Birchbox France

Closed.The website no longer loads.

What's in the box: A monthly selection of beauty samples, mostly deluxe minis across skincare, makeup and haircare, loosely matched to a beauty profile.

Birchbox France is no longer operating, and its website at birchbox.fr no longer loads, so you cannot subscribe or manage an account there. When it ran, it was the French arm of Birchbox, the American company that helped make the beauty sample box popular, and it entered France by taking over the local JolieBox service. The idea was simple. Each month subscribers received a small decorated box of beauty samples, usually a mix of skincare, makeup, haircare and sometimes fragrance, chosen with some reference to a beauty profile filled out at sign up. Many items were deluxe minis rather than full sizes, so the box was an easy way to try brands before buying them. Members could also buy full size versions of products they liked through the site. The main appeal was discovery, and for many French shoppers it was their first subscription box of any kind. The weaknesses were the usual ones for sample boxes. Personalization was only partial, some samples were too small to judge a product properly, and long term subscribers sometimes saw the same brands come back. If you have an old account or gift credit, do not expect to be able to use it. If you want something similar today, look at beauty boxes that are still running.