French Beauty Brands Feud Over the Benefits of Snail Slime

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Jeanne M, a French beauty brand that sells products made with snail slime, is not happy with another beauty brand, Caudalie, for supposedly taking a stab at its products. According to WWD, Jeanne M's founder Emmanuelle Taulet sent an open letter to Mathilde Thomas, the co-founder of Caudalie, complaining about a YouTube video that Caudalie had released mocking snail slime.

"In your spot you don't cite brands, but the actives — therefore implicitly the brands that use them — and this without proving their inefficiency," Taulet wrote. "But beyond that, you pass a line that I have never seen and never thought possible: to instrumentalize, to ridicule clients that use these actives. I dare remind you that our clients are also your clients."

WWD reports that Thomas brushed off Taulet's comments, noting that Caudalie's customers just see it as a funny video. In a letter in response to Taulet, Thomas wrote: "Is there a more beautiful gift for the creator of cosmetics than to beautify and make women smile? I hope that these words have reassured you and sincerely wish your brand lots of success."