Family owned and operated hair & skin care manufacturer, Davines Group, engineers smarter solutions for the global cosmetics industry
Founded in 1983, the Davines Group takes care of people and planet with its sustainable range of hair and skin care products, through its brands Davines and [ comfort zone ]. From shampoos and conditioners to a whole variety of products for any skin condition, the people behind Davines Group know the real value of beauty. The story starts with Silvana and Gianni Bollati, who founded the company based on the values of professionalism and respect. As Stefano Benetti, General Manager of Finance and Operations, begins: “Silvia and Gianni’s core values have permeated the company since its birth, enabling it to grow consistently and reach crucial results. Today, our group counts on almost 900 employees worldwide and operates in 90 countries, through 45,000 professional salons and 5600 affiliated spas, with a revenue of more than €263 million in 2023. 
“Despite the significant growth testified by these numbers, the company has remained true to its roots, demonstrating a profound consistency in the pledge to quality, as well as respect of the planet and community. In 2016, we achieved B Corp certification for the first time and recently re-certified, while our Italian and US branches have been listed as Benefit Corporations since 2019. Sustainability and the ideal of Sustainable Beauty, which have been inherent in the Davines Group since 2006, permeate what we do every day and how we conduct our business.”
On the dawn of the Group’s 40th anniversary, Stefano ruminates on what makes the company so special: “The constant evolution of the company and its dynamism have always been aspects which make this environment stimulating and ensure the longevity of the business. During 25 years of working for the Group, my personal journey has advanced hand in hand with the expansion of our business, including from a revenue viewpoint, as when I joined the company, its revenues were around €8 million, and today we’re up to €263 million. We expanded from around 100 people to almost 1000 collaborators worldwide, of which half are hosted in our Davines Group Village headquarters in Parma, constructed in 2018 to represent the ideal of transparency.
“The company has always been a dynamic reality, where I had the opportunity to progress in my professional career, starting as a Management Controller and becoming Vice General Director only three years later. The continuous will to establish a regenerative model, driven by our sustainability strategy, is the driving factor behind all our ambitions.”
Continuous expansion has been part of the Davines Group strategy since the beginning, as Stefano details: “We have recorded a double-digit growth since the beginning, apart from 2020 which was impacted by the pandemic. The relevant expansion of our business is made possible by the high quality of our products, which respect higher standards, not only of efficacy and performance, but also of sustainability. Thanks to our in-house research and innovation department, we have high flexibility when it comes to our formulas and processes. Craftsmanship is at the core of the development process of our products, thanks to the work of more than 60 researchers in our three laboratories, which led to the creation of three patents and over 130 formulas, as of last year.
Sustainable practice
“The Group was an early adopter of the sustainable approach, which led to establishing the regenerative representation of our strategic vision. The metaphor we use is one of a tree with solid roots in the soil, these three roots symbolize our three core values: environment, society, and governance. We depict our company as part of a bigger ecosystem, interconnected with the planet, our people and the wider community.
“In fact, the international vocation has been at the center of our business for the last 25 years. We are a solid company rooted in its territory, but wishing to create significant business relationships, which are long-lasting and based on mutual trust and interdependence. This principle is, for us, a guiding light in the connection with our partners, both locally and globally. The recent opening of a new branch in Germany is the latest example of this curiosity and open mindedness that constantly pushes us to expand our business to new areas.”
The successful ongoing expansion of Davines Group proves the power of sustainable practice. Environmentally conscious protocols are part of daily life at the company, as Stefano discusses. “First of all, we measure and monitor our climate impact, to have a complete picture of all direct and indirect emissions generated by our business and reduce and neutralize our carbon footprint. To do so, we involve many internal and external stakeholders, raising awareness and looking for innovative solutions.
“In 2022, the Davines Group Village achieved LEED certification, an important recognition of the improvement of the building’s environmental performance. Obtaining certification was made possible through the adoption of practices that focused on the impact of our buildings with reference, among others, to energy use, water use, waste disposal, occupational well-being, and procurement of commonly used products.
Future growth
“We are also introducing new equipment that is going to improve the efficiency of our processes and support the organic growth that we are experiencing year after year. The industrial investment in a new production and storage facility serves to boost the production capacity of the shampoo and conditioner lines, which will increase by 50 percent to meet the steady growth in demand.
“We are now focusing on reaching our 2030 goals, always respecting our regenerative model and stakeholder driven strategy. Mainly, we want to keep on growing organically, while proactively diminishing our impact on the environment. This can only happen if we remain consistent with our core values of sustainability and dynamism,” he concludes.