PARIS — Lancôme has a altering of the guard afoot at its prime echelon, with Françoise Lehmann deciding to step down because the L’Oréal-owned model’s international model president.
The chief, who started steering Lancôme in June 2013, is to be succeeded this summer season by Vania Lacascade, at the moment L’Oréal chief innovation officer on the group’s analysis and innovation department.
L’Oréal stated in an announcement that Lehmann’s “sharp strategic imaginative and prescient, her pragmatic strategy, her unwavering power, her tradition of proactive innovation within the service of ladies and her means to steer groups have propelled Lancôme to the rank of the world’s main luxurious model.
“L’Oréal Group needs to precise its deep gratitude for her immense contribution, her unwavering dedication and her tireless dedication to the manufacturers she served and the groups who labored alongside her,” the corporate stated.
Whereas at Lancôme, which turns 90 this yr, Lehmann has expanded the multibillion-euro enterprise on many key fronts, whereas frequently embedding an ethos of happiness and care within the model’s core.
Underneath her steerage, Lancôme has constructed blockbuster franchises and launched new ones. Among the many launches for skincare have been the Absolue Longevity Cream, which faucets into the deal with longevity at present that’s about well being span slightly than age span.
Lancôme’s blockbuster scent franchise La Vie Est Belle has continued to prime the charts, with its life-is-beautiful ethos that reverberates universally, in addition to line extensions and refreshed promoting. Lancôme launched Idôle, a perfume focusing on Millennials that was first fronted by Zendaya, in 2019.
Lancôme’s La Vie Est Belle.
Courtesy of Kohls
The model additionally partnered with style labels on make-up — with the likes of Proenza Schouler and Sonia Rykiel — whereas rising its colour cosmetics product portfolio.
Three years in the past, Lancôme inaugurated its rose area in Grasse, within the South of France, which is farmed with ecological horticultural strategies. The 9.8-acre website, referred to as the Domaine de la Rose, was bought in 2020 below Lehmann’s management. The property with a pink constructing, cultivates different fragrant crops in organically farmed fields and consists of historical terraces as nicely.
Lehmann has a eager eye for expertise, having most just lately — in November 2024 — signed on singer, songwriter and actress Olivia Rodrigo as a Lancôme international model ambassador. And in September, Lehmann added British actress Nico Parker to Lancôme’s expertise roster, because the model’s youngest international model ambassador.
Lancôme and the Louvre in September 2023 celebrated a tie-in with attendee model skills together with Isabella Rossellini, Penélope Cruz, Aya Nakamura and Emma Chamberlain amongst friends. The model and museum had teamed for a limited-edition make-up assortment, dubbed Lancôme x Louvre.
Lehmann led Lancôme’s first sustainability program, launched in 2021 and referred to as “Caring Collectively for a Happier Tomorrow.” It was constructed on defending biodiversity, serving to folks to eat sustainably and empowering ladies.
Could 2020 marked the launch of the Lancôme Cares initiative, which donated lots of of 1000’s of care packs to well being care staff in additional than 30 international locations.
Previous to her tenure at Lancôme, Lehmann served as normal supervisor of Kérastase Worldwide, the place she was credited with modernizing its picture, accelerating product innovation and strengthening to the extent of a luxurious model the standard of service and buyer recommendation at factors of sale.
Lehmann spent her whole profession at L’Oréal, starting in 1988. Previous to becoming a member of Kérastase in 2010, she was worldwide director of hair colour for L’Oréal Paris. Lehmann additionally held quite a few positions at Gemey, together with head of promoting in France from 2000 to 2003. She is a graduate of HEC enterprise college.
Lacascade, Lancôme’s incoming chief, has since January 2023 been within the chief innovation officer function at L’Oréal, the place she spearheads the group’s international innovation technique and works intently with its 4 divisions.
Previous to that, she served as international model president of Vichy from November 2019 to December 2022. Lacascade led the model’s transformation by redefining its medical positioning and instigating a brand new enterprise mannequin, which resulted in double-digit gross sales development in lower than two years, in line with her LinkedIn profile.
From December 2017 to November 2019, Lacascade was at Lancôme, as senior vp of skincare international advertising and marketing and sat on the model’s board of administrators.
Her different former positions at L’Oréal, the place she started to work in 2012, embody deputy normal supervisor of The Physique Store Worldwide, advertising and marketing director on the worldwide hub in China and worldwide international advertising and marketing director at Garnier.
Lacascade started her profession at LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton in 2002, as worldwide product supervisor at Givenchy after which worldwide group supervisor at Givenchy.
The chief acquired an MBA at Essec enterprise college and a doctorate in pharmacy at Université de Rennes I.
