2019
The spark
Project manager at a software company in Lyon. One question keeps coming back: what am I actually doing about the climate?
Our story
It all started with a question
Sternartica is solid cosmetics, made by hand in a small workshop in Drôme Provençale. But before the workshop there was an office in Lyon, a lockdown, kilos of soap given away to friends, and a very real urge to make something.
Sternartica, conscious beauty born in Provence
It all began in our small workshop nestled in Drôme Provençale, between lavender fields and sunlit hills. There, a simple idea took root: to create handcrafted solid cosmetics that respect both your skin and the planet.
The name Sternartica comes from the Arctic tern, a bird that travels the world in search of light. A perfect metaphor for our journey — always going further to create luminous, sincere, and responsible care.
2019 → today
The Sternartica story
From an office desk in Lyon to a workshop in Provence: every step, in the order it happened.
January 2020
Finding my voice
I start an Instagram account and a YouTube channel to talk about zero waste with an Italian audience.
March 2020
Time to act
Lockdown. I don't want to wake up in twenty years having done nothing. I start testing my first recipes.
July 2020
My favourite guinea pigs
Family and friends are buried in free soap, and everyone gives honest feedback. I train at a soap workshop in Lyon.
January 2021
The name: Sternartica
It weighs 100 grams, just like our soaps, and twice a year it makes the longest journey in the animal kingdom: from the North Pole to the South Pole. Proof that we can all do great things when we really want to.
April 2021
Moving to Provence
We leave the city. We build our own lab between the lavender fields and the hills.
May 2021
Launch day
Every recipe approved by our toxicologist. Sternartica is born with 5 cold-process soaps and 3 solid shampoos.
July 2021
My very first markets
I set up the stall, let people smell, tell the story. The first reactions come in, and they are good.
March 2022
The GECO award
Sternartica wins the GECO award in Italy. La Repubblica writes about us.
June 2022
HORIZON, the conditioner
The detangling step joins the hair routine: almond butter and linseed oil.
September 2022
SANA, Bologna
We exhibit at Italy's biggest organic trade fair.
December 2022
The first gift sets
“What can I give as a present?” Our first gift sets are born, wrapped by hand.
June 2023
ECLIPSE, the cleansing bar
Removing make-up with no cotton pads and no bottle, waterproof included. The product that took the most attempts.
June 2024
The deodorants
No aluminium salts, no plastic, poured one by one into cardboard sticks.
November 2025
The candles
Sunflower wax, wooden wicks, glasses made to be reused. Poured by hand, one at a time.
May 2026
Five years
Five years after the first 5 soaps. Same lab, same hands, a range that grew slowly.
2026
Into guest rooms
Guest houses and small hotels choose our guest-size soaps for their bathrooms.
Tomorrow
The rest is written with you
Every new product starts with a message, a review, a conversation at a market.
Local, mindful craftsmanship
All our products are handcrafted in Provence, in small batches, with respect for both raw materials and the rhythm of nature.
Our ingredients? Organic plant oils, nourishing butters, natural powders, French clays… and a great deal of care.
Our commitments?
Zero unnecessary plastic
Vegan and biodegradable formulas
Recycled paper packaging
French and ethical partners
