OWN THE LAST MILE

LOUANNE MCGRORY started her career in the beauty industry over 30 years ago. Louanne spent 26 years of her career with one organization – Shiseido Canada and the last 4 years as their Canadian President. Recognized for her leadership, strength, warmth and style, Louanne is now on her way to bigger and better things as she embarks on her next chapter as Chief Commercial Officer of Shiseido USA, where she is a mission to Own the Last Mile.

Q: You have had an extraordinary career in the beauty industry. What drove to you to join this industry and more importantly what made you stay for this long?

A: I was passionate about fashion and beauty as a little girl.” Rather than buy me clothes, my dad gave my money to make clothes and so I did. At La Salle college I studied fashion and held a part time job at the Bay as a beauty demonstrator and fell in love with the business. Shortly after, I was offered a role at Estee Lauder as an account executive and it was there that I fell in love with beauty. What I did notice about myself early on is that I may have not been the best fit for fashionable clothes, but I had a friendly face and knew beauty was for me. I managed to stay this long for a few reasons. Firstly, Beauty makes people feel good and always makes their day better – and I loved that, and secondly, no two days are ever the same and I love that as I never got bored.

Q: You were appointed Shiseido Canada’s first female president at a time when there were not many female presidents across many industries. What were your initial thoughts when you were given this opportunity?

A: I was excited when I was given the opportunity to lead Shiseido Canada as President – when one of our former Japanese presidents recognized it was finally time they wanted to empower local talent. I put my hand up and prepared for the interview. I went prepared with my first 100 day plan, my thoughts on strategy, etc and they told me –you have already proven to us you are ready. I love to empower and encourage individuals but specifically females. I think I am a great mentor, networker, and I felt like I was a trailblazer adding a different perspective and different dimension not only focusing on top and bottom line – but everything in the middle. I always put people first and I knew I could influence change and drive change.

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Q: What are you most excited for in your new role?

A: I am excited about the magnitude of the business valued at over $1B in sales. With that said, my challenge will be how to engage over 300 employees all over the US. How do we pull these people together and build a community. To get us to operational excellence I firmly believe that we are and must OWN THE LAST MILE BETWEEN BRAND AND CONSUMER and that’s my game plan. I always approach things with a very positive attitude.

Q: Do you feel like you have accomplished everything you wanted to here in Canada?

A: Yes, I have accomplished everything I wanted to here. I am passing the baton to Antonio Andrade with the Canadian business in a very healthy position. And I was ready for my next move.

Q: What has been your most influential or impactful accomplishment in your career? Any regrets?

A: I am most proud of our launches and brand partnerships and the evolution of brands including Dolce & Gabbana, and NARS which I took from a $5M business to over $40M in sales. I am also proud of my partnerships with Look Good Feel Better, the AGO, the Japanese Arts Center and our exclusive partnership with the Raptors, yes, the Raptors. This partnership is exciting as we saw and recognized an opportunity to go where the consumers are and many females do attend sports events. When we did exit sampling at the games, our business doubled over the next week. I have no regrets.

Q: What message would you say to our Beauty Advisors who are looking to follow in your footsteps?

A: The beauty advisors and specialists are the lifeline of our industry. They make consumers feel good everyday and that is a special talent. I would tell them to NEVER SETTLE and that they can overcome any obstacles and have a win/win result by having a positive attitude. I learned early on that I didn’t need to be mean to get things done. I would also tell them that a first impression is the lasting impression. They truly own the last mile.

Q: If you could load up your luggage with one Canadian thing, what would that be?

A: My daughter told me it would be Ruffles All Dressed Potato Chips but I personally love French food being from Quebec City, so I would pack it with cheese, foie gras, and a great charcuterie board.

Q: What has been the most rewarding impact of your partnership with Cosmetics Magazine and Beauty’s Best?

A: The partnership with Cosmetics Magazine and Beauty’s Best is one of the only opportunities to honour the people and brand success. Even though we compete with other brands at all other times, the awards event is a time for the industry to come together and celebrate each other and the talented beauty advisors and specialists. It is the only one of its kind in Canada.

Q: What product do you use today that you wish was around when you first started in this industry?

A: When I started in the industry, covering up was important and there really wasn’t a lot of skincare offerings. Today, I think every good beauty regiment starts with great skin. I feel there is a need and room for primer and that’s what I wish was around when I started. I use and love my primer after my skincare regiment. There are several products I can’t live without including NARS LRAS foundation and I love our fragrance.

Q: This spring issue is a focus on innovation. What product are you most excited for this spring?

A: There are several but I love our BIO performance products which are launching this spring.

Q: Any last parting words for our readers?

A: I’ll share a secret about myself is the I rule with an Iron Fist and Velvet Glove. I am very competitive and NO ONE gets in my way! We will own the last mile.

We reached out to her team for some thoughts:

We are very proud of Louanne McGrory’s appointment as Chief Commercial Officer for Shiseido Americas. This role is well-deserved, with her impressive achievements as Shiseido Canada’s President. She is a mentor and role model to all of us at Shiseido Canada

Congratulations Louanne!

ELAINE SHIGEISHI Vice President, Sales and Marketing Shiseido (Canada) Inc.

IF YOU’RE WONDERING what sharks have to do with cosmetics and personal care products, it comes down to an ingredient known as squalene or squalane. It is often sourced from shark liver oil. The good news is that plantbased squalene/squalane is readily available.

Why should you care? Well, your customers care and they want to know.

A recent poll shows 80% of U.S. and Canadian consumers would switch to products that don’t contain shark ingredients.

Squalene is used as a moisturiser in cosmetics, skin creams, lip balm, sunscreen and hair care. Labelled squalene or squalane (the hydrogenated version), it could be shark, plant or synthetic.

According to 2022 market research 70% of squalene derived from shark liver oil is sold to the cosmetic and personal care product industry around the world. A not-so-clean statistic, given that sharks are an endangered and threatened species that are critical to healthy ocean ecosystems.

JOIN THE SHARK FREE INITIATIVE. The Shark Free initiative was developed by Cosmetics Alliance, IBA and PCPC members along with the Sharkwater Foundation in 2022 to bring awareness to the issue. The goal is to assist companies to remove shark squalene from products and to encourage product developers to consider plant-based alternatives in product development.

Join the Shark Free online seminar April 13th 12-1pm EST. Companies, retailers, beauty advisors; gain industry background and find out more on how to assist customers to source and buy Shark Free products. With over 200 organizations, companies and brands signed up for Shark Free, including industry leaders L’Oreal, Shiseido, and Unilever, Shark Free is working with the cosmetics and personal care industry to source squalene responsibly.

Shark Free is launching a consumer campaign this spring to empower shoppers to use their buying power to support Shark Free brands with buying guides, events, how to videos, and other educational tools.

Shark Free invites retailers, brands and companies to join the growing list of Shark Free supporters by signing up today. It’s free, voluntary and there is no requirement to use the logo. To learn more about the Shark Free initiative and to hear from industry leaders and influencers about the importance of this work, register for the upcoming webinar on April 13, 2023 from 12:00 - 1:00pm EST.

The Rob Stewart Sharkwater Foundation was launched by long time Cosmetics Alliance members Sandy and Brian Stewart to continue the mission of their son, world-acclaimed filmmaker Rob Stewart, who made it his mission to save sharks.

Rob Stewart was a Biologist, Author, Conservationist and the Filmmaker behind the hit movies Sharkwater, Revolution and Sharkwater Extinction. Rob discovered that sharks were being finned for shark fin soup; which was decimating shark populations, and he also found that shark liver oil was used to produce squalene for the cosmetics and personal care products.

He set off on a lifelong mission to save sharks.

Tragically Rob was killed in a dive accident filming Sharkwater Extinction.

Rob’s films have received more than 200 awards and have been viewed by over 135 million people across the world. His final film, Sharkwater Extinction, can be viewed in Canada on Crave and Amazon Prime Video in the U.S. and Internationally.