Yves Rocher Opens First Store In Nova Scotia

Franchise to open in Halifax’s Mic Mac Mall on September 23rd

September 10,2010 - Yves Rocher, The Creator of Botanical Beauty is opening its first store and franchise in Nova Scotia in the Mic Mac Mall on September 23rd. The 825 square-foot store called The Atelier of Botanical Beauty, is located on the lower level of the mall near the Winners / Homesense door entrance. “We are very pleased to open a store in Halifax because the city is a vibrant and dynamic metropolis and we feel strongly that our beauty products and spa services will be appreciated by Haligonians and other nearby residents,” says René Desmarais, CEO of Yves Rocher North America Inc. “We’ve been established in the Maritimes since a few years, in Moncton and Fredericton, but waited to open in Halifax until we launched our new store concept and franchise model.”

The Yves Rocher Group is a global beauty leader, ranked in the top 15 beauty brands in sales and volume, with 3.2 billion USD in sales and one of the few large, family-owned, beauty-businesses in the world. Yves Rocher has been operating in North America since the mid-eighties running a direct mail business in Canada and the United States and a store business in Canada. In 2005, it launched an Internet sales site as well. While both the direct mail and Internet business service both Canada and the United States, the store business remained regional, operating close to 70 stores in Eastern Canada with locations in Ontario, Quebec and New Brunswick. Last year, with the global launch of the new Atelier store concept, the company announced that it would be offering franchises across Canada to help with its on-going expansion. To date, a new franchise was opened in the West Edmonton Mall in June and several more corporate stores were transformed into franchises in Quebec.

The Canadian store business was somewhat of an anomaly as globally close to 75% of the 1,700-storechain is franchised. “We wanted to keep our stores corporate until we had the right formula for the North American market, ”says Desmarais. “With The Atelier of Botanical Beauty we know we have the right concept.”Launched in May of last year, the Atelier is delivering an average +15% sales increases versus the previous store concept

The Atelier is a physical representation of the Brand. The main display table is a copy of the one Mr. Yves Rocher used in his attic laboratory in La Gacilly, France when he first started the company. A large visual of one of Yves Rocher’s organic fields is front and centre at the cash. The company organically cultivates about 33% of the raw plant material it needs for its global production. The rest is ethically sourced around the world, depending on the actives needed in a product. Finally emblematic visuals of women and plants recall the Brand’s proximity to women and the fact that all its products are botanically-based.

“I am so happy to be the first franchisee in Nova Scotia, ”says Lisa Singh, Franchisee, Yves Rocher  Mic Mac Mall. “I think the plant-based products and the company’s focus on the environment and sustainable development will resonate with consumers here. Also, I think the affordable and professional French spa services offered will definitely be a plus in the Mall.”Ms. Singh says that one of the aspects she appreciates as a franchisee is the targeted marketing and communications support. Yves Rocher is known world-wide as a highly specialized direct marketing company, which contributes to its success in all of its sales channels. “When you purchase an Yves Rocher franchise you always benefit from tremendous corporate support such as marketing and communications tools, training and data sharing, says Stéphane Duval, Director, Stores, Yves Rocher North America Inc. “Customers who sign up to our rewards program receive between 12 to15 special offers a year with additional discounts, free products, gifts and of course our expert beauty advice. On average between 18%-30% of customers come back with their offer,” says Duval. “That’s on top of walk-in customers,” he adds. In Canada, more than 90% of Yves Rocher store customers have signed up to the rewards program.

Yves Rocher plans to franchise more than tenlocations before the end of the year.

Yves Rocher is The Creator of Botanical Beauty. Yves Rocher’s Botanical Beauty is a unique beauty experience that offers greater performance, enjoyment and respect. It’s a botanical and scientific approach that uses the power of plants to create highly effective skincare and body care products. It’s also beauty that’s generous, that conveys sensations: colours, textures, scents. It allows you to travel through time, across cultures and around the world thanks to its perfumes and makeup. It’s ethical beauty that respects women and the environment from the plant to the skin.

It’s by being at once Grower, Manufacturer and Distributor since 1959 and therefore mastering the entirety of the chain that Yves Rocher is able to offer quality products at an accessible price to all women. In North America, the company distributes its products through its sales channels including more than 1,600 stores and spas, its catalogue, the Green Book of Beauty distributed in 90 countries and its online sales sites.

For more information,or to schedule an interview with René Desmarais, CEO Yves Rocher North America or Lisa Singh, Franchisee, Yves Rocher Mic Mac Mall, please contact:

Christina Hane	Annie-Claude Lachance
Director, Communications	Coordinator, Communications &P.R.
Yves Rocher North AmericaInc	Yves Rocher North AmericaInc.
(450) 442-9555 poste 2158	(450) 442-9555 poste 2043