When in March 2020 the Spanish government declared the country in a State of Alarm, the concerns and priorities of almost all citizens took a 360 degree turn. Now, the most important thing was health and well-being; however, and despite this, many people forgot to take care of themselves. In those months of uncertainty, spending a moment of peace and pampering was the therapy for many. For this reason, the launch of concepts such as Maison Sisley -in the middle of July 2020- was, entirely, a success.
La Maison Sisley opened its doors in the Madrid capital (Claudio Coello, 26) in the middle of a pandemic to offer -in all luxury- the four axes on which the company is based: body and easy treatments; make-up; perfumery and -his last big bet- capillary beauty. “We knew that it was going to take longer for people to get to know us and come to try our Maison, but we felt that it was time. Madrid needed to have something like this. That the clients left happy and happy, in such a difficult time, was a joy huge for us”, recalls Álvaro Artiach, CEO of Sisley Spain. The general manager of the high-end cosmetics and perfumes brand, founded in 1976 by the d’Ornano family, explains how opening the Madrid ‘house’ has been a “complicated” job as well as satisfying: “They have been two years of hard work, until we found the ideal location, the perfect premises and we trained all our employees with the Sisley method. But, despite the complexity of this situation, we have been very well received”, he completes.
Álvaro Artiach, CEO of Sisley Spain.
La Maison Sisley cannot be compared to its peers because the experience it offers is designed with the method of its creators from start to finish. The decoration of the center is carried out by Isabell d’Ornano, the founder of the brand, and due to her residence in Seville for a few years, much of the Maison’s design is inspired by the Andalusian city, dressed with paintings, chairs and ornaments by renowned Sevillian artists. The treatment and care that each client receives is also ‘made in Sisley’. Upon entering, while you have a tea or coffee, one of its professionals is in charge of knowing your tastes and preferences to cover all the wishes in the treatment that comes after (temperature of the room and of the table, color of the environment, smell or even the music).
How did the idea of creating Maison Sisley come about and why did you open your Madrid house in the midst of a pandemic?
The idea of the Maison was born in Paris. The first Maison Sisley opened there five years ago, and later two more opened in Bordeaux, Lyon and other European capitals. We wanted to bring this concept to Spain quickly, because we believed that it was something important and, above all, fundamental within Sisley’s strategy in the Spanish market. We opened in Madrid in July 2020, that is, in the midst of a pandemic. Our idea was to open in April, but we couldn’t due to the confinement. It has been two years of very hard work, in which we have had to find the ideal place, the perfect location, design the interior of the Maison, give it the decoration and atmosphere that we wanted, in order for the staff to carry out the protocols and treatments of a Maison of these characteristics.
What kind of treatments does Maison Sisley Madrid offer?
We have makeup workshops, a wide range of facial and body treatments, hair treatments, perfumery. All our range and our protocols are represented at the Maison. What sets it apart from other centers is that it is dedicated to providing treatments solely and exclusively with Sisley products, which includes all the years of experience of the brand and our staff, as well as the quality of the products.
At Sisley all the products are phytocosmetics, a trend that is currently widespread everywhere but that a few years ago was largely unknown.
Since our birth in the 70s we have worked with phytocosmetics, that is, with natural ingredients. Now what is natural and ecological is very much in vogue, but thanks to our long experience in this sector we can say that we are at the forefront, because we have always included it in our proposal. In addition, we are not only talking about natural products, but about all the technology behind them. Sisley Laboratories and our factory are ecofriendly. We work with solar energy, the preservation of water, we take care of waste management and transport to pollute as little as possible and we are trying to reduce plastic as much as possible. In addition to doing business, like all companies, we have an obligation to take care of the planet, which is why we work to implement all the measures that achieve it.
In addition to the Maison, how many points of sale is Sisley in?
In Spain we are in 900 points of sale, since we have a selective and restricted distribution, because we want to be in the best points of sale and perfumeries in the country. We are at 50-60% of what would be the selective distribution of Spanish perfumery.
What has the Maison’s experience been like since it opened and how have they adapted to the times of crisis that we have had to live through?
2020 has been a very tough year, in which the market has fallen spectacularly. We, in a way, have been lucky that we had part of the work done because of the peculiar way we have of working. Sisley has always worked a lot at the point of sale. We do not advertise on television, but we work actively and directly with points of sale and perfumeries throughout Spain. We do an average of 3,000 promotional weeks a year, which means that many of Sisley’s professionals are at the point of sale every week of the year to find out what the final consumer needs. This has helped us to be closer to the client and to know much better how the business works, and has allowed us to save a very complicated 2020. The Spanish perfumery and cosmetics market fell by approximately 30% in 2020. We have fallen, but much less.
2021 is being difficult too. There are many countries and regions still confined, so the traffic of people at the points of sale is less. We are very hopeful that, with vaccination, we can recover normality as soon as possible and all this fear will dissipate.
What are the most significant trend changes you have noticed in the wake of the pandemic?
There have been changes in every way. Online sales have skyrocketed since the first lockdown. People have discovered what it is like to buy a beauty product online, something that before the pandemic, in this country, was a very small part of the business, now we have achieved percentages comparable to those in Europe. Before the pandemic, the online Spanish perfumery market sold around 4%, and now we are at 14%, figures that are very comparable to countries like France, Germany or Belgium. That is to say, we have already compared ourselves to very important countries in digital sales.
Before the pandemic, the online Spanish perfumery market sold around 4%, and now we are at 14%, figures that are very comparable to countries like France, Germany or Belgium.
Despite the fact that people have bought less makeup, eye makeup is the best seller, compared to foundations or lips. Obviously, with the barrier of the mask, we have focused on what is seen. As for hair, there has also been a greater interest in hair beauty, since people now pay much more attention to going out with well-cared and beautiful hair. And within the cream sector, moisturizers are the ones that sell the most, also due to masks.
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