Premium Beauty News - How is Wauters Group structured today?
Éric Wauters - The group has operated as a holding company since 2015 and comprises two entities: B.Pack, led by Rachel Praicheux, and Wauters, which my brother Thierry and I manage. Since late 2023, we have introduced a three-person governance model, with Rachel fully involved in strategic decision-making. Together, we define the group’s investment priorities and long-term development strategy.
When a company is managed by two people, differences of opinion can sometimes lead to deadlocks, even when the relationship between the partners is excellent. Rachel naturally plays the role of tie-breaker, ensuring that decisions are never delayed — particularly when it comes to investments, an area where we must maintain a consistent approach to remain at the forefront of our industry.
Premium Beauty News - What is the group’s core business?
Éric Wauters - Our core expertise is hot foil stamping. It is the technology that built our reputation and earned us France’s Entreprise du Patrimoine Vivant (Living Heritage Company) label — first for the Wauters site in 2022, and more recently for B.Pack.
Building on this know-how, we have progressively expanded our capabilities by integrating complementary technologies, including cold foil stamping and metallization processes, as well as a variety of solutions designed to help eliminate plastic from folding cartons. Embossing, debossing, edge painting, and other high-value-added finishes are all part of our expertise. Today, we position ourselves as a fully integrated folding carton manufacturer, offering a comprehensive range of decorative and finishing solutions.
Premium Beauty News - How are operations divided between B.Pack and Wauters?
Éric Wauters - The two entities are highly complementary. B.Pack operates smaller-format equipment, enabling it to manage short- to medium-sized production runs — from a few thousand to several hundred thousand cartons — with a high degree of responsiveness and flexibility. Wauters, with its larger-format machinery, is geared toward higher-volume production, ranging from tens of thousands to several million units.
Our objective is to support customers throughout the entire lifecycle of their products: from helping a start-up launch with initial small-scale runs to scaling production as demand grows, and, conversely, managing volume reductions when a major brand’s product reaches the end of its lifecycle. Our sales teams work across both companies, and we share the same customer portfolio. What Wauters can produce, B.Pack can also deliver, and vice versa.
Premium Beauty News - What is your customer profile?
Éric Wauters - Our customer base includes major French and European groups such as LVMH, L’Oréal, and Puig, as well as Chanel, which is one of our largest clients. These customers represent around 80% of our revenue and reflect the level of quality and expertise we are able to deliver. We also collaborate with emerging and independent brands, for which packaging can play a critical role in market success. These companies are often looking for strong differentiation, and this is precisely where our expertise can make a real difference.
Historically, fragrance has been our core market. The spirits sector also represented a significant part of our activity, but it is currently facing a challenging environment. As a result, our business is increasingly shifting toward fragrance and cosmetics.
Premium Beauty News - What are your current investment priorities?
Éric Wauters - Our current investments focus on continuously upgrading our production capabilities. We recently integrated new-generation coding machines, first testing them at the Wauters site before rolling them out at B.Pack. Our approach is to validate each new technology at one site and then deploy it across the group, allowing us to offer our customers the same level of technical expertise wherever their projects are produced.
Premium Beauty News - How do you manage the current environment of recurring crises?
Éric Wauters - We have indeed faced a succession of disruptions in recent years: COVID-19, the war in Ukraine, tensions in the Middle East, and uncertainty surrounding customs duties. All of these factors directly affect supply chains and our customers’ ability to plan ahead. Our response is based first and foremost on building structural resilience. We ensure that we have multiple sources of supply so that we are never dependent on a single supplier or region.
We are also working to shorten production lead times and improve our ability to anticipate demand by strengthening communication with our customers. The earlier we receive information, the faster we can adapt. This is where the complementarity between B.Pack and Wauters truly comes into its own. We can respond equally effectively to increases in production volumes or to gradual reductions, while maintaining competitive pricing and service levels.
Premium Beauty News - In your view, what makes the Group unique?
Éric Wauters - Our strength lies in the fact that our sales teams are also technically trained. They understand our machinery, speak the language of the production floor, and can translate customer needs into concrete technical solutions. When faced with a highly complex project — something truly unique — we are able to find the right answer. This ability to embrace technical challenges, combined with a strong sensitivity to aesthetics and design, is deeply embedded in our DNA.
Wauters is a family-owned company built on recognized expertise, a prestigious customer base, and a firm belief that quality is non-negotiable. Our challenge today is to become even more agile and responsive in a market that leaves no room for slowness.
