For Younger-Looking Skin...

Ever since sylvie chantecaille founded her eponymous skin care and cosmetic line in 1997, a cult following of stylish women has made the company’s botanically based, fragrance-free line of products a must-have for beauty insiders. A personal passion drives Sylvie and her daughter Olivia, Chantecaille’s creative director, to create products that do more than make women look and feel beautiful naturally. Chantecaille also cleverly integrates philanthropy into the line with seasonal collections tied to nature in a way that showcases their beauty while highlighting important causes.

Les Dauphins (The Dolphins) is Chantecaille’s latest initiative in spotlighting the beauty of one of the world’s most magical creatures. In an effort to support dolphin survival worldwide, Chantecaille will give five percent of sales from Les Dauphins to the study and conservation of the marine environment in the Mediterranean. In the past, Chantecaille has focused on the plight of vanishing coral reefs, blue whales and endangered tigers. Clearly, for the Chantecailles, beauty is more than skin deep. We caught up with Sylvie and Olivia recently to respond to our Style Council’s questions about their challenges and successes.

What are the advantages and challenges you face as a family-run company as opposed to being part of a huge conglomerate?
Sylvie: My other daughter [Alexandra] is also in the company, and we all work very well together. It’s a lot of fun. The best part is that these are people you know well and trust. We’re very lucky because every member of the family is talented in different ways.
Olivia: For me, it’s been wonderful because I love my family very much. It’s created a very trusting environment to be creative and feel supported.
Do you talk business all the time?
Sylvie: The real challenge is getting time off because you end up talking about business a lot. In the middle of dinner, you say, “Did you know about this?” When I was working in a large corporation, I would come home and be able to totally relax. Now I never have a chance to totally relax.

Where do you find inspiration?
Sylvie: My instinct told me that no one was paying attention to product the way they should. I could see if you went for the very best product, you could create something people would feel. Also, I was passionate about creating something that was natural. When I started 12 years ago, people were not that concerned about that.

Why have you chosen not to use a celebrity as the “face” of the brand?
Olivia: Our concept is real women making products for other women. We are the customer. We create products that we need and we would like. That’s how we position the brand.

What are the important Chantecaille products for your customer in Florida?
Olivia: Definitely the SPF products.

Why do you use an SPF in your foundation but not in your moisturizers?  
Sylvie: We do not believe in putting a chemical SPF in moisturizers because all of the chemicals go through your skin, into your bloodstream and eventually into your liver. It is extremely toxic. There will be more science that shows that. We’ve only been using SPF for 25 years and don’t know what it is doing to the body long-term.

What should you do about a sunscreen?
Sylvie: The solution is to use a non-chemical sunscreen. The other solution is to put it on the outside with a foundation. The moisturizer goes into your system; your foundation goes on top of that.

How do you know what’s appropriate skin care for your skin type?
Sylvie: It’s a question of exposure. Our Just Skin is a very easy, natural-looking product to wear. It’s very light and perfect for day for most people. It’s got an SPF 23, and it protects you very well. We have Real Skin SPF 30, and it’s a soft gel in a cake applied with a sponge.
Olivia: We’re coming out with a new SPF product this month called Protection Naturelle with an SPF 46. It’s a powder that is great if you’re going to a lunch outside—you can just apply it over your makeup. The makeup is inside the brush, and the powder is very fine, so it’s invisible on the face.

What should you do when you’ve had too much sun?
Sylvie: Start with a fruit acid mask. It will remove the dead layers and make skin look fresh. At night, use a retinol product. Use a fruit acid a couple of times for a few weeks and then start using the cream appropriate for your age. Your skin will look fantastic!

What is your best tip for having younger-looking skin?
Olivia: Protect your face. Using a product that has some type of anti-wrinkle ingredient when you’re young gives you longevity. We have some wonderful oil-free creams like Biodynamic Lifting Cream. It’s lightweight, so it’s good for humid climates and younger skin. We also have Retinol Intense with a micronized form of encapsulated seaweed, so you’re not getting the retinol on the surface of your skin. It penetrates to where your skin cells are rebuilding themselves. It’s very safe for a sunny climate and won’t make you red or irritated.

What one product should be in every woman’s
makeup bag?
Olivia: Lipstick. We have this amazing new lipstick formula, Lip Chic, which has the polish of a lipstick but the shine and moisture of a gloss. Everyone always carries around a lipstick and a gloss. Lip Chic is a hybrid with a natural plumping effect. It’s become one of our best-selling products.

Why does most of your philanthropic work revolve around sea life?
Sylvie: It’s a passion of the family. We love the ocean. We decided to tell serious stories, but the way we do it is by creating beautiful things. You buy a beautiful compact because it’s gorgeous, but there’s a real story behind it.