What does it take to lead a PE-backed company? 3 questions to Sabrina Herlory Rouget, CEO of Aroma-Zone
Sabrina Herlory Rouget has been the CEO of Aroma-Zone since 2021, a company founded by the Vausselin family, a leader in online aromatherapy and cosmetics and backed by Eurazeo. She previously ran MAC Cosmetics in France after managing “L’Occitane” in Europe. She graduated from HEC Paris, in 2003.
A committed citizen, she is also the spokesperson for the ‘Fondation des femmes‘, Sponsor of the ” Maison des femmes de St Denis “, and Administrator of ‘Toutes À l’Ecole‘.
You are currently CEO of a Private Equity owned company. You have had leadership positions in large international companies and in family-owned businesses, how is it different? How do you strike a balance between a CEO and active financial investor?
PE firms allow for a high level of autonomy. They are also nimble, and their decision process is streamlined. This speed of execution allows me as a CEO to be more creative. Today, creativity and reactivity are critical as we live in an environment that requires constant change and adjustment. It is more difficult within large corporations to react quickly and to anticipate change.
Regular monthly exchanges with our shareholders force our teams to efficiently and effectively focus on the right topics and be well prepared. It is a team exercise as I believe in the diversity of talents and expertise, and not in an omnipotent CEO presence.
The Eurazeo team brings a granularity of analysis and acts as sparring partners—a helpful tool with which to reinvent, transform and scale the Company.
At the time of the acquisition, I did meet several Private Equity Funds. I spent a lot of time with the Eurazeo’s team, and I purposefully choose to work with them and with Amandine Ayrem in particular.
Amandine and I had a meeting of minds and values. She not only understood the business and its financial drivers, but also what Aroma-Zone stood for in terms of values. We were completely aligned with the vision for the Business and on its impact on society at large. Both criteria are equally important for me and drove my choice.
Effecting such a transformation is easier to achieve under private ownership at this stage versus public markets, which may be more short term focused.
The DNA of Aroma-Zone is to make 100% natural products available for the wider public, how do you factor in ESG constraints and the respect for the environment in your running if the Company?
Aroma-Zone is an ESG native company. ESG is the core of our DNA. We are proud to be leaders in this field, but we remain humble as the road ahead is complex and unpaved.
Our primary focus has always been to reduce waste and avoid excessive packaging. The cosmetic industry traditionally tends to over pack products, which results in a lot of waste. We are trying to change usage and use only bottles alone for our products.
We are also leading the way for the eco-refilling of products and bulk selling in physical stores. It is a long process. However, we have achieved a record of 1.9 million eco refills sold for our serums in 2023.
Decarbonation is a massive challenge and in parallel we are working closely with the agricultural industry to invest in and develop regenerative farming.
We also believe we need to educate our customers to adapt their behaviors and expectations for a more eco conscious lifestyle. We have 2 million active customers in France and, therefore, we are an essential agent of change.
Our size allows us to be nimble and explore new ways of producing and selling versus traditional business models, which often struggle to sustain ESG constraints and transform themselves.
Lastly, accelerating our efforts towards an ever more sustainable business relies on our financial performance and our ability to self-fund this transformation.
You are a woman in a leadership position in the Private Equity industry, which is male dominated, how do you assess the situation? How do change this situation?
My approach is not to see myself as an outsider. Never. I work with smart counterparts who want to create value and be good and responsible citizens. The focus is performance, excellence, and value creation.
It is not easy, but it is motivating and highly enriching. I hope that I can be an example and a role model for some. The more women there are in the industry, the more women it will attract. It is a virtuous circle.
I encourage women not to be afraid of crafting their own story.
L’ADN d’Aroma-Zone est de mettre à disposition du grand public des produits 100% naturels, comment intégrez-vous les contraintes ESG et le respect de l’environnement dans la gestion de l’entreprise ?
Aroma-Zone est une entreprise “ESG native”. L’ESG est au cœur de notre ADN. Nous sommes fiers d’être des leaders dans ce domaine, mais nous restons humbles car le chemin à parcourir est complexe et à défricher.
Notre objectif premier a toujours été de réduire les déchets et d’éviter les emballages excessifs. L’industrie cosmétique a traditionnellement tendance à sur-emballer les produits, ce qui entraîne beaucoup de déchets. Nous essayons de changer les usages et de n’utiliser qu’un seul flacon pour nos produits.
Nous ouvrons également la voie à l’éco-remplissage des produits et à la vente en vrac dans les magasins physiques. C’est un processus de longue haleine. Cependant, nous avons atteint un record de 1,9 million d’éco-recharges vendues pour nos sérums en 2023.
La décarbonisation est un défi de taille et, parallèlement, nous travaillons en étroite collaboration avec l’industrie agricole pour investir dans l’agriculture régénératrice et la développer.
Nous pensons également qu’il est nécessaire d’éduquer nos clients pour qu’ils adaptent leurs comportements et leurs attentes à un mode de vie plus respectueux de l’environnement. Nous avons 2 millions de clients actifs en France et nous sommes donc un agent essentiel du changement.
Notre taille nous permet d’être agiles et d’explorer de nouvelles façons de produire et de vendre par rapport aux business models traditionnels, qui ont souvent du mal à supporter les contraintes ESG et à se transformer.
Enfin, l’accélération de nos efforts vers une entreprise toujours plus durable repose sur notre performance financière et notre capacité à autofinancer cette transformation.
Vous êtes une femme occupant un poste de direction dans le secteur du private equity qui est dominé par les hommes ; comment évaluez-vous la situation ? Comment la changer ?
Mon approche consiste à ne pas me considérer comme une « outsider”. Jamais. Je travaille avec des homologues intelligents qui veulent créer de la valeur et être de bons citoyens responsables. L’accent est mis sur la performance, l’excellence et la création de valeur.
Ce n’est pas facile, mais c’est motivant et très enrichissant. J’espère pouvoir être un exemple et un modèle pour certains. Plus il y aura de femmes dans le secteur, plus il en attirera. C’est un cercle vertueux.
J’encourage les femmes à ne pas avoir peur de créer leur propre histoire.