Project Overview
- Brand name: Fraîcheur Paris
- Ingrida's role: Founder & CEO
- Stage: Zero-to-One → Global Scale → Exit
- Industry: Beauty / Skincare — DTC E-commerce
€1.7M+ Revenue · 30+ Countries · 23 SKUs · 9 B2B Partners · 25+ Team · VC-Backed · Successful Exit
Context
In 2018, ice globes barely existed as a category. There were scattered products with no brand identity, no quality standards, and no one telling consumers why they should care.
I saw something others hadn't positioned yet — and decided to build it properly.
Starting from zero — no supply chain, no audience, no playbook — I created Fraîcheur Paris from scratch. The brand, the product, the manufacturing relationships, the positioning, the go-to-market. Everything built intentionally, with global scale in mind from day one.
The Challenge
There was no template to follow.
Building Fraîcheur Paris meant solving three problems at once — creating the product, building the brand, and standing up operations — with no existing supply chain, no audience, and a category most consumers had never heard of. Demand didn't exist yet. It had to be created.
As the brand gained traction, the challenge shifted. Manufacturing in China had to be developed and refined without sacrificing margins. US, UK, and EU markets were growing simultaneously — each with different logistics, customer expectations, and operational demands. Scaling internationally while keeping the business stable underneath required making the right calls at the right time, under real pressure.
Role & Ownership
I owned this end-to-end — not as an advisor, not as a consultant, but as the founder making every call.
From the first product concept to the final acquisition, I led Fraîcheur Paris through every stage: building the brand from nothing, developing manufacturing in China, entering international markets, hiring and managing a team of 25+, securing venture backing, and ultimately executing a strategic exit.
The business ran profitably for two years before transitioning into a venture-backed structure — validation that the fundamentals were right before outside capital came in.
Ingrida's Key Leadership Areas
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Products Concept & Developmen
Defined the initial products vision, expanded the portfolio, and guided products evolution with a focus on quality and differentiation.
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Category Positioning & Consumer Education
Defined how the product should be understood and used, creating early market awareness through product storytelling, instructions, and positioning that helped establish ice globes category.
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Supplier Sourcing & Negotiations
Identified and partnered with manufacturers in China and EU, negotiated production terms, and established long-term supplier relationships.
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Supply Chain & Logistics
Designed and scaled an international fulfillment network spanning the US, UK, and Germany, integrating regional 3PL partners and Amazon fulfillment centers to support efficient global distribution.
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Brand Positioning & Market Entry
Developed brand identity, positioning, and early go-to-market strategy.
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E-commerce Growth
Structured the Shopify ecosystem, product pages, and customer journey to support scalable online growth.
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Team Leadership & Hiring
Built and managed a cross-functional team spanning in-house talent, freelancers, and external agencies.
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Financial Planning & Growth Decisions
Guided pricing, margin strategy, and investment decisions to balance expansion.
Core Strategic Decisions
A selection of the core decisions that shaped the brand’s positioning, growth, and long-term direction.
Brand First, Growth Later
When most early-stage founders pour budget into paid ads, I did the opposite.
Before spending on acquisition, I built the foundation — trademarks secured, visual identity locked, organic content established consistently. The logic was simple: paid traffic amplifies what's already there. If the brand isn't solid, you're just paying to accelerate a leaky bucket.
Impact: The brand built genuine recognition before significant ad spend. That foundation is what made Vogue, Forbes, and Claudia Schiffer possible — earned media doesn't come to brands that look disposable.
Protecting Positioning in a Copycat Market
When the category started working, everyone wanted a piece of it.
Sephora launched their own version. Amazon filled with cheap alternatives. Suppliers who manufactured for us started selling direct. It's the moment most brands panic and start discounting — trying to compete on price with companies that have far deeper pockets.
We didn't.
Instead of chasing the race to the bottom, the focus went into strengthening what copycats couldn't replicate — brand depth, consumer education, product evolution, and the trust built with a loyal customer base. Price was never the reason people chose Fraîcheur Paris. We made sure it stayed that way.
Impact: Maintained premium positioning and full price integrity while category competitors undercut on price — protecting both margins and brand perception at the moment it mattered most.
Startup Structuring for Scale
Two years in, the business was profitable and the market had validated the product. But the next stage of growth required more than revenue — it required capital, the right advisors, and access to networks that take a startup structure seriously.
I made the decision to transition from a bootstrapped operation into a venture-backed company. That meant introducing proper governance, bringing in a VC fund and angel investor, and restructuring for the kind of disciplined scaling that attracts serious partners.
Most founders do this too early — before the fundamentals are proven. Doing it after two profitable years meant we negotiated from a position of strength, not desperation.
Impact: Secured venture backing and angel investment on solid commercial foundations — unlocking capital and strategic networks that accelerated international distribution and set the conditions for a successful exit.
Hybrid DTC + B2B Growth
The first signal came from estheticians and spa owners buying for their treatment rooms. That wasn't planned — it was the market telling us something.
Instead of ignoring it, I built around it. Collaborations with beauty professionals created a second revenue channel and something more valuable than sales — third-party credibility. When a facialist recommends a product to every client they treat, that's word of mouth at scale without an ad budget.
That professional credibility became the foot in the door for something bigger. Harrods came. Then Cult Beauty. Then ASOS. Retailers don't take chances on unknown brands — they take chances on brands that already have proof. The B2B foundation gave us exactly that.
Impact: Built a hybrid revenue model that de-risked the business beyond DTC dependency — and used professional adoption as the credibility bridge that unlocked placement in Harrods, Cult Beauty, ASOS, and international retail partners.
Strategic Exit Execution
Knowing when to sell is as important as knowing how to build.
As Fraîcheur Paris scaled, the next stage of growth required capital beyond what the business could self-fund. I ran two processes simultaneously — fundraising and acquisition — while continuing to lead the business at full capacity. No handover, no slowdown, no performance dip during the process.
After evaluating both paths against timing, market conditions, and what was right for the brand's long-term future, I chose acquisition. Not because it was the easiest option — but because it was the right one.
The deal closed. The brand continued. And the exit validated everything built from the ground up — the positioning, the operations, the team, and the market presence that made Fraîcheur Paris worth acquiring in the first place.
Impact: Executed a full strategic acquisition while maintaining business performance throughout — delivering a successful exit that validated six years of deliberate brand building.
Outcomes & Results
What started as a blank page in 2018 became a venture-backed, globally distributed brand — stocked in Harrods, featured in Vogue, endorsed by Claudia Schiffer, recognised at the Golden Globes, and ultimately acquired.
Not through shortcuts. Through deliberate decisions, made under real pressure, at every stage of the build.
Press & Recognition
Fraîcheur Paris didn't buy its way into the press. Every feature, every mention, every television appearance was earned.
Vogue. Forbes. Vanity Fair. This Morning on UK national television. The 2021 Golden Globe Awards gift bags. A personal endorsement from Claudia Schiffer — unprompted, unpaid, in print.
Over 100 organic media mentions across fashion, beauty, and lifestyle publications in multiple countries. Zero paid sponsorships behind any of it.
Strategic Retail Partnerships
Getting into Harrods isn't a marketing exercise. It's a vetting process.
Fraîcheur Paris earned placement in some of the most selective retail environments in the world — Harrods London and Harrods Beauty Newcastle, Cult Beauty, ASOS, Indigo, Douglas, and more — across multiple countries and channels simultaneously.
These weren't cold outreach wins. They came from a brand that had already proven its market, built professional credibility through the B2B channel, and demonstrated the kind of consumer demand that premium retailers require before they give shelf space to anyone.
Creator-Led Organic Growth
The product spread because people genuinely wanted to talk about it.
No paid influencer deals. No seeding budget. No contracts. Creators across TikTok and Instagram discovered Fraîcheur Paris on their own and shared it with their audiences because they wanted to — not because they were paid to. That distinction matters more than most brands admit, because audiences can feel the difference.
The result was social proof that money can't manufacture — real people, real reactions, real reach. That kind of organic momentum became one of the strongest growth engines the brand had, and it cost nothing except having a product worth talking about.
Milestone Moments
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Golden Globe Awards Recognition
The brand was included in the 2021 Golden Globe Awards gift bags, introducing Fraîcheur to an international network of talent and industry leaders.
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Milan Brand Showcase Invitation
Invited to represent Fraîcheur Paris at a curated brand showcase in Milan, introducing the product directly to international influencers and industry professionals.
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Claudia Schiffer Feature — Vogue
Read HereOrganic recognition from Claudia Schiffer, who named Fraîcheur Paris ice globes a personal favorite in Vogue, without any paid partnership.
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Featured in Forbes
Read HereFraîcheur Ice Globes were highlighted by Forbes as part of a curated editorial feature, strengthening international brand credibility.
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Harrods In-Store Presence
The brand was selected for physical retail placement in Harrods London and Harrods Beauty Newcastle, featuring its own branded stand within the stores.
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Proven Product–Market Fit
Consistent positive reviews and organic testimonials became the strongest indicator of the brand’s impact and long-term viability.
