Mi-Ryung, founder and CEO of the Qiriness brand, lends herself to an exclusive interview for Qiriness clients. This lifelong cosmetology and beauty enthusiast looks back at the beginnings of Qiriness, shares her beauty secrets and even reveals a few secrets about the brand's future...
How was the Qiriness adventure born?
It all started in South Korea, my home country. I was fascinated by the ancestral beauty rituals that my mother used to repeat every day, and this holistic vision of beauty, practiced as a true art of living, largely inspired me to create Qiriness. After my higher education in Korea, I moved to France to do my MBA, not knowing that I would later create my cosmetic brand. In Paris, my Korean culture was enriched by the western vision of beauty and especially by my knowledge of the lifestyle of French women and their needs. For almost ten years, I perfected my expertise as a consultant developing cosmetic brands and licenses between Europe and Asia. Then, little by little, creating my own brand became an obvious choice. After more than two years of research and development, the brand Qiriness was born in France. A brand that I wanted to be of high standards, sincere and above all, one to listen to its customers.
What makes Qiriness successful today?
Qiriness is now sold in France but also throughout the world in more than 23 countries. In 15 years, the brand has managed to make a place for itself in the cosmetics market and to conquer the hearts of our customers. I believe this can be explained by our real desire to develop very high quality products in terms of composition, by giving priority to ingredients of natural origin, but also in terms of technicality, while remaining a brand that is accessible to as many as possible. The Qiriness customer has a very universal profile and this proves that we have succeeded in our challenge!
If you had to keep only one Qiriness product, what would it be and why?
This is a very complicated question for me because I take great care in the development of each product for which I invest my heart and soul alongside the marketing and development team. I must admit, however, that I can't do without Caresse Temps Sublime, Global Well-Aging Redensifying Cream ! A true best-seller of the brand, it has become my daily beauty essential for a firm and redensified skin. I can really see the results on my skin! My little tip: I recommend to apply it in a targeted manner to noticeable wrinkles on the face like crow's feet or the lion's wrinkle.
How was the Sauna Visage, Herbal Facial Steam Bath, the cult product at Qiriness, created?
This unique product did not come out of nowhere! It was largely inspired by the use of steam baths, which are very popular in South Korea for skin care. Korean women regularly go to public baths where there is always a room dedicated to the Sauna. Despite the fact that this type of treatment is very little used in France, except in institutes and spas, it has many virtues that make it a must in my opinion. The steam helps eliminate toxins, stimulates the skin and prepares it to receive the benefits of the ensuing treatments. Your skin rediscovers immediately its radiance!
It is therefore very natural that I wanted to develop a small tablet, called Sauna Visage, which contains plant extracts, to recreate the beauty ritual of the Spa at Home, step by step, for all women. In addition to detoxifying the skin, this facial treatment is an opportunity to take a moment for yourself and the time to recharge your batteries, far from the stress and tension of everyday life.
What is your opinion on the growing trend in natural cosmetics?
I think that the trend towards natural products is beneficial on many levels. First of all, it allows us to better respect our skin, this very important organ of the body (because of its barrier role between it and the multiple aggressions of the outside world), already sufficiently under attack by our daily environment. It is therefore essential to protect the skin by offering treatment cares respectful of the skin, to preserve it over time.
Moreover, if this natural trend can be beneficial to our planet, it is a win-win situation. As we have seen recently, the tragedy we experienced with Covid teaches us a lesson in humility, in a world that thought itself invincible, as if not subject to history and immune to the disasters that can befall it. We must always remember, forever in the future, the fragility of our planet's balance, and the need to take care of it.
How does Qiriness fit into this Clean Beauty trend?
I have always been very sensitive to respect for the skin and the environment. I have always favored natural ingredients in the composition of Qiriness products. More recently, we have noticed a real collective awareness and increasing expectations from our customers for even more naturalness. We have listened to them and have undertaken a major reworking of all our products to reach a minimum of 90% of ingredients of natural origin in each product, while eliminating controversial ingredients. And we are going even further to respect the environment with the redesign of our packaging in 2020, now eco-responsible. Discover all our commitments
What is your definition of beauty?
I believe that beauty has a thousand faces, that it lives in each of us outside the established rules and trends. In a hyper-connected and constantly changing world, I also believe in a natural, honest, generous and universal beauty. I share with every woman the need to respect our skin, the will to take care of oneself, to take care of ourselves! I believe that body and mind are inseparable, that beauty and well-being are one. This is why Qiriness' approach is global and aims to bring much more than a superficial aesthetic answer.
What are your beauty tips?
Well, I am the queen of beauty tips and I love to share them with everyone! You can find my beauty tips directly on the Qiriness product pages of our website. If I had to mention only one or two of them, I would choose the following: first of all, I recommend not to neglect the importance of the gesture during the application of the skincare. It must be done with care and a lot of tenderness because it plays a key role in the effectiveness of the treatment care on our skin! Then, I invite you all to take some time for yourself. It may seem trivial, but it really is necessary to take a wellness break from time to time, just for you, to carry out your beauty routine.
What are the next big steps for Qiriness?
The years 2020 and 2021 have been very special given the context we all know. This year, because of its very uncertain nature, was favorable to the visibility of our best-sellers during the first part of the year, such as the anti-age Temps Sublime range or our Source d'Eau moisturizers on which we communicated a lot. A very nice launch is being prepared for the fall, it is still a confidential project but we wish it great success! We also continue to reformulate our products according to our new natural charter, to reach an average of 95% of ingredients of natural origin. This takes time because we want to guarantee to customers who are already fans of our products that the sensoriality of our products will remain the same and that our customers will take just as much pleasure in applying their skin care products.
The year 2022 will be marked by beautiful innovations for the pleasure of our customers. Our laboratories and product development teams are working hard right now to turn these products into real gems, which we hope will become your essential care products of tomorrow! We look forward to our customers being present!
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