How Nuxe built a natural cosmetics empire in thirty years

After a rather laboured start, success came in 1991 for Nuxe thanks to a single product: the Huile Prodigieuse multi-purpose oil. This dry oil for the face, hair and body, packaged in a glass bottle, has sold 35 million units since its launch. One bottle is said to sell worldwide every nine seconds, making Huile Prodigieuse Nuxe’s bestseller. A success that was to be replicated later by the Rêve de Miel (honey dream) range, especially its lip balm. Nuxe has developed a string of novelties that are helping boost its performance alongside its core products. The Super Sérum Anti-Age, launched two years ago, is now its second most-sold product (€74.50 for 30 ml). All of Nuxe’s products are manufactured in France. The brand has its own facility in Fougères, Brittany, which produces half of its total units and is also home to the R&D lab. Recently, Nuxe has also launched into a new segment, haircare, with the Hair Prodigieux line. It is a haircare ritual in three stages suitable for all types of hair, based on a key ingredient, fermented camellia oil, in a patented formula. In 2019, Belgian private equity firm Sofina bought a 45.13% stake in Nuxe, with the aim of stepping up the pace of the brand's international expansion. In 2021, exports exceeded the French domestic market’s revenue for the first time, accounting for a 53% share. Italy is Nuxe’s largest market outside France, followed by Spain and Greece. The brand said it is also performing well in the Middle East and Asia. In 2020, a chaotic year for global trade, Nuxe opened a subsidiary in China. In 2002, Nuxe opened its first spa on rue Montorgueil in Paris. The brand now operates 63 spas, located in hotels, department stores such as Galeries Lafayette,  Haussmann, and in La Maison Nuxe. The next one will open in Italy in Pompei. In 2022, a spa division was set up within the Nuxe group, in order to bolster the growth of the spa business, which accounts for 10% of total revenue.