With a big adventure ahead, we're heading off for a day in Savoie. Too bad there's no time to ski—we're off to see where our hand creams are made!
After a two-hour TGV train ride to Bourg-en-Bresse and another two hours by car, we finally arrive in Rumilly, an hour from Lyon. It's a charming little village with houses typical of this mountainous region.
When we arrive, we meet Francine, who is in charge of the line, and she explains everything to us in detail. Want to know how these little beauties are made? Join us for the tour!
First, the tubes made from sugarcane fiber arrive from a nearby factory in large boxes. One by one, the girls (yes, there were only women that day) carefully place the labels on each cap, making sure to center them perfectly.
The tubes are then placed in the machine's "dispenser" and stacked on top of each other. From there, five crucial steps follow, requiring you to master the machine's settings in advance. This can take up to a full day!
The opened tube is positioned and then centered by the machine using a red light to mark the impressions. The second step is to fill the tubes with cream. Then, the "heating head" comes into play. This is a system that heats the top of the tube before welding, and then bam! A tool flattens and welds the tube. It cools quickly, and the top is trimmed to make it even. The tubes slide along a conveyor belt, and the workers' sharp eyes watch for the slightest defect. The weight of the tubes is also checked—30 grams, no more, no less!
No waste, any that can't be sold will be donated to charity. We left with two boxes under our arms!
It's not over yet! After production, the tubes go straight to packaging. Every pair of hands is ready at their station. The product is placed, the box is closed, six products are placed in a box... and voilà, they're off to Chartres near Paris, where they're stored in our warehouse before arriving at your home!
While we were there, we also met Luc, our formulator. He developed the "recipe" for our beautiful hand creams, using organic aloe vera and 98% natural ingredients. At the very beginning of the production process, Luc works in his home laboratory, conducting formulation tests, which he then adapts to produce the creams in larger quantities.
An intense day with fascinating encounters that make us proud to create and manufacture our products 100% in France.
Our 3 hand creams: 003 , 101 , 801 .
