“Rather than talking about myself, I prefer to talk about our history and that of GAIIA. GAIIA is above all a story of friendship. The story of two men, 30-year-old friends, whose dream was to one day become a cold soap maker. This dream will come true in 2009, when the GAIIA brand was created. Franck lives in the Drôme, Philippe lived in Goa in India for 20 years and returned to France in 2018. Since then, we have been making cold process soap together at the GAIIA soap factory in Montelier, a small village in the Drôme, almost Provencal.”
To make their GAIIA soaps, the brand chooses quality raw materials starting with organic vegetable butters and organic vegetable oils. It excludes all the somewhat controversial ingredients of the paraffin type (sold as being very moisturizing but which in reality will just create a superficial layer of hydration on the skin…). Synthetic perfumes and dyes are also set aside. What better than an essential oil to perfume a natural soap? sensitive skin , such as that of children, babies or future mothers, will also find what they are looking for with soaps without essential oil . You can find Gaiia's cold saponified soaps on our NUOO online store!
“ The GAIIA brand was born from the desire to offer a healthy and ecological alternative to the dermatological time bombs that are petrochemical shampoos and shower gels. Gaiia's philosophy is very simple:Soap, water and a lot of naturalness. Our soaps are made using the ancestral process of Cold Saponification, they are made, cut, softened (edges) and dabbed by hand. They do not contain any petrochemical or synthetic substances. They are completely organic and biodegradable and generate no pollution during manufacture.”
GAIIA cold saponified soaps are soaps whose moisturizing power is retained, without forgetting the cleansing side of course! At GAIIA, a soap must also be a treatment. Cold saponification consists in not cooking the raw materials, which makes it possible to keep their quality and therefore their moisturizing properties. Thanks to the latter, soaps rich in vegetable glycerin , so soaps that protect and soften the skin are obtained! Learn more about cold saponification here.
“All of our products are vegan and we strive for a total zero waste goal as much as possible. No disposable plastic at GAIIA and our cosmetics are anhydrous, that is to say without water. We made this choice for several reasons:to save an increasingly rare resource and not to have to use preservatives. Finally, as we only offer solid cosmetics , our range does not require plastic packaging and can even be offered for zero waste sale. “Good to know:preservatives are mandatory as soon as a high percentage of water is present in the list of ingredients!
The brand has also chosen to offer for sale the soap scraps it recovers during cutting. There are batches of the traditional Marseille soap, batches of their bestseller (the very mild GAIIA soap, five uses in one soap to save time and space in the bathroom!) but also “puddings ” that they create with scraps of different organic soaps.
Since the beginning of this entrepreneurial adventure, everything has pleased them! “ Our job as a soap maker is complete, it goes from making soap to writing posts for social networks, from piloting and managing a company to creating packaging and photos for our product sheets. e-shop. It is also a lot of contacts and exchanges around our passion with our local customers, the pharmacies that represent us and our many retailers.“ Like our organic and natural cosmetics site NUOO!
Their favorite moment is still the moment when the oils and butters turn into soap! Producing everything from A to Z also allows them to cut the bars of soap, when they can finally touch the final product, according to the founders, “there is something of the order of sensuality in this precise moment .” All that remains is to add the final touch to their soap:place the stamp on each unit (soap and solid shampoo), then form the boxes that contain them.
“ Our best-seller is without a doubt our surgras soap L’UNIQUE Très Doux, which is suitable for the most sensitive and delicate skin. “
This organic soap is also one of our favorites at NUOO because it covers a wide use:it washes the body, including the private parts, the face and the hair, it can also be used as a make-up remover and a shaving aid. In short, an all in one! It is closely followed by L'INTUITIF surgras soap, which is delicately scented with citrus fruits.
The GAIIA solid shampoo is also a flagship product of the range. It can be used on most hair and lasts as long as two bottles of liquid shampoo. This solid shampoo is ecological and economical and it has been formulated without fragrance to appeal to as many people as possible.
A little final word for our subscribers? "Let's save our skin and the planet with a good cold saponified soap, soft, moisturizing and ecological"!
