Currently, as the Global CEO of Margy’s Monte Carlo, Alexandra works to elevate this iconic brand, synonymous with excellence and authenticity. Through her visionary leadership, she has redefined the boundaries of this exceptional brand, remaining committed to the pursuit of perfection while anticipating the needs of an ever-evolving luxury market.
In this exclusive interview, we will explore Alexandra’s reflections on her journey, her role as a leader, and her perspective on the emerging trends in luxury.
Hello! You have held key positions in several prestigious companies before taking on your current role. Could you share your professional journey with us and what led you to take on these various roles?
Thank you for your kind words!
My choices have always been led around 2 strategic thoughts:
- Will the position be exposed to international business, to gain global industry knowledge.
- Will the role teach me new skills – useful to my final objective, an executive position in a global head office.
My path resumes in several key steps:
- Operational roles in Marketing and PR for YSL Beauté, in France and Switzerland for around 7 years
- Trade marketing, PR and Communication experience with Valmont Group, both at the Head Office (5 years) and North American Affiliate (6 years)
- HQ global management for Swiss Perfection (2 years) in Switzerland
I now work as Global CEO for Margy’s Monte Carlo in Switzerland.
My choices were led by my ambition to serve family-owned brands, as I feel more at ease in human-sized teams, multi-functional roles and small structures with quick decision making. I am fan of family-owned business’ ability to crack codes, follow our instinct, be agile and take risks - which are not necessarily admitted in larger corporations.
The luxury sector, with its unique demands and codes, seems to have shaped your career. What is it about this industry that attracts you so much? And how have you managed to evolve your expertise within it?
As a person, I respect and relentlessly seek for absolute effort, in everything I do. From my personal grooming to dressing a table for my family, I search for the max I can pull out from my existing resources. As work, I thrive to inspire my teams to give their best, no matter the outcome. I detest when people do things for the sake of doing things. I respect the effort.
I perceive the luxury universe as the ultimate achievement of hard work behind every detail, hence my passion. The extreme work put in the choice of each component – from the quality of ingredients, the delicacy of textures, sophistication of fragrances, the noise of a jar as it opens, the alignment of a logo and the body of the jar, the touch of a cardboard box… and the work we place into the education of our therapists, grooming of our teams, wording behind our concepts. I am resolutely fan of the effort placed behind each detail.
I think my evolution stands in my work capacity, i.e. devoting my time and energy to serving the brands I chose, with the constant ambition to update my knowledge. Luxury is a highly competitive and fast-moving industry, in which executives cannot rely on their past learnings to remain attractive. Information is key, given by affiliates, partners, on the field visits and conversations, studies and press reading. It takes time, but I think it is essential.
You have led teams across different countries. What differences have you noticed in managing international teams, and how do you ensure you unify the vision while respecting cultural diversities?
I share!!!! You know, for me, as you choose to integrate someone in a team, you need to keep your word and devote time and energy to that individual. The same rule applies to the teams already in place. I e-meet or meet with my teams every week, listen to their feedback, challenge their opinions, set priorities. The older I get, the more I hate emails, and any form of nonverbal communication as too often do I see how misinterpreted they can be.
My job is to convey messages that are understandable by all teams, at all times, in all regions. Brand authority and DNA remain the same around the world, but the communication I shape need to be adapted to the audience. It’s called respect for cultural differences, and empathy with the audience.
As the Global CEO of Margy’s Monte Carlo, you manage a prestigious team and brand. How would you describe your role on a daily basis, and how do you instill the spirit of excellence inherent in luxury within your team?
The Margy’s Monte Carlo team is one of the most precious assets of the brand, I agree with you. Its value comes from the extraordinary commitment I see daily, from every individual.
From our production and logistics teams to the managers of each department, they demonstrate a common faith to make the brand shine. My added value has only been in the structure I have setup, to ease processes and optimize efficacy. I have recruited talents with documented experience to fill each need, built think tanks to work on specific projects and given budget boards and targets to all managers.
Our company is at the corner of further expansion, and before we take the next step I want to make sure all planets are aligned. I encourage all team members to perform their daily duties with the energy and the forward thinking I expect, and foresee their next ambition. Contributing to the global success of Margy’s is a goal I share with each team member, so they know why they work and how they can make a difference they will be proud of.
The luxury market is constantly evolving. What current trends do you consider the most promising for Margy’s Monte Carlo?
Margy’s Monte Carlo has a rare history, as the brand was born in the SPA, for the SPA and by the SPA. With this statement, I want to emphasize on its unique identity whose roots make total sense with the expertise it commits to delivering. No medical heritage nor fashion background define the brand, just its documented skin expertise, born and raised 30 years ago from the hands of its Founder Margie Lombard.
More than a trend, I think the brand can address today’s clients’ expectations for a honest, transparent and coherent brand, serving the same values over the years. Our tagline “True to the Skin” conveys our mission, focused around authentic skincare savoir-faire. We commit to delivering a healthy, replenished and reinforced skin, with a radiant complexion – which need to be so visible that our clients can measure the improvement by themselves.
Luxury is all about timeless quality and savoir-faire, not trends, hence my doubtless faith in our ability to expand.
As a leader in this sector, how do you differentiate a true luxury brand from a mere high-end brand? And what are the key elements that allow a luxury brand to endure?
The extra dimension of exceptional vs. good stands, in my opinion, in the intensity placed on the relationship between the brand and its client. In our business, it translates at multiple levels:
. extraordinary formulas: beyond our renowned product catalog, we are currently working on patented innovations, which will serve our DNA of results-driven brand and dictate new standards in the industry.
. addictive emotions: as one discovers their face after a facial. No words nor explanations, just the emotion of rediscovering their skin with its full potential.
. culture of happiness: as one opens a hand-crafted package after an online purchase, an incredible experience with one of our partner SPAs, the daily “me-time” one takes for their daily beauty routine.
A luxury brand will endure if it manages to create, recreate, revisit and reinvent this emotion, with customers of all profiles and generations. Hence nurturing a strong creative bond while staying faithful to its values. With Margy’s Monte Carlo, we integrate AI devices and apps to our tools, yet we rely on human hands and expertise to perform our treatments. This ambiguous and dangerous relationship between evolution and resistance is exactly what differentiates a timeless luxury brand from any other.
To end on a personal note, if you were...
- An emotion: happiness. To live, give, receive, inspire, give back. At all times.
- An object: a painting which makes me happy, calms me down or heals any sad thought – a candlelight by Le Caravage does it all.
- A flavor: anything with black sesame is always good news
- A fragrance : peony – the embodiment of femininity, a subtle blend of sophistication and delightful presence…
