Cosmetic Valley
The Cosmetic Valley innovative cluster is the leading center for resources in perfumes and cosmetics. Cosmetic Valley features a vertical integration approach with over 300 SMEs in its area in the perfume-cosmetics sector working in the “Made in France” luxury industry. There are a dozen or so major brands producing the flagship products of the beauty industry including: Guerlain and Dior (LVMH), Shiseido, Hermès, Nina Ricci and Paco Rabanne (Puig Group), Lolita Lempicka (Pacific Creation), Gemey-Maybelline and Yves Saint Laurent Beauté (L’OREAL), Clarins, Caudalie and Chanel.
The Cosmetic Valley cluster covers three French regions and six departments:
- Haute-Normandie including the Eure (27)
- Ile-de-France including the Yvelines (78)
- Centre including 4 departments : Eure-et-Loir (28), Indre-et-Loire (37), Loiret (45), Loir-et-Cher (41)
Advantages
The Cosmetic Valley is a unique reservoir for specialized labor skills in the cosmetics industry: growing aromatic plants; developing active principles; creating, formulating and manufacturing perfumes and cosmetics; control; testing and analysis laboratories; advertising and design; packaging; plastic injection; packaging and boxing; logistics, etc.
The cluster facilitates cross-fertilization of skills and helps companies and research laboratories to create innovative products.
Cosmetic Valley strives to enhance the cluster’s international profile to enable its members to gain better access to export markets.
The cluster works towards enhancing the reputation of “Made in France” luxury goods and encourage other companies to set up in the region.
A very important sector of activity in France
- Turnover in 2006 of more than 15 billion euros
- Growth of 5.7%, of which 43% in the French market (+3.5%) and 57% in the export market (+7.2%)
- 4th biggest French export industry after the Beverages, Automotive and Aerospace industries (excluding defense)
The Cosmetics sector in the regions surrounding the cluster
- Companies
300 companies, accounting for 24,500 jobs
- Education 7 billion euros of turnover
4 Universities
- Research 136 training schools
178 public research laboratories
5,500 research scientists
Members
More than 200 members
Companies:
154 companies of which 90% are SMEs
Research and educational institutions
20 institutions including the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) at Centre-Poitou-Charente and Le Havre, Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique (INRA), Bureau de Recherche Géologique et Minières (BRGM), Instituts Universitaires (IUT) de Technologie d’Evreux, Universities of Tours, Versailles-Saint-Quentin en Yvelines, Institut des Métiers et des Technologies, Institut d’Administration des Entreprises, Ecole de Biologie Industrielle etc.
35 other organizations are also stakeholders in the cluster including Groupe Idec, La Poste, Caisse d’Epargne Loire-Centre, Conseils Régionaux de Haute-Normandie et Centre, Conseils Généraux de l’Eure-et-Loir, du Loiret, de l’Eure et du Loir-et-Cher, Ville de Chartres et d’Orléans, UBIFRANCE, Pôle de Compétitivité Plastipolis, Unitis, la FEBEA.
Current R&D partnerships
19 approved projects since 2005 and a total budget of more than 40 million euros.
More than 7 million euros awarded by the Inter-ministerial Single Fund (FUI) between 2005 and 2007 to fund these projects
International partnerships
Southeast Asia – South Korea
Located one hour from Seoul and considered the “Hawaii of Asia”, the island of Jeju is known for the beauty and quality of its environment. Rich in natural resources, this province of South Korea is concentrating on the development of its Bio-industry. In March 2008, the Cosmetic Valley cluster signed a collaborative agreement with the University of Jeju and its Jeju Seaweed Industry Development Agency. The program includes: scientific exchanges and the development of bipartite collaboration concerning cosmetics manufactured using plant and marine raw materials.
Middle East – Syria
The promotion of exchanges in the field of plants is also the backbone of the agreement signed last May with the Al Hawash University located in the Damascus area. Contacts with Syria were initiated by the IMT Group, which supports local professionals in the fields of cosmetic science training.
As a supplier of plants and products that may be of interest to the cosmetics industry, Syria aims to explore new applications in collaboration with experts from the Cosmetic Valley cluster.
Latin America - Colombia
The Colombian NATIVA cluster, with which an agreement was signed as early as 2006, brings together farmers specialized in aromatic plants from the Cordillère des Andes.
Other partnerships
- Strengthen links with the UBIFRANCE international network and the French economic trade offices abroad
- Partnership with the Japanese Hokuriku cluster
- Partnership with the University of Lomé, Togo
- Organization of scientific conventions in Hong Kong
- China 2010 Program, a global discovery program for this market aimed at positioning Cosmetic Valley firmly in the province of Hunan with which the Centre region has forged close links
- Participation in various international trade fairs at the end of 2008 including the HBA in New York in September, Beyond Beauty in Paris in October, Cosmoprof Asia in Hong-Kong in November.
Appendix: Examples of approved R&D projects
|
Project name and topic |
Steered by |
|
Skin changes with age More extensive knowledge of aging skin |
Pacific Creation |
|
Natural substances and protection of the formulation Research into new plant-based components with protective qualities in cosmetic products |
LVMH Recherche and Alban Muller |
|
Cosmétotextiles Set up the first private European laboratory dedicated to research into the development of cosmetotextiles |
Spincontrol, Lytess-Onixxa, AMI and Groupe Robert Blondel |
|
Innovative decors Program based around new decorating methods for bottles |
Shiseido and Saint-Gobain Desjonquères |
|
Predicting skin sensitivity Developing alternative tests, by proposing an innovative way of evaluating the sensitivity power of base chemical molecules based on an integrated in vitro/in silico platform |
Biochemics |
|
ECODERM, High Resolution Ultrasound Develop a high performance and innovative skin imaging and categorizing tool for professionals |
Vermon |
|
New plant-based active ingredients and Age Prevention Develop active plant-based cosmetic ingredients that prevent the skin from aging |
Centel and Greenpharma |
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