First Look: Biologique Recherche Opens First U.S. Flagship in L.A.
Biologique Recherche opened its first U.S. flagship in Los Angeles Monday at 8461 Melrose Place.
While the French professional beauty brand was previously solely available at spas in the U.S. — first landing in New York — devotees can now experience Biologique Recherche at its own location, known as “ambassade.”
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Open every day from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., the 5,000-square-foot, two-story space includes a retail component with the full range of Biologique Recherche products, six rooms for face and body treatments, a VIP suite with private entrance and a hair salon offering scalp treatments and blowouts.
Founded in the ’70s by Yvan, Josette and Philippe Allouche, today the company is managed by Rupert Schmid and Pierre-Louis Delapalme, and backed by family offices.
“We do not invest in any kind of promotions,” Schmid said. “And so, our expansion was based on word of mouth. That is the reason why we have expanded out of New York. We are, until now, a more East Coast brand. Over the past years, we have spread out all around America. But when you compare our presence on the West Coast and on the East Coast — even though the market is different, the culture is different — at the end of the day, we are not really present on the West Coast. That is one of the reasons why we have decided to create our flagship in L.A. and on Melrose Place, which is an iconic place. If you want to show who you are, the best way is to open your own flagship.”
The brand DNA is rooted in personalization, offering skin diagnoses technology, a wide range of products and skin care therapists educated in the Biologique Recherche approach. In preparation of the opening, Biologique Recherche’s team of therapists have had months of training.
“We have some very sophisticated machines to test, to measure the skin,” Delapalme said. “And in addition to that, we have something very unique, which is what we call ‘My Beauty DNA,’ which is DNA testing only focused on your skin DNA profile that will help to understand what you cannot see today but might happen tomorrow.”
Courtesy of Biologique Recherche
Along with “My Beauty DNA” tools, equipment includes the “Skin Instant Lab,” which studies the condition of the skin at the time of assessment, and the “VisioLab,” which takes a high-resolution photograph to further analyze the skin. After testing and treatment, visitors will be able to contact their therapists directly via email with questions or for rebooking.
“It’s going to be something that you really feel you’re being well taken care of, not just after you book your appointment and get your facial, but we take it a step further by making sure you feel comfortable when you get home with your regiment,” said spa director Vivian Henein, who noted retail sales of Biologique Recherche products in the U.S. increased 30 percent during the pandemic.
Biologique Recherche
“At the end of the day, the therapist, the advice and quality of the relationship they have with the guest are the key factor for success,” added Schmid.
Biologique Rercherche’s first “ambassade” opened in Paris at 32 Avenue des Champs-Élysées (its interior architect, Joanne de Lépinay, was tapped for the L.A. design). A second location was opened on the Left Bank of the city, and the company plans to expand to Shanghai and Rome by the end of the year.
Courtesy of Biologique Recherche
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