Marie Drago Departs Gallinée

Marie Drago, founder of skincare brand Gallinée, has departed the skin microbiome company she created in 2014. She shared the news on LinkedIn.

Shiseido acquired Gallinée Ltd. in 2022, as reported by Happi.

In a note on her Substack, she penned the following:

“I achieved everything I ever dreamed of with Gallinée: put an idea and made it into real products, helped people’s skin, had fun doing really weird concepts that ended up as successes, got listed in posh department stores, got my hand cream used by Jennifer Lawrence, sold in 30 countries, put vinegar on 500 000 peoples face, got awards, talked at congresses, got 10 people in the same time paying their rent thanks to Gallinée (that one is magical when you think about it). It’s been GOOD. I did what I wanted to do, and I’m leaving the brand in the hands of more capable people than me for the next chapter.”

She also noted the shift from indie founder to being part of a larger corporate operation, writing the following:

“Before the brand being acquired I had never worked in a big company. Having been there for three years I can say I understand the appeal : relative security, structure, canteen, path to progression, nice budgets… Still, none of these things made me very happy. I like action, getting my hands dirty, risks and multitasking. Shout out to Alberto, who was the nicest boss I could dream of. I told him on day one I was never good with bosses and he, as the whole Shiseido team, treated me like a nerd Celine Dion, with care.”