Sothys Paris

Sothys Paris is a French professional skincare and beauty brand founded in Paris in 1946 [2]. It operates almost entirely through beauty institutes and spas rather than retail shelves, and describes itself as representing French excellence in professional treatments for these settings. The brand belongs to Groupe Sothys, a family-owned company run by the Mas family, and manufactures most of its products in the Corrèze region of central France.

The brand remains active: it operates an e-shop, launches new products, and reopened its flagship Paris institute after a transformation in 2023. Its founder-owner Bernard Mas, who built the modern company, died in September 2023, but the business continues under his sons.

The Sothys beauty institute opened in Paris in 1946. Its founder is generally recorded as Dr Hotz, a biologist and creator of beauty formulas [9]. Sothys' own about-page also describes Dr Hotz as "a spa treatment visionary and a keen Egyptologist," a detail the company links to the brand's name, which it traces to ancient Egyptian mythology and "the brightest star in the sky." The founder's surname is spelled inconsistently across sources: the brand's about-page and French Wikipedia give "Dr Hotz" [2][9], while the Groupe Sothys corporate homepage spells it "Dr Holtz" [4].

The company as it exists today was shaped less by that original institute than by the family that acquired it. In 1966, the Mas and Lacroix families — owners of the Asepta laboratories in Monaco — bought the institute and its cosmetic formulas [9]. Bernard Mas, then twenty-six, became its head. According to trade press, he purchased a small salon at 163 rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré whose basement housed a chemist producing serums in glass ampoules, and chose to focus on a single niche: beauty salons and their therapists [10]. French Wikipedia's infobox lists Bernard Mas as founder, reflecting his role in building the modern group rather than the 1946 institute [9].

Under Bernard Mas the brand grew from a single salon into an international professional-skincare group. It introduced its first lifting facial treatment in 1968 and pioneered collagen-based cosmetic products in the 1970s. In 1971 Mas moved manufacturing to Brive-la-Gaillarde in Corrèze, anchoring the company in the region where it still produces. A training school followed in 1978, and in 1989 the company opened a production unit in Meyssac and established its in-house research laboratory, Soredec.

The corporate structure formalised in 2004, when the business became Groupe Sothys. In 2006 it created Les Jardins Sothys, a four-hectare botanical garden in Auriac, Corrèze, used for plant research and later awarded a Jardin Remarquable distinction; one trade obituary instead dates the garden to 2007 [10]. In 2023 the Paris institute reopened after a transformation, the same year Bernard Mas died at 83.

Sothys Paris is owned by Groupe Sothys, held by the Mas family since the 1966 acquisition. The founder's sons, Frédéric and Christian Mas, lead the company: according to the brand, they joined in 1999 and serve as its presidents [2]. Trade coverage describes Christian as president of Sothys Paris, overseeing international development, and Frédéric as head of the wider Sothys International group [10]. Groupe Sothys also owns the natural-cosmetics brand Bernard Cassière, created in 1991, and the organic brand Beauty Garden, created in 2014 [9]. The family has kept the company independent, with its capital structure unchanged since 1966.

Sothys positions itself as an exclusively professional brand, distributed through authorised beauty institutes and spas rather than general retail. The company frames the beauty therapist as its central figure and presents its work around "the science of results" and "the art of professional treatments." It also states a commitment to "responsible beauty that respects the skin and is committed to protecting the environment," and dedicates one percent of Sothys sales to environmental initiatives.

The range spans face and body skincare and a makeup collection, sold both as in-institute treatments and take-home products. Much of the brand's ingredient development runs through Les Jardins Sothys, its botanical garden and research source in Corrèze, and its Soredec laboratory. Signature actives include Sothys rose stem cells — developed to honour Bernard Mas and used in the cream La Crème 128 — alongside patented extracts such as an organic elderberry extract and a boletus mushroom extract that the company says boosts hyaluronic acid synthesis by 23 to 29 percent [5]. It also runs an organic line, Sothys Organics, and dedicated lines including Sothys Athletics.

Most products are made in France in Corrèze, where the company operates a manufacturing site in Meyssac and a logistics centre in Ussac. Trade press notes that Bernard Mas removed animal-derived ingredients and later parabens from the formulas during his tenure [10].

Sothys Paris is active and family-owned. Groupe Sothys reports a presence in around 120 countries, with roughly 80 percent of sales made through export, according to French Wikipedia [9]; one trade source instead cites 65 percent of business generated internationally [10]. The company continues under Frédéric and Christian Mas following their father's death in 2023, with ongoing product launches, e-commerce, and the reopened Paris institute.