Sylvie Chantecaille

Founder & CEO

Chantecaille

Sylvie Chantecaille is Chantecaille’s creator, heart and soul. A beauty industry pioneer, she has been at the forefront of many of the industry’s most innovative moments for over 30 years.
Known for her unique ability to integrate science and technology with botanicals and luxury skincare, Sylvie is dedicated to making modern women’s lives easier and more beautiful.
Born into a family of art collectors, Sylvie’s upbringing in Paris was immersed in art, while her free hours were spent in her mother’s garden, where her love of flowers took root at a very young age. She moved to New York in the 1970s and started a small company of chic cosmetics with Diane von Furstenberg. Their successful venture caught the attention of the Estée Lauder company, which soon came to woo her to join their team. In 1979, Sylvie launched Prescriptives at Estée Lauder, which went on to become a best-selling cosmetics line, injecting a new level of scientific emphasis in a wealth of groundbreaking formulas. After establishing a unique foothold in the beauty market with Prescriptives, Sylvie was fueled by the desire to create a new company that reflected her own natural, holistic approach to beauty and wellness, as well as her obsession with fragrance. In 1997, she launched Chantecaille as a small fragrance house with four highly original scents based on natural essential oils. This offering presaged the next wave in cosmetics—naturals—by many years, and laid the foundation for the company’s unique approach to beauty. Sylvie’s personal passion for animals informs Chantecaille’s philanthropy platform, which has become the company’s calling card. In 2006, the disappearing butterflies in her garden inspired her create a colorful cause-metics palette to support conservationists working to protect them. Since then, Chantecaille has launched 24 limited edition cause-metics collections, which have benefited organizations worldwide: The David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust, WideCast, the FairWild Standard, Space For Giants, and many more. Traveling to meet with the passionate people behind the causes is what Sylvie treasures most—along with being close to the animals in their free, wild state, which brings her so much joy. Sylvie’s vision for Chantecaille has become a true family labor of love. She shares her passion with daughter Olivia, the brand’s Creative Director, husband Olivier, functioning as CFO, daughter Alexandra, Vice President of Sales, and son Philippe, Director of Media Production. Together, the Chantecaille family brings a dedication to enhancing wellness and a consuming passion for quality, purity and form. With her family’s help, Sylvie has built Chantecaille into a global luxury skincare and cosmetics brand renowned for its technologically advanced approach to naturally beautiful skin.