Jenny Hudson, L’OCCITANE PR Manager
Please introduce yourself
Hi, I’m Jenny Hudson, PR Manager at L’OCCITANE UK. My mother worked for Dior Beauty in the 80’s and 90’s and I grew up sampling her lipsticks and makeup palettes, my passion for the beauty industry was sealed. My first taste of a beauty press office was aged 16 at Crème de la Mer. I found it invaluable getting that experience at a young age, it helped cement what I wanted to do in the future and carved out an my educational path in order to get me there.
Congratulations. What does it mean to you and the brand winning one of this year’s Copra Awards, especially in such a challenging time.
We are thrilled to have won Best New Hand & Nail Product for our L’OCCITANE Shea Intensive Hand Balm 150ml. In a year where washing and moisturising our hands has been such a key focus, this award means a great a deal to the brand.
What’s your favourite aspect of working within the Beauty and fragrance industry?
Being able to have an impact on how people may feel about themselves – be it freshly washed hair, the perfect shade of lipstick or that new eye cream that makes you feel like you had an extra two hours sleep!
The industry has been going through some incredible changes. What are the most exciting opportunities for someone looking to start a career in the beauty industry?
The opportunity to be at the forefront of the sustainable beauty revolution! I have really enjoyed watching the industry move towards eco-friendly options; refill products, shampoo bars, in store recycling, just to name a few! This year has highlighted the need to reduce waste with documentaries such as David Attenborough raising awareness of how we can help our planet. At L’OCCITANE we have increased the amount of eco-refills available to our customers, provide in store recycling with TerraCycle and create eco-friendly products such as reusable cotton pads and our first Reusable Advent Calendar. It’s a really exciting time.
Also, Creativity! The industry has always been creative but this last year especially, we have had to all think outside the box, come together in unity and support each other. We had the opportunity to implement things we never would have before. No idea is a stupid idea at the moment!
What’s your number 1 most important part you will take from last year and what’s your new focus for 2021?
The support. I was so proud to work for L’OCCITANE supporting the NHS with hand cream and hand sanitiser donations. Equally, I was proud of our internal teams for the support they gave each other. Our digital teams and warehouse were put under immense pressure as our stores closed for an extended period of time, but everyone came together to help them and provide that much-needed support they needed and the outcome has been incredible as a result. My focus for 2021, is to continue that support, but also to think outside of the box as we enter another challenging year.
We are looking to share all things positive. Do you have a positive memory, phrase or an event you can share with us?
It has to be the NHS donations. We were the first beauty brand in the UK to donate, sending 15,000 hand creams and 20,000 bottles of hand sanitiser to hospitals across the UK and Ireland. I was the lucky one to liaise with the wonderful hospitals and their staff to arrange delivery. The messages, pictures, videos and letters that we received in thanks, made my year! Like I said, it made me feel such a sense of pride to work for our sunshine-coloured brand. We have just donated a further 21,000 hand creams to hospitals across the UK and Ireland this January.
What’s your key Beauty tip or quote?
Oh so many things! But my top tip is to get rid of beauty wipes in favour of reusable cotton pads and cloths – more environmentally friendly and there are so many great cleansers on the market to try.
How important is Copra to you?
COPRA is a wonderful community of like-minded retailers providing opportunities to connect and share ideas. We love the support given to the cosmetic and perfumery industries.