THE EDIT LITTLE PHARMA

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Marine Vincent of The French Pharmacy on wellbeing, Gallic products and the French love of simplicity

Interview: Jackie Modlinger

Pharmaceuticals, it seems, are in the genes. Marine Vincent, who opened The French Pharmacy in Marylebone’s New Cavendish Street in 2020, grew up in St Bonnet des Quarts, a little village near Lyons, raised by a mother and father who worked together in the same pharmaceutical company for 25 years.

Marine studied at Lyon’s Université Claude Bernard, which specialises in science and medicine. “I was always interested in biology – the human body is fascinating – and I also loved retail, as my maternal grandmother Mireille had her own grocery shop,” she says. “I did my ‘internship’ – something you do when you are around 13 or 14 – as a pharmacist. I always liked going to pharmacies in France with my grandmother. I love the smell of a French pharmacy.”

After moving to England, Marine opened her first pharmacy in Clapham, close to her new home. “It’s a what we call a ‘parapharmacie’, which means you’ll find all the skincare and hygiene products but we don’t dispense on site. Here in Marylebone we also dispense medicines,” she explains.

What prompted the move from France to London?

It was actually my husband – who was not my husband at the time. We had been together for five years when he had a work offer from a London bank. I was only 24 or 25 at the time but I saw it as a good opportunity. At that age, you take the risk and the adventure. It was supposed to be three years, max. Fifteen years later I’m still here.

Why open in Marylebone?

Because it has that village feeling. I visited different places of course, but for me Marylebone made 100 per cent sense. I really wanted to create that neighbourhood feeling, so people know they can trust us, know we’re giving a good service and that they can find a lot of things here. We have been superwelcomed by local people, so it’s a good start. Of course, we are still at the beginning of the journey –when you start something new, it takes a bit of time to be known and trusted. I’m happy that we have now opened a Tuesday therapy room downstairs, because we couldn’t do beauty treatments before. Now, I can work with acupuncturists, osteopaths, massage therapists, nutritionists, naturopaths, and so on.

For me, it’s all about wellbeing – I really wanted to have a space where I could offer such therapies because being happy and being well are so complementary.

How do French pharmacies and British chemists differ? Here, in a chemist’s shop, the pharmacist works alone at the back, in the dispensary – you have to ask to speak with him or her, so the contact is not the same at all. In France, the pharmacy is really the first point of care, because there’s not only one pharmacist per pharmacy; there may be two or three depending on the size. I’ve found that with healthcare in general in France, we are much more about prevention. There, everyone gets a blood test every year, but here it’s not so easy; you almost have to beg. There, you go and see your dermatologist once a year, whether or not you have a problem. It’s a more proactive approach to healthcare.

Is there much difference between the customers? From my point of view, what French customers really love is the naturality of the products – they are very cautious about formulations. I think sometimes British customers are not as suspicious, they just want a product that works, but in France there is this huge quest for natural products which I don’t necessarily agree with – a natural product isn’t necessarily better than a technical one and being made from chemicals shouldn’t always imply that something is bad. It depends on the person, your skin type and what you want to achieve.

What’s special about the range of products you sell?

We have certain exclusive French brands, like Rogé Cavaillès. We have Monoi Hei Poa – a very old, wellknown coconut oil which to French people is like summer in a bottle. I work with La Rosée cosmetics, which are found in all French pharmacies, and produce a very simple range for all skin types using lovely ingredients. I have Somatoline for slimming, Caudalie’s Eau Micellaire cleansing water, and Le Petit Marseillais shower gels, which everyone knows in France – people are crazy about them.

What are the beauty secrets of the French? I think we tend to do things simply. We don’t overdo things. We keep the routine simple and we don’t do layers of products: cleansing, serum, cream, that’s really it. At night, more of the same. When it comes to hair and makeup, again we tend to veer more towards the natural, even with hair colour. I have also noticed that the French are more loyal with their products as well – when you find something you like, you stick with the brand or the products.

THE FRENCH PHARMACY

10 New Cavendish Street, W1G 8UL thefrenchpharmacy.co

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