Le Rouge à Ongles

What Le Rouge à Ongles does

Le Rouge à Ongles is a French direct-to-consumer beauty brand that designs, formulates, and sells vegan nail polish under a single product line named after Parisian neighborhoods. Founded in Paris in 2020 by Elise Khettat, the company is structured as an SAS with €10,000 of registered capital and operates with 1–10 employees. Its core offering consists of ten 8ml nail polish shades (Montmartre, Opéra, Louvre, Palais-Bourbon, Folie-Méricourt, Popincourt, Belleville, Ménilmontant, Vaugirard, Arsenal) at €19 per bottle, supplemented by a Base coat at €21 and a Top Coat, plus seven themed gift sets (coffrets) at €61 that bundle Base + Polish + Top Coat. All products are manufactured in France from natural and renewable raw materials and marketed as 100% vegan.

The company runs a Shopify-powered e-commerce site (lerougeaongles.com) and ships to France, the broader EU/Switzerland, the USA, and the rest of the world. It supplements online sales with a single physical retail presence inside Le Bon Marché in Paris and a co-marketing partnership with Griffe Paris, a boutique manicure studio whose services use the brand's products. Marketing is concentrated on Instagram and an email newsletter, and the brand narrative emphasizes French craftsmanship, women's empowerment, and the tagline "L'art de parler avec les mains." The business is bootstrapped with no external funding rounds or parent company disclosed, and there are no reported acquisitions, leadership changes beyond the founder, or patent activity.

Name

Le Rouge à Ongles

Legal name

Le Rouge à Ongles, SAS

Website

https://lerougeaongles.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2020

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Le Rouge à Ongles is a Paris-based, founder-led DTC brand that designs and sells vegan nail polish manufactured in France, sold online, at Le Bon Marché, and via a Griffe Paris studio partnership to individual consumers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Nail Polish

NAICS

Cosmetics, Beauty Supplies, and Perfume Retailers (456120)

SIC

Perfumes, Cosmetics & Other Toilet Preparations (2844)

akta.pro primary industry

Nail Color & Nail Art (Polish, Gel, Dip, Press-ons, Nail Art Color) (CRABACAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Nail Salon Products (Polish, Gel, Acrylic, Supplies) (CRABALAE), Nail Art & Custom Designs (HSALACAE)

Keywords

• Vegan nail polish
• Nail care products
• Cruelty-free cosmetics
• French beauty brands
• Manicure accessories

Headquarters

HQ city

Paris

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Direct Product Sales: Direct-to-consumer sales of vegan nail polish products through e-commerce website and select retail partners. Revenue generated from individual product purchases (nail polishes at €19/unit, base/top coat products) and gift sets (coffrets) at €61/unit.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Le Rouge à Ongles manufactures and sells vegan nail polish made in France from natural and renewable raw materials. Its portfolio includes individual nail polish shades (8ml bottles at €19), a base coat (€21) and a top coat, sold as separate items or bundled into themed gift sets (coffrets) priced at €61 each. Products are sold directly to consumers through a Shopify-powered e-commerce site and at Le Bon Marché in Paris.

Product overview

Le Rouge à Ongles is a vegan nail polish brand founded in Paris in 2020. The product portfolio consists of 10 individual nail polish shades (Montmartre, Arsenal, Opéra, Louvre, Palais-Bourbon, Folie-Méricourt, Popincourt, Belleville, Ménilmontant, Vaugirard) priced at €19 each, sold in 8ml bottles. Supporting products include Base (€21) and Top Coat primers. The collection is available as individual polishes or through 7 themed gift sets (coffrets) at €61 each, which bundle the Base + Nail Polish + Top Coat together. All products are manufactured in France using natural and renewable raw materials.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Montmartre Nail Polish Vegan nail polish in intense red color with full coverage, 8ml format, named after the Montmartre neighborhood of Paris. Sold at €19 per bottle.
• Arsenal Nail Polish Vegan nail polish in chocolate color with full coverage, named after the Arsenal neighborhood of Paris.
• Opéra Nail Polish Vegan nail polish in nude rosé color with semi-transparent coverage, 8ml format, named after the Opéra neighborhood.
• Louvre Nail Polish Vegan nail polish in black color with full coverage, 8ml format, named after the Louvre area of Paris.
• Palais-Bourbon Nail Polish Vegan nail polish in pastel rose color with full coverage, 8ml format, named after the Palais-Bourbon neighborhood.
• Folie-Méricourt Nail Polish Vegan nail polish in rose petal color with full coverage, 8ml format, named after the Folie-Méricourt street/neighborhood.
• Popincourt Nail Polish Vegan nail polish in red-orange color with full coverage, named after the Popincourt neighborhood of Paris.
• Belleville Nail Polish Vegan nail polish in mint color with full coverage, 8ml format, named after the Belleville neighborhood of Paris.
• Ménilmontant Nail Polish Vegan nail polish in lilac color with full coverage, 8ml format, named after the Ménilmontant neighborhood of Paris.
• Vaugirard Nail Polish Vegan nail polish in coral color with full coverage, 8ml format, named after the Vaugirard neighborhood of Paris.
• Base Coat Transparent vegan nail polish base primer that prepares nails for color application, priced at €21.
• Top Coat Transparent vegan top coat for finishing and protecting nail color application.
• Coffret Montmartre Gift set bundling the vegan Base, Montmartre nail polish, and Top Coat, priced at €61.
• Coffret Popincourt Gift set bundling the vegan Base, Popincourt nail polish, and Top Coat.
• Coffret Opéra Gift set bundling the vegan Base, Opéra nail polish, and Top Coat.
• Coffret Arsenal Gift set bundling the vegan Base, Arsenal nail polish, and Top Coat.
• Coffret Ménilmontant Gift set bundling the vegan Base, Ménilmontant nail polish, and Top Coat.
• Coffret Palais-Bourbon Gift set bundling the vegan Base, Palais-Bourbon nail polish, and Top Coat.
• Coffret Belleville Gift set bundling the vegan Base, Belleville nail polish, and Top Coat.

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Griffe PariscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLe Rouge à Ongles has a partnership with Griffe Paris, described as 'Le studio de manucure le plus confidentiel de Paris' (The most confidential manicure studio in Paris). Customers can book manicure services through Griffe using products from Le Rouge à Ongles.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Kure Bazaar: French clean/natural nail polish brand with vegan positioning, comparable unit pricing, and direct overlap on target audience — a head-to-head peer in the 'vegan + made in France' nail polish niche.
• Nailberry: Vegan, cruelty-free, and 'oxygenated' nail polish brand sold via DTC and premium retailers — a clear peer on clean formulation and premium positioning across multiple geographies.
• Manucurist: Paris-based vegan and 'green' nail polish brand that shares nearly identical positioning — natural ingredients, French manufacturing, premium DTC e-commerce — making it the closest direct comparable and the primary competitive threat.
• Zao Makeup: French vegan and organic beauty brand spanning nail polish, makeup, and skincare with comparable natural-ingredient positioning and DTC-plus-selective-retail distribution.

Broad incumbents

• Sephora Collection: Sephora's owned-brand nail polish line spans vegan and clean formulations globally; a broad incumbent that shapes access to the prestige-retail channel Le Rouge à Ongles aspires to.
• Essie: Mass-market nail color brand owned by L'Oréal, ubiquitous in drugstores and salons globally; relevant as the volume baseline against which Le Rouge à Ongles must justify its premium pricing.
• OPI: Global mass-market nail polish leader (now part of Wella); a broad incumbent that sets category pricing norms and has far greater retail distribution with which a small vegan French brand must coexist.
• Chanel Beauté: Luxury nail color line sold at Le Bon Marché and similar prestige retailers; the most direct incumbent competing for the same luxury nail polish consumer and shelf space.

Emerging players

• Butter London: Premium nail and beauty brand with a 'less is more' / cleaner-ingredient positioning; overlaps with Le Rouge à Ongles on premium pricing and natural-friendly positioning.
• Côte: DTC clean nail care brand offering vegan, non-toxic polish plus care products; overlaps on natural, premium-positioned polish and targets a similar affluent consumer.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Instagraminstagram.com/lerougeaongles
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/lerougeaongles

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Le Rouge à Ongles