Erborian: first-ever store in Paris 

By

Sarah Ahssen

Published
Mar 27, 2015

In early may, the French-Korean skincare Erborian will open its first-ever store in Paris. Located at 45 boulevard de l’Opéra (2nd arrondissement), the 810 square-foot space covers three floors. This first store will tell "the story of a French woman going to Korea and bringing Korean beauty treasures back to her apartment in Paris," explained Katalin Berenyi, co-founder of Erborian.

To showcase Erborian’s line of forty or so products (nearly fifty), the store will feature molding and parquet floors, while the furniture will reference the traditional Korean herbal medicine on which the brand is based. The store will also offer a BB Bar geared towards skin make-up.

The location on Avenue de l'Opera is deliberate, given that the Parisian thoroughfare remains popular with tourists and is just steps away from the Japanese quarter of Rue Sainte Anne. It is also noteworthy that Erborian will set up shop not too far from another Korean skincare brand, Herborist, which will open its first European store in mid-April at number 38 on the avenue. In the second half of the year, Erborian should be opening a second store in either Paris, Hong Kong or Seoul. 

Katalin Berenyi and Hojung Lee founded Erborian in 2006. Until that point, both had been working at L'Oréal - the former in the company’s luxury marketing division and the latter in the company’s laboratories. Together, they aimed to export Korean beauty to an international audience. Erborian now operates in 16 countries and is present in 450 points of sale in France, including Sephora, Marionnaud, Monoprix and 120 pharmacies. In 2012, Erborian’s founders sold a 62.8% stake in the group to L'Occitane International (L'Occitane, Melvita and Le Couvent des Minimes...).