The Story Behind Cult Gallic Grooming Brand Horace
“I love saying that we’re not men’s beauty, nor men’s grooming — we’re just a men’s brand that happens to do cosmetics and fragrance,” explains Marc Briant-Terlet of Horace, the French men’s cosmetics and fragrance brand (for lack of a better term).
He’s speaking to me over Zoom from Paris, nibbling a pain au chocolat as he explains how Horace isn’t only for Francophiles.
“The fact that you can walk into Horace and see customers wearing [Maison Margiela] Tabi shoes, or guys in Stüssy x Nike trainers, says a lot about who we are beyond just being French. I don’t like the word ‘stylish’ because it’s a bit old to me, but the truth is that there are so many ways of being stylish, and we want to convey that.”
Horace has opened 17 stores across France and, in 2023, generated €20m in sales. But 2024 has been about expanding across the Channel — the UK accounts for 10 per cent of its custom — by opening its first bricks-and-mortar space in London’s Covent Garden.
When Horace launched in 2016, Briant-Terlet and his co-founder Kim Mazzilli had a simple goal. They sought to create and sell an array of products for men who wanted powerful skincare that looked good on their bathroom counters. And they didn’t want to take anything for granted.
“We started with skincare, with the idea in mind to have everything [available eventually], because skincare is complicated if you don’t know anything about it. Shower gel, for example, is something everyone knows how to use — I don’t need to explain it. We thought we’d start with skincare, to really guide [people].”
Moisturising Eye Cream
Clearly, this approach struck a chord. “The products took off super quickly, and I was sitting there like, ‘What the fuck is going on?’”
Now, Horace’s offering is extensive enough to bypass a Boots trip altogether, providing
everything from toothpaste to deodorant to concealer. Its latest launch is a fragrance called Oud Rose, whose floral notes are cut with warm, slightly spicy accents that remove any connotations of powdery parfums.
“Men’s fragrances are very, very clichéd,” says Briant-Terlet. “This is why so many [men] are moving to unisex perfumes, because men’s fragrances are still very 1990s in the way they smell.”
Naturally, a scent championing a classically feminine aroma might be a hard sell to even
the most adventurous fragrance fan, but that’s where a trial spritz from a visit to the new Horace store will help.
Eau de Parfum
“When it comes to exploring fragrance, many men would never have smelt it if it wasn’t for
our stores. They might have thought, ‘Oud Rose? Oh no, it’s rosy — I don’t want to smell that.’ But because it’s from a men’s brand, they’ll feel more confident to try.” ○
Horace, 29 Neal Street, London WC2
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