French Maison Guerlain is marking World Bee Day and the International Day for Biological Diversity from May 20 to May 22, inviting its communities and the public to engage with the Maison’s commitments and initiatives. The Perfumes and Beauty House aims to raise up to one million euros to strengthen the Guerlain For Bees Conservation Program, which spans six partnerships to help protect bees.
Bees have been inspiring Guerlain ever since they first alighted on its iconic Bee bottle in 1853. Now the symbol of the Maison, they continue to inspire Guerlain creations, adorning its most precious bottles and informing artistic collaborations. Forever linked to the beauty of nature, bees have become more than a symbol, guiding Guerlain’s commitment to sustainability. Bees are increasingly under threat today, and protecting these sentinels has been at the heart of Guerlain’s initiatives for over a decade.
A fund-raising drive of this magnitude is unprecedented for Guerlain. Our goal is to go even further in our commitment to bees, these wonders of nature that inspire our creations and guide our commitments. This is an essential priority for Guerlain, and protecting bees figures at the heart of our Purpose.
Cécile Lochard, Guerlain Director of Sustainability
Guerlain is committed to preserving biodiversity, to sustainable innovation, to taking action for the climate, to creating positive social impact, and to protecting one of nature’s most precious wonders, the bee. These commitments are driven by a duty to act and to pass on the legacy of the Maison to future generations, a pledge pursued with conviction and humility by all Guerlain teams.
For three days from May 20-22, Guerlain will take action by donating 20% of its worldwide sales, plus 20 euros for every repost of the World Bee Day Instagram image posted by Guerlain with the #GuerlainForBees and #WorldBeeDay campaign hashtags.
Designated World Bee Day by the United Nations, this symbolic date coincides with the birth of Anton Janša, an 18th century pioneer in modern beekeeping techniques.
The Guerlain For Bees Conservation Program spans six partnerships and initiatives dedicated to bees:
- Since 2011, Guerlain has provided support for sustainability actions by the Ouessant Island Black Bee Conservatory (ACANB) in Brittany, including both financial aid and assistance for research and communication.
- Since 2015, a partnership with the French Observatory of Apidology (OFA), created by Thierry Dufresne, has led to the development of hive stocks across Europe, along with promotion of careers in beekeeping.
- In 2018, Guerlain teamed with the OFA to create Bee School, a youth awareness program that educates children about the importance of protecting bees. Bee School is expanding internationally in 2021.
- Since 2020 Guerlain has run the Women for Bees program in partnership with UNESCO and in collaboration with the OFA. This beekeeping entrepreneurship program for women trains new women beekeepers, creates new beekeeping operations around the world within UNESCO biosphere reserves, and measures the benefits of pollination.
- Also in 2020, Guerlain became a patron of the GoodPlanet Foundation, created by Yann Arthus-Bertrand to raise awareness among young people by creating artistic and educational spaces dedicated to the world of bees.
- Guerlain has since 2020 supported the ELYX Foundation, co-created by artist Yacine Aït Kaci as part of the FACE Foundation to promote the values and texts of the United Nations, in particular the 2030 Agenda and its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Guerlain has been creating exceptional fragrance and beauty products since 1828 and strives to preserve, develop and transmit this unique heritage. In the Name of Beauty, Maison Guerlain acts by elevating nature to an art and commits to passing on its wonders to future generations, with the bee as sentinel. Guerlain involves and unites its customers and partners, who share this same vision, in order to imagine and shape a more beautiful and sustainable world together.
Until tomorrow 22 may International Biodiversity Day, Guerlain is also pledging 1 million euros globally towards bees. To learn more about Guerlain’s sustainability commitments, come into the beautiful world of Guerlain.