Last year, Clarins, a renowned French beauty company, launched Clarins T.R.U.S.T., a blockchain-based traceability solution to showcase its responsible sourcing of plant ingredients used in its skincare products. This innovative solution, which has been progressively rolling out worldwide, recently expanded to Japan. It is a part of Clarins‘ corporate social responsibility initiative, aimed at verifying that the sourced plants are either fair trade or organic, complete with relevant certifications. Clarins cultivates some of these plants at its own “Domaine Clarins,” while others are sourced from certified partners, all identifiable through the T.R.U.S.T. app. Currently, the traceability solution covers 49 of their products.
According to their press release, Clarin’s T.R.U.S.T. is an abbreviation of:
TRACEABILITY
RESPONSIBILITY
UNIQUENESS
SECURITY
TRANSPARENCY
The system employs the Neurochain blockchain – founded by a French team – to ensure data integrity; once suppliers input data, it becomes immutable. This feature not only enhances supply chain transparency but also aids in pinpointing the exact location of plant cultivation, enhancing product safety and recall efficiency if necessary.
Blockchain and Product Traceability
Blockchain’s role in product traceability has become so integral in the beauty industry that it’s almost a given. Other beauty brands like Cult Beauty and Estée Lauder’s Aveda have also adopted blockchain for similar purposes. Recently, Clarins stepped into the digital realm by launching 325 NFTs on the Polygon blockchain, offering unique rewards and experiences to customers.
Clarins has also integrated QR codes on their product packaging, leading customers directly to the Clarins T.R.U.S.T. platform for detailed information about the product’s ingredients and manufacturing process. This initiative enhances customer transparency and strengthens Clarins‘ commitment to accountability.
Hosted on Amazon Web Services (AWS), the Clarins T.R.U.S.T. platform benefits from global accessibility, high availability, and scalability to accommodate large customer volumes. This approach ensures efficient operation and minimizes the carbon footprint of the digital solution. Collaborating with AWS Partner NeuroChain and using the Communify platform, Clarins has created a reliable system where ingredient authenticity is verifiable, thus providing clear insights into the product origins for both the company and its customers. By the beginning of 2023, 38 products were fully traceable, with a target to increase this to nearly 100 by the end of the year.