Garance Doré: Shopping Beauty At The French Pharmacy - My Take!
Garance
June 06, 2025
Author: Garance Doré
Garance
June 06, 2025
Garance Doré: Shopping Beauty At The French Pharmacy - My Take!
Author: Garance Doré
I’ve been in Paris a lot recently and have been so excited to come back to my first love when it comes to beauty—the French Pharmacy. It’s been great, but I also—unfortunately—spotted a few things that I’d like to flag for you, so you don’t make the same mistakes I did recently.1/ Not every French Pharmacy is equal. Think of a good French Pharmacy like a bakery—it needs to be highly frequented so that you’re sure the bread is fresh. I’ve experienced some old pharmacies I could tell that products had been sitting on these shelves for way too long. More chances for the products to be exposed to heat and light and things that could alter the quality—even if pharmacy products are very stable. 2/ Beware of highly popular locations. Most of the time, these types of places have salespeople that are wearing the same white blouse a doctor would, which—to me—immediately scrambles the signals. I trust them immediately, until I ask them if they’re working for the specific brand they’re trying really, really hard to sell me. Some are so dishonest that they won’t even admit it! I stay away from these places. I’m not strong enough to resist and will leave the place with a hundred things I don’t need.3/ Don’t think the pharmacist knows it all. Pharmacists are more like doctors—when it comes to beauty, their knowledge is very general. Some of them are great just because they love the subject; others will just stay vague. But none of them will tell you that they don’t know. The way I do it now is that I come prepared. I go browse pharmacies a lot to check on the new releases, but when it’s time to buy, I do my research ahead of time, online. I have my list of ingredients I need to avoid, brands I love, brands I stay away from, I read the labels carefully. And yes, very often, I end up ordering online. But it doesn’t take anything away from the charm of the French Pharmacy—I still absolutely LOVE it!
I’ve been in Paris a lot recently and have been so excited to come back to my first love when it comes to beauty—the French Pharmacy. It’s been great, but I also—unfortunately—spotted a few things that I’d like to flag for you, so you don’t make the same mistakes I did recently.1/ Not every French Pharmacy is equal. Think of a good French Pharmacy like a bakery—it needs to be highly frequented so that you’re sure the bread is fresh. I’ve experienced some old pharmacies I could tell that products had been sitting on these shelves for way too long. More chances for the products to be exposed to heat and light and things that could alter the quality—even if pharmacy products are very stable. 2/ Beware of highly popular locations. Most of the time, these types of places have salespeople that are wearing the same white blouse a doctor would, which—to me—immediately scrambles the signals. I trust them immediately, until I ask them if they’re working for the specific brand they’re trying really, really hard to sell me. Some are so dishonest that they won’t even admit it! I stay away from these places. I’m not strong enough to resist and will leave the place with a hundred things I don’t need.3/ Don’t think the pharmacist knows it all. Pharmacists are more like doctors—when it comes to beauty, their knowledge is very general. Some of them are great just because they love the subject; others will just stay vague. But none of them will tell you that they don’t know. The way I do it now is that I come prepared. I go browse pharmacies a lot to check on the new releases, but when it’s time to buy, I do my research ahead of time, online. I have my list of ingredients I need to avoid, brands I love, brands I stay away from, I read the labels carefully. And yes, very often, I end up ordering online. But it doesn’t take anything away from the charm of the French Pharmacy—I still absolutely LOVE it!
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And get free shipping on all orders over $50