#ClientsRAJA: Franck Sevestre, logistics manager for the Jean d’Estrées house

Our #ClientsRAJA series took us to the Centre region, not far from Orléans, where we met Franck Sevestre, logistics manager of the Jean d’Estrées house, whose history dates back to the time of Henri IV!

Hello, Mr Sevestre, thank you for receiving us. Could you introduce yourself?

Hello and welcome to our logistics centre [located near Orléans]. My name is Franck Sevestre and I am the logistics manager for Jean d’Estrées.

The origins of the cosmetics company date back to the 16th century?

Indeed, Jean d’Estrées is a cosmetics company (make-up, face and body care) created by one of the direct descendants of one of Henri IV’s favourites, Gabrielle d’Estrées.

Passionate about beauty, Jean d’Estrées started out as a film make-up artist in Hollywood and Paris, and then developed his own make-up and skincare techniques, inspired by his family traditions: Visagism.

He set up his prestigious beauty salon on the rue du Faubourg Saint Honoré, created his brand and then beauty schools in Paris, Nice, Madrid, Barcelona and Mexico, training students all over the world. In the 1970s, Jean d’Estrées retired, sold his company and his Parisian school.

Since 2014, the brand has been part of the Pharma-Cosmetics group, an international player in professional cosmetics:

• Jean d’Estrées is distributed in 600 points of sale in France and in 26 countries internationally (Canada, Hong Kong, Russia, Taiwan, Japan, Netherlands…).
• A dedicated sales team and an efficient logistics department reinforce the proximity and responsiveness to our customers.
• Jean d’Estrées’ credo: to create a synergy between women’s natural beauty, effective care products and innovative aesthetic techniques. Your beauty is unique, Jean d’Estrées makes it unique!

What is the logistical activity of the company Jean D’Estrées?

Jean d’Estrées is a small company with 30 employees. With a team of 6 people, we handle logistics for the brand through 3 distinct brands: Jean d’Estrées, So Nature and HL.

• In place since 2004, the 1,500 m² warehouse houses around 300 references on more than 1,000 pallet spaces and 500 picking spaces.
• All goods are prepared and sent from our site.
• Our activity is multi-faceted, starting with the reception of goods and ending with their dispatch to our customers, including order preparation, packaging and quality control.

Who are your customers?

Our French customers have historically been professionals: beauty salons. We are gradually opening up to the end consumer. In 2016, we opened a merchant website where you can buy our Jean d’Estrées and So Nature products online.

What are Jean d’Estrées’ ambitions for the coming years?

Well established in France, the brand wants to export more widely and promote its know-how and its Made in France products.

Exporting is an essential development phase to accelerate the company’s growth!

With an export activity, logistics are essential. Has it evolved over time?

The activity has remained stable over the last 4 years. Today, we send out more than 600 parcels per month in France, and about twenty orders for export, knowing that a shipment abroad represents between 1 and 20 pallet boxes.

Since 2010, our storage space has increased from 1000 to 1500 m², and from 3 to 5 permanent employees. A stable, meticulous and experienced team allows us to prepare our parcels in anticipation of the multiple constraints of transport. We try to follow a policy of quality above all in order to satisfy our customers as best as possible.

During the development of Jean d’Estrées, how did you choose your logistics partners?

Our cooperation with our suppliers has evolved over time, in order to adapt to the changing constraints of transport. We build our relationships as true partnerships. This solution is therefore a win-win situation for both parties, and is sustainable over time.
Our suppliers know us and know how to meet our expectations as quickly as possible.
As our SME is very attentive to expenses, I am constantly working on the best quality/price ratio, and RAJA is able to meet our expectations

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What made you decide to work with RAJA?

During a launch of make-up remover products, there were many returns of damaged packages.

The cost of re-shipment and the loss caused were significant, so we completely redesigned the packaging for our products.

In a process of prospecting for new suppliers, I met Mr Arnoult who proposed several solutions adapted to our constraints. The tests were conclusive, with advantageous pricing. We have been working with RAJA on packaging for more than 6 years now. The products are evolving and the quality is still there.

And a significant “plus”, the RAJA order is delivered in 24/48 hours. A powerful reactivity, associated with commercial services and a very attentive after-sales service.

We regularly ask our customers if they have a story about RAJA?

Every year we pack kits with different assortments for the Christmas season.

The kit itself had been designed on the basis of photos, but not the packaging. We had to find an immediate solution in order to receive the right material as quickly as possible to place the products in the kits. With the help of RAJA, we identified a solution very quickly.

This is one of RAJA’s strengths: a sufficient buffer stock to meet the needs of its customers and the support of its field experts.

Thank you Franck Sevestre for your time.

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The #ClientsRAJA series

During the summer, the RAJA teams travelled across France from North to South and from East to West to meet their customers. They interviewed these women and men who are part of our economy. As RAJA, we were naturally interested in their choices in terms of logistics and packaging.