released in several parts (for a digestible reading)

  • Introduction and Definitions - HERE
  • Market Figures - HERE
  • Consumer Expectations and Behaviours - HERE
  • Regulations - HERE
  • Brands Innovations in 2022/23 - HERE
  • Brands Case Studies:
    • ArtDeco - Refillable Native Beauty Brand - HERE
    • Pharma-Recharge - a refillable fountain in pharmacies in France - HERE
    • Garancia join forces with Pharma Recharge - HERE
    • L'Occitane - HERE
  • Conclusion & Key Takeaways - HERE

“ The  offer is conducted on existing products in the market, and Jean Bouteille was selected for efficiency, speed, and low maintenance.” explained to us Anne-Claire Morin, Marketing Director at Garancia.

The user journey is simple: 

  • consumers follow the steps in the order module, 
  • attach the bottle proposed for this trial to the fountain of the product of their choice, 
  • a predefined dose is poured automatically, 
  • they have to pick up their bottle at the end. 

The experiment complies with pharmacy health standards and the quality requirements for dermo-cosmetic products (stop dripping, no contact with the formula, traceability, etc.).

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