What To Buy From A French Pharmacy
An exhaustive shopping list of the French skincare products you can't ignore.
This is post is taken from an ever-developing note I’ve had on my phone since 2013. I used to have to go to Paris quite a bit with work and whenever I had spare time I’d walk down to Pharmacie Vendome on Rue des Capucines armed with recommendations from my Parisian colleagues. The French really know how to make skincare well. They have the history, the science and the expertise. Their equivalents of products made elsewhere in the world are just a class above the rest.
A great example of this is cult favourite, A313 retinoid cream (you can actually get hold of this on Amazon here but it’s much cheaper in France). At only 0.12% strength (a “strong” retinol is considered 0.3-1%) the results are pretty miraculous. It’s classified as a “gentle product” even though there have been bun fights in stores when they product has been low in stock.
It’s technically not a “retinol” but a “retinoid derivative” meaning it’s from the same Vitamin A family but a smaller molecule therefore more effective and less abrasive. The texture is almost Vaseline like, but go with it, and it’s most famous for delivering the results without the skin flaking/shedding. If you’re new to retinol and want some further help, this Vogue article is great.
If you aren’t planning a French trip soon there are pharmacies in the UK that stock most (note: not all) of my list below such as the one Andrew Wheatcroft recommends here. But, without further ado let’s get into it. On y va!