Marie Claire crowns Prix d'Excellence de la Beauté Awards winners

Judging panel and process

Jackie May, editor of Marie Claire, says, “The Awards celebrate the latest and best products on the market, selected by the jury. The task is to judge innovation, efficacy and pleasure-to-use. The judging was not easy but we focused our minds on these criteria, giving comments and allocating points to the same criteria for each product.”

Jackie May, Kelly Khumalo and Bronwyn Botha. Image credit: Marie Claire SA via Twitter

Besides the Marie Claire editor, the 2017 South African judges were beauty expert Elsa Kruger, model and beauty influencer Yoliswa Mqoco, radio talk show host Anele Mdoda and beauty director Juana Parathyras.

Hundreds of products were entered into the competition late last year. During the ensuing summer months, the judges were hard at work sniffing, trying and testing piles of bottles, tubes and pots. The weeks of trials and tests ended with a shortlist and followed by an intense day of debate and discussion by the panel of judges. The finalists were selected by a point scoring system.

Smashbox (Best Makeup Product winner) and La Mer (Best Skincare Product winner): Caroline Nzimandi, Kerry Hochfelden and Courtney Williams from Smashbox and La Mer.

And the winners are...

Best make-up product

• Winner - Smashbox Insta-Matte Lipstick Transformer
• Runners Up – Lancome Juicy Shaker Pigment Infused Bi-Phased Lip Oil and Urban Decay Naked Ultimate Basics Eyeshadow Palette

Best Hair Care

• Winner – MoroccanOil
• Runners Up – ghd Platinum Professional Styler and Gary Rom True Colour Shampoo

Best Local Product

• Winner - Biomedical Emporium
• Runners Up – Skinderm Pure Exfoliating Glow Pads and Placecol Illumine Retinol Serum

Best Skincare Product

• Winner – La Mer The Moisturizing Soft Lotion
• Runners-up – Dior Hydra Life Jelly Sleeping Mask and Bioderma Hydrabio Smoothing Care Radiance Booster

Special Jury Award

• Elizabeth Arden Eight Hour Cream All-Over Miracle Oil

International winners

• Shiseido Synchro Skin Glow Luminizing Fluid Foundation
• Chanel La Solution 10 de Chanel
• Estee Lauder Advanced Night Repair Intensive Recover Ampoules, Revitalizing Supreme+ Global Anti-Aging Wake up Balm & Advanced Night Repair Concentrated Recovery Powerfoil Mask
• Chanel Rouge Coco Stylo
• Filorga Scrub & Mask Reoxygenating Exfoliating Mask
• MAC Pro Beyond Twisted Lash
• Phytodensia Fluid Plumping Mask, Plumping Shampoo & Plumping Serum

1st runner up for Best Hair Product: Emily Grey, David Bolon and Cindy Van Niekerk from GHD

Dis-Chem partnership

“A Prix award not only brings the winning products prestige but acts as a must-have product shop window,” says May.

This year’s Prix was made possible by a partnership with Dis-Chem. “The company’s World of Beauty offers its customers a one-stop, one-shop experience for everyone, therefore partnering with Marie Claire as the title sponsor on the 2017 awards, where we could celebrate these brands and products was a natural fit for us,” says Lynette Saltzman, Dis-Chem director and head of beauty.

View the event gallery.