How This Mother-Daughter Trio’s Beauty Brand Revolutionized the Industry

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If you’re a beauty enthusiast or find yourself scrolling through your TikTok For You Page often, you may recognize the luxury botanical skincare and cosmetics brand, Chantecaille. In fact, when you Google “Chantecaille,” the first product that shows up is the brand’s Future Skin Gel Foundation ($82), and for good reason. This is a product that has impressed the masses since its inception about 30 years ago, and now, new generations are testing and recommending it alongside many other Chantecaille products. But don’t let its recent virality and online praise fool you—this brand took the industry by storm long before we had the ability to circulate product reviews in a matter of seconds on social media.

In 1998, mother-daughter duo and Chantecaille founders Sylvie and Olivia Chantecaille set out to design a beauty line that was not only natural but also backed by science and created with intention. The ultimate goal has always been to soothe and heal the skin while enhancing its natural beauty without using harsh chemicals or causing inflammation. More than two decades later, the Chantecaille team has done that and more, continuing to revolutionize the way that people see and incorporate botanically powered beauty into their lifestyles. But Chantecaille has more than just people in mind. As Sylvie’s love of gardening blossomed into a dedication to urgent environmental causes, Chantecaille became a brand committed to conservation efforts around the world. Its philanthropy collections have given charitable support to organizations that protect endangered sea turtles, coral reefs, gorillas, wolves, bees, elephants, giraffes, and more.

At the time of the company’s founding, no products with ingredients quite like Chantecaille’s existed on the market. But Sylvie and Olivia combined their cosmetics and modeling backgrounds to enter laboratories and meetings with a wealth of product knowledge. In the ’70s, Sylvie assisted in the launch of DVF’s cosmetics line, where she was able to gain a better understanding of the skin needs of new-age women. While she was working with DVF, she experimented with custom-blending colors in order to match particular skin undertones, traveled to Japan to create a foundation, and launched a full cosmetics line in partnership with Neiman Marcus (all within six short months). Olivia, now Chantecaille’s creative director, was inspired by her modeling experience. She spent long days on set in makeup that caused breakouts and irritation, which motivated her to curate more lightweight, breathable, and comfortable formulas. Now, as a first-time mother, her desire to make cleaner products more accessible to everyone has grown exponentially.

As pioneers of the botanical beauty industry, Sylvie and Olivia find it especially important to take note of emerging technological advancements, new ingredients, and changes in the market. And that’s where Sylvie’s youngest daughter (and the company’s chief commercial officer), Alex Chantecaille, enters the picture. She focuses on training makeup artists and sellers, reminding everyone to zero in on the brand’s three main pillars: innovation, beauty with results, and philanthropy. With the third pillar in mind, Chantecaille has partnered with the Sheldrick Foundation in Kenya, which operates a world-renowned orphaned baby elephant rescue and rehabilitation program. Over the course of two decades, the Chantecaille trio has conquered all three pillars, and in doing so, they’ve created a community of consumers who care.

Listen to the latest episode of Who What Wear with Hillary Kerr to hear how the Chantecaille team pioneered a multi-gender, multi-generational, botanical-based skincare and makeup line that has thrived for decades and changed the beauty industry as we know it. Keep scrolling to discover some of our favorite Chantecaille products (just in time for Mother’s Day).