Our story: step by step

ZAO officially launches in France and internationally, with our team settling in Romans-sur-Isère in the Drôme region. From the very beginning, the range is entirely certified organic and 100% natural. Lipsticks and pressed powders (Blushes, Bronzers, Compact Powders, and Eyeshadows) are already refillable.

The range expands with the arrival of Nail Polishes, Lip Varnishes, and above all our very first refillable Bamboo Box, allowing customers to create their own assortment made up of two large powders, four Eyeshadows, or a mix of both.

With the launch of our 14 shades of Compact Foundation, ZAO becomes the first makeup brand to offer a certified organic, 100% natural, vegan, and refillable foundation adapted to even the deepest skin tones!

Our team starts to feel cramped, so it’s time to move to a larger space. Destination: the countryside! We settle a few kilometers away in the village of Génissieux. Surrounded by fields, the renovated farmhouse offers breathtaking views of the Vercors mountains.

David, the founder of the brand, partners with two local organizations to co-create the adapted company Fabrik’Etik. This structure provides people with disabilities an adapted work environment while allowing our brand to locally produce our labels and handle the packaging and labeling of our products.

Always reflecting on our packaging, we launch the refillable version of our Mineral Silk loose powder. One more step toward a fully refillable range! It is also the year our rectangular Eyeshadows appear with the launch of our very first Clin d’œil palette.

Driven by the success of refillable products, we continue the momentum by redesigning our last non-refillable packaging. By the end of 2018, not only is the entire range refillable, but the brand also obtains Vegan certification after removing beeswax from all formulas.

In line with our eco-design approach, we gradually replace our cotton pouches with bamboo fiber pouches, which have a lower environmental impact. Then, after numerous tests, our Bronzer refills finally say goodbye to plastic packaging and adopt recyclable cardboard sleeves. All metal pan refills are now packaged in cardboard!

Did you know? All our refills are recyclable. However, they are often too small to be processed through traditional sorting systems. So, at the beginning of 2020, we launched our own collection solution to enable the recycling and recovery of used refills. From then on, all retail points are equipped with a ZAO Eco-Box where customers can drop off their used refills. Once full, the box is returned to Génissieux at our expense, emptied, sorted, and recycled.

After an initial solidarity commitment alongside the Terre & Humanisme association as part of a social project promoting food autonomy in Benin, Zao continues its actions with Seinformer Cancer to contribute to the fight against breast cancer. Makeup donations, participation in the Trail Rose event, and support for local initiatives mark the beginning of our involvement in socio-aesthetics. This approach consists of offering aesthetic care to people affected by physical or psychological illnesses to help them better cope with illness, accept themselves, and regain self-confidence.

ZAO celebrates its 10th anniversary! To mark this symbolic milestone, we unveil what perfectly embodies the essence of the brand: a refillable, certified organic, vegan, and 100% natural all-in-one makeup palette. A true concentration of our expertise and commitments, the Desert Rose Palette is born, featuring a brand-new 3-in-1 Mosaic Powder. It is also the year we make a strong environmental decision: removing all pouches from our products. A significant step toward reducing our carbon footprint by decreasing packaging weight by 20%.

After many months of research and development, we are proud to unveil our very first skincare range: Intuitive Skin. Makeup removers, lotions, serums, and day creams create a complete routine that is certified organic, vegan, and 100% natural in origin. Sensory textures and captivating fragrances are designed to transform daily skincare into a true moment of pleasure for both you and your skin.

ZAO reinvents itself with a brand-new visual identity that is more elegant and resolutely modern, guided by a “less is more” philosophy. This year also marks a turning point with the launch of “Le Rouge by ZAO,” the brand’s first non-certified organic product. After years of research, we realized that it was impossible to combine organic certification with the vibrant red shades requested by our customers. We therefore chose to use a synthetic pigment while preserving our vegan commitment by excluding cochineal.

Driven by our community’s expectations and our desire to enrich the complexion range with ever more high-performing formulas, the Second Skin Tinted Serum is born. Lightweight, natural, and with a “bare skin” finish, it immediately becomes our bestselling complexion product within its first months. At the same time, our Intuitive Skin skincare range continues to expand with the launch of a Pro-Age line, embracing a positive and caring approach to skin aging.

Year after year, driven by the trust and loyalty of our community, our customer base continues to grow. Grateful to those who have supported us since the beginning, we decide to take a new step forward by launching the ZAO Subscription, designed to reward our most loyal customers.