Trailblazer Caroline Nègre

COMMITTING TO MEASURABLE SUSTAINABILITY THROUGH SCIENCE

CAROLINE NÈGRE

INTERNATIONAL SUSTAINABILITY & SCIENTIFIC DIRECTOR, YVES SAINT LAURENT

Caroline Nègre is the International Scientific Director and Spokesperson for Yves Saint Laurent Beauté. As a woman in STEM, Nègre — who holds a Master's Degree in Biotechnology Engineering from École de Biologie Industrielle — is an expert in cosmetology, biology and botanicals. She is responsible for developing the formulas for YSL Beauté's best-selling products.

Her contributions to the formulation and development of skincare, from dermatological to luxury products, boosted her all the way to a role on the company's Skincare Scientific Advisory Board.

Before joining YSL Beauté, Nègre was the Global Brand Manager for Rousselot, a leading provider of bioactive ingredients for nutraceuticals, nutricosmetics and cosmetics, from 2007 to 2011. She worked on several active ingredients for the raw material manufacturer, utilising her scientific expertise.

Nègre began her career in the beauty sector after earning her Master's degree in 2000 as the International Product Manager for The Beauty Group, an OTC cosmetics and luxury cosmetic group best known for their Ingrid Millet and Bioscreen Brand. Then, she served one year as the Product Manager for Physiomins, a manufacturer of cosmetics, dietary supplements, and hyper protein products, until 2007.

When she joined the L'Oréal group, she came with more than a decade’s worth of experience in skincare. On top of YSL Beauté, Nègre has also been involved with Biotherm and Giorgio Armani Beauty brands throughout her L'Oréal career.

The Ourika Community Gardens project and sustainability

YSL Beauté is known to maintain compliance with the strictest cosmetic regulations globally, with the brand willing to go the extra mile to cater to consumers' expectations and demands.

These days, the demands are usually ESG-related. In response to consumers' anxiety about microplastics in 2014, the brand stated a commitment to eliminating all plastic microbeads from its rinseoff products.

For Nègre, her biggest journey began when YSL Beauté discovered in 2013 that the saffron pistils grown in the plains’ regions of Morocco's Atlas mountains were of the highest quality. "Our potent botanicals are grown in Morocco, in the Atlas Mountains. We use a very precise extraction process for no compromise on ingredients efficacy and on the environment," said Nègre, who spearheaded the project.

The company decided to pioneer a project combining cultivation and botanical research, creating the Ourika Community Gardens. The gardens are separated into three different spaces, inhabited by more than 200 botanical species to be utilised for manufacturing, preservation, experimental research and the development of new ingredients. "Each and every raw material is selected, grown, sustainably harvested, and carefully extracted to meet the very highest standards of efficacy," Nègre said.

The gardens utilise environmentally-friendly mechanisms in their operations — such as the drystone terraces, which allow traditional gravity irrigation techniques, and the gardens, which harness solar power to run operations.

Since 2017, the gardens have been tended by a community of 32 local Berber women that employ organic farming practices. The women are also provided with literacy classes, training courses on different aspects of gardening, as well as sales and administration. "We need to respect the environment by respecting its limits," said Nègre. "The world's leading scientists have warned that we only have ten years left to reduce our use of resources in order to combat climate change. Alongside our own in-depth transformation process to reduce our impact on resources, it is essential and urgent that we start deploying solutions if we want to restore and regenerate our ecosystems."

The Gardens started its organic certification process in 2020, and the company plans to restore over 1,000 hectares of land, in addition to the 335 hectares of existing restored ecosystems by 2025.

Measurability and recognition

YSL Beauté launched a new hybrid makeup and skincare range called Nu in September 2021, introducing its actionable global standard for a healthy, equitable and sustainable future through its products. The brand recently achieved the globally recognised certification, Cradle-to-Cradle.

This certification is proof that the brand has managed to establish the extra steps towards sustainability in terms of material health, material reutilisation, renewable energy and carbon management, water stewardship and social fairness. This is the first time a made-in-France beauty product line has received such a certification.

“WE NEED TO RESPECT THE ENVIRONMENT BY RESPECTING ITS LIMITS”