Citypharma, Paris: French Pharmacy Cosmetics Worth Buying

Hello! It's Yoko, the food blogger who eats her way around the world!

This post is for people who are thinking:

"I want to buy cosmetics in Paris, but where should I go?!"
"I'd love to know some good recommendations"
"What does everyone buy at Citypharma, anyway?"

I'll share my tips for Citypharma, the ultra-cheap drugstore that is a must in Paris,

and introduce the French cosmetics I bought there and recommend!!

Citypharma is the most popular pharmacy in Paris

* Photo borrowed from the official website

Citypharma is always buzzing with tourists from all over the world.

It's odd to say this right at the start, but I don't usually buy that many cosmetics.

But somehow at Citypharma I got swept up in the atmosphere... lol

and I ended up buying quite a lot.

The cosmetics are just so cheap

Citypharma is like a Matsumoto Kiyoshi (a Japanese drugstore chain), and all kinds of cosmetics are cheap!

The shop is jam-packed, so it takes some energy to go.

It seems to be quite famous in Paris as a drugstore,

and it's always insanely crowded with locals, tourists and probably resellers.

I knew Citypharma was popular, but I underestimated it,

thinking, "Sure, it's crowded, but this is France. Paris can't get as crowded as Japan, right?"

and when I got there, it was packed to the point of being almost a rush-hour train (lol).

They even check your bags at the entrance (that only happens at big stores like Monoprix or in tourist areas).

Quite a lot of staff in white coats walk around inside Citypharma, looking for cosmetics with customers and recommending products.

So I recommend going when you have some energy (lol).

Don't forget your passport for the tax refund!

If you plan to buy a lot, bring your passport.

If you spend 175€ or more at one store in one day (305€ at some stores), you can go through the tax refund procedure and get back a VAT of a dozen or so percent (it varies by product).

175€ = ¥21,937 (as of April 3, 2019), so 10% is about ¥2,000, which is not an amount to sneeze at.

If your bill at the register exceeds 175€, say "Détaxe s'il vous plaît" or "Tax Free Please," and casually show your passport.

The staff will then give you an export sales slip (BVE: bordereau de vente à l'exportation).

Then, when you leave from Charles de Gaulle Airport to return to Japan, or at the airport where you leave the EU for the last time, look for the Tax Refund counter.

Scan the barcode on the document at the PABLO machine, drop it in the mailbox, and you're done!

You hear that you have to show the unused goods for the tax refund, but in reality even the document processing is automated, and at Charles de Gaulle you can quickly do it before check-in, so I recommend it if you don't mind the bother.

Be careful if you buy liquids

Needless to say for jet-setters, liquids in carry-on bags are limited to 100 ml containers that fit in a 1-liter zip-top bag, so lotions and shampoo must go in checked baggage (bagages enregistrés) or they may be confiscated!

At Charles de Gaulle the tax refund is automatic anyway, and the chance of having to show the actual goods is very low (in my experience, zero), so pack your liquids neatly in your checked suitcase!

If you're buying souvenirs, bring a list

If you already know what you want to buy, take a photo of the products or bring a note!

Finding what you want in a crowd of customers desperate to buy cheap cosmetics is no easy feat.

^ The tweet says it's the biggest in Paris, but it's about the size of an ordinary Matsumoto Kiyoshi in a Tokyo neighborhood, maybe 100 to 150 square meters.

It has two floors: the second floor has supplements and medicine, and the first floor has hair care, skin care and body care, with baby products toward the back.

If you haven't decided what to buy, you end up circling the crowded first floor or, at worst, going back and forth between the first and second floors, which is pretty tiring.

In fact, on my first visit I was overwhelmed by the energy of Citypharma and came back about two weeks later (lol).

Cosmetics I bought at Citypharma

So, ta-da! Here are the cosmetics I bought at Citypharma!

Well, I bought quite a lot... Let me introduce a few in detail.

Recommended shampoos

I bought three kinds of shampoo from KLORANE.

KLORANE has a reputation as the most beloved shampoo in France,

and they are so particular about ingredients that they grow the raw materials themselves, making products that make the most of the healing power of plants.

Citypharma has quite a wide range of shampoos, and quite a few were sold out.

First, the one I bought is a color-care shampoo with a sweet pomegranate scent.

Klorane Pomegranate Shampoo Brightness And Color 200ml

It doesn't lather that well, but the scent is sweet! Recommended if you like the smell of pomegranate.

The other is a shampoo that adds shine to dry hair.

Klorane Shampoo Magnolia Wax 200ml

It smells lovely of magnolia and I went through it fast.
Even though I was using other shampoos too, it ran out quickly.

And this is KLORANE's popular dry shampoo!

KLORANE Dry Shampoo with Oat Milk

I use it when I can't wash my hair because of a cold or similar. Shake it well, spray it on your hair and just comb it through, and it removes the oil so your hair feels light and smooth!

It's a slightly brownish color, so it doesn't leave a white cast.

I think it would be handy for backpacker-style trips too.

Sunscreen oil

Citypharma had a wide range of oil-based sunscreens.

In Japan, the usual kind is a milky sunscreen you shake well before use, and above all,

"Wait, wouldn't oil actually make you tan?"
some of you might think, but no.

It's a genuine sunscreen.

The one I chose was,

La Roche-Posay Anthelios XL UV Protection Oil

this one with a long name, a sunscreen oil from La Roche-Posay, which is well known in Japan too.

It smells really good. A white floral scent, apparently.

It's SPF50+ PA++++, so the protection is fine. It can be used on sensitive skin.

It's clear to begin with, so it doesn't go on streaky, and because it's an oil in a spray bottle, you just spritz it on your arms and spread it with your hand!

It's super convenient and I use it all the time.

I also bought a sunscreen oil from a cosmetics maker called ISDIN.

It's a sensitive-skin brand recommended by dermatologists in Spain, not France.

Mine was this one: Isdin Fotoprotector Active Oil Spf30 200ml

Lip balms I recommend as souvenirs

Citypharma sells a huge variety of lip balms!

Maybe because they're the easiest cosmetic to give as a souvenir?

Of those, the ones with UV protection are the ones to go for.

I bought several, so let me introduce the ones I especially recommend.

URIAGE and La Roche-Posay

I've loved Uriage for a long time,
and in Japan it's a super-premium lip balm that easily costs over ¥1,000.

The only downside is that it runs out incredibly fast.

But it's genuinely excellent, and for moisture it may be number one by a wide margin.

I hadn't seen it in drugstores lately, so I bought it here.

In summer you put sunscreen on your face, but do you forget your lips?!

And yet lip balms with UV protection are surprisingly hard to find, aren't they??

In that respect, Citypharma has lots of lip balms with UV protection.
(I wish they'd carry more in Japan...)

So the La Roche-Posay SPF50+ lip balm I bought smelled nice too.

It also lasts well, so you don't need to reapply it much, which is convenient.

The versions without UV protection can be bought online.

Recommended face creams

Maybe because France is dry, there was a wide variety of face creams.

Embryolisse Lait-Crème Concentré

In English it's called Embryolisse Moisturizing Cream.

It's placed all over the store at Citypharma.

Apparently it's a legendary cream created in 1950 by a doctor working at a dermatology hospital in Paris, and it's used backstage at TV shoots and fashion shows.

It has treatment and moisturizing effects, but feels light on the skin.

I use it when my skin gets dry. It's fine for sensitive skin, so you can use it with confidence.

CAUDALIE

Caudalie was my favorite brand among everything I bought in Paris this time,

and its anti-aging concept applies to skin care the technique of stabilizing the polyphenols found in grape seeds and vine branches,

developed by a professor at the University of Bordeaux's faculty of pharmacy!

As a wine lover, I reacted to the keywords Bordeaux and grape polyphenols.

All of Caudalie's products have a faint, lovely scent, so using them feels fantastic.

There are various lines, for sensitive skin, for anti-aging and more,

and Citypharma carries most of the lines, so if you like them, stock up lol.

EAU DE BEAUTÉ

A beauty spray containing natural essential oils such as Damask rose and rosemary.

It's said to moisturize, add glow and set makeup, and it comes out in a very fine mist.

I use it after applying makeup, and when I want to freshen up because it smells so nice.

VINOSOURCE CREME SORBET HYDRATANTE (Moisturizing Sorbet)

Just like its name, Sorbet, it really feels like sherbet, which surprised me.

It's a moisturizing cream with a light feel and a refreshing, sherbet-like sensation, so I recommend it for summer!

RESVERATROL LIFT BAUME LIFTANT REGARD (Face-Lifting Moisturizer)

A cream that, in a 30-day test on 43 women, 74% said "my face contour looked firmer".

It smells really good and makes me feel refreshed from the morning...!

It's the cream I recommend most among the Caudalie products I bought this time.

It has UV protection, so I use it when I go out without makeup.

It's so precious that I use it sparingly (lol).

How to get to Citypharma

Finally, here's how to get to Citypharma, where you can buy all the cosmetics I've introduced so far.

It's about a three-minute walk from Saint-Germain-des-Prés station.

The nearby Monoprix is also recommended.

I went shopping at both, back and forth!

Many products sell out at Citypharma by the evening, so if you can, it's best to storm in first thing in the morning.

There are so many wonderful cosmetics, so enjoy yourself and get what you came for!

Citypharma
26 rue du Four – Angle 49 rue Bonaparte 75006 Paris
Tel : 01 46 33 06 09
lundi au vendredi de 8h30 à 20h et le samedi de 9h à 20h.
Hours
Monday to Friday: 8:30-20:00
Saturday: 9:00-20:00
Sundays and holidays: closed