Clarins names Erborian co-founder Katalin Berenyi as new president

By

Sarah Ahssen

Published
Jan 22, 2019

From 1st February, Katalin Berenyi will take over as president of cosmetics brand Clarins, succeeding Natalie Bader who held the position for four years. 

Berenyi joins Clarins from L'Occitane International, having sold the Erborian brand that she co-founded with Hojung Lee in 2006 to the company in July 2012. "I created Erborian more than ten years ago and when L'Occitane acquired a majority share, it was obvious that we'd be leaving the group at some point. After all these years, I also wanted to take on some new challenges, even if I'll always keep an eye on Erborian, which is like my baby;" Berenyi told FashionNetwork.com, having spent the last 18 months serving as chief creative officer at L'Occitane en Provence and Erborian.

Berenyi, who will therefore be leaving Erborian behind as she departs from L'Occitane, also spent more than five years at L'Oréal, where she notably served as global VP of marketing and travel retail. Furthermore, she has a wealth of international experience, above all in Asia, where Erborian is a well-established brand, a fact which will not have escaped Clarins' notice. 

The brand, like the vast majority of historic beauty labels, is currently facing stiff competition from agile new independent brands targeting millennials. In this spirit, earlier this month Clarins launched My Clarins, a new range of ethical products made with 88% natural ingredients in an attempt to win over younger consumers, particularly those between the ages of 18 and 29.