Setting up for success
01.
THE CLIENT
Jurlique
Jurlique was founded in 1985 by Dr. Jurgen Klein and his wife, Ulrike–scientists in biochemistry, herbology, homeopathy and alchemy. Jurlique is a phonetic combination of their names Jurgen and Ulrike. Their vision was to create a pure and natural skin care range that would combine the ancient arts of alchemy and homeopathy to reconnect people to nature, and inspire them to wellbeing.
To farm their own herbs and flowers for the skincare products, Klein and Ulrike left their home of Germany to establish a farm in Adelaide, South Australia.
Today, Jurlique products are sold in more than 19 countries around the world. Their most iconic natural ingredients are still grown in the Adelaide Hills where Jurlique first began.
Founded
1985
HQ
Adelaide, South Australia
Company Size
501-1,000 employees
Industry
Cosmetics
Specialties
Natural Skincare02.
THE CHALLENGE
Jurlique was looking to expand from their Australian base by taking their brand to France and retailing internationally. This entailed selling their products in Paris, and targeting the French market for the very first time.
To begin retailing in France, Jurlique had been negotiating contracts with the renowned Galeries Lafayette Haussmann & BHV Marais department stores in Paris. After a year and a half of negotiation, the department stores agreed to sign a contract with Jurlique. However, the contracts entailed an extremely short set-up period of just one month. As such, Jurlique urgently required a reactive partner who could facilitate the project extremely quickly.
Not only did Jurlique need to explore set-up models, but also to benchmark and forecast costs, and ultimately, establish a representative office in France. Most importantly, Jurlique needed to urgently recruit a French team to go ahead with the contracts held with the department stores.
Jurlique’s needs did not end with set-up requirements. Following their establishment in France, the Australian skincare brand needed ongoing HR support across both cultures and both languages. Surprisingly, such support is not common in the cosmetic and retail industry in France.
When going overseas, strategy and organisation is fundamental. Without the use of best practices, the opportunity to break into a new market can be lost. To expand to France with confidence and knowledge, Jurlique sought expert partners who would ensure their brand would resonate with the new market & generate successful expansion.
03.
OUR SOLUTION
Our first priority was to help Jurlique implement the very best business model for their individual needs. This was essential to allowing Jurlique to recruit employees in France, not only legally, but also in manner which would be most suited to their business structure. To help Jurlique make the best decision in this regard, we benchmarked the different employment models, allowing them to evaluate each option available. To further help Jurlique forecast costs, we also performed a total employment cost study.
After considering all options and evaluating costs, Jurlique decided that a representative office would be the best model to adopt in France. Accordingly, we helped Jurlique to establish their representative office in Paris.
From there, we created local payroll for Jurlique, making them fully prepared to employ their own team. As such, we took the next step and recruited a team of 6 under a month for their new French operation.
To equip Jurlique with the right tools to manage their new team, we supported them with a holistic HR solution. Initially, this came in the form of supporting new employees with initial onboarding and product training, before extending our support through ongoing proximity HR management.
As part of our partnership, our French Country Manager visited Jurlique’s stores each week. Not only did this allow us to collect the hours worked, but also to assess the morale and employee engagement experienced by the people of Jurlique. This ensured that our outsourced HR solution was not removed from the French operation. Rather, we joined Jurlique on the frontline, thereby creating highly personalised support.
Accordingly, when team adjustments were to be made, our Country Manager for France was readily available to offer support. This was essential to managing the local team, as well as managing regional operations.
Finally, to make communication as fluid and smooth as possible, we organised for Jurlique to have one point of contact at Polyglot Group for all of their setup needs. This included their HR, Payroll and Recruitment as well as Accountants and Lawyers. By securing and organising key partnerships for Jurlique, the company was able to concentrate on what they do best: their core business.
04.
THE RESULTS
Our partnership with Jurlique was more than just facilitating their set-up—it was about meeting every one of their needs within an extremely short time-frame.
From implementing the perfect employment model, to recruiting a team of 6—Jurlique was able to accomplish a great deal within a minimal time frame.
Overall, The Polyglot Group ensured that Jurlique attained all of the necessary tools for a very successful future in Europe. With our help, Jurlique has secured their contracts with two major department stores in France. What’s more, they know that they can call on Polyglot Group for expertise and HR support with their future endeavours.
