How Unite streamlined procurement for purpose-driven dermo brand: From admin burden to efficiency

NAOS faces notable supplier onboarding challenges 

NAOS is the purpose-driven company behind three dermo-cosmetic brands: BIODERMA, INSTITUT ESTHEDERM and ETAT PUR. Since its founding in 1977, it has pioneered major innovations, most notably, the invention of micellar water in 1995.  

Today, NAOS operates in 130 countries, relying on a single integrated site for design and manufacturing in Aix-en-Provence, to maintain control over product quality. 

Behind this scientific excellence, however, lay a persistent challenge: managing indirect purchases with low-value transactions and high administrative effort. 

Before partnering with Unite, the indirect procurement team at NAOS had to manage the creation and onboarding of dozens of one-off suppliers. 

“These one-shot creations often led to upfront payment requests, inconsistent payment terms and the need to collect legal documentation to remain compliant with the SAPIN II Law,” explains Lucas Chiron, Procurement IT Project Manager at NAOS. 

Each new supplier required the collection of documents such as KBIS registrations, Urssaf declarations and detachment certificates. These regulatory requirements often demanded more effort than the spend justified. 

Cumbersome internal processes before Unite 

The internal ordering journey was riddled with friction. First came the need to consult internal requestors, who were often discouraged by the required qualification steps. Then followed a time-consuming supplier onboarding process. 

“We were onboarding suppliers chosen by our internal stakeholders, which meant a long cycle of creation and document collection within our procurement system,” says Lucas Chiron. 

Employees frequently lost valuable time switching between their procurement system (NAOS Store) and countless email threads, resulting in potential entry errors and delayed orders.  

Choosing an integrated B2B marketplace solution 

To boost productivity, NAOS launched a call for tenders focused on B2B marketplace solutions offering strong usability, broad catalogue coverage, and local market reach. Unite stood out for its multi-supplier model through a single creditor, personalised account support and PunchOut integration. 

“Unite offers local coverage in each country, with supplier listings 100% based in Europe, all managed by their teams,” emphasises Lucas Chiron. 

Seamless technical integration and easy adoption 

From configuration and testing to training nearly 80 users across the company’s three legal entities, in less than two months the integration was complete. 

From their familiar interface, requestors can launch an order, compare offers (price, delivery times, return options), and rely on EDI flows to automatically manage purchase order dispatch and confirmation receipts. 

Daily usage and scope across NAOS’s three brands 

Today, a wide range of indirect purchases are managed through Unite, such as industrial supplies, technical lab consumables, small tools and more. 

“At NAOS, Unite is mainly used by the indirect procurement team, consisting of five buyers, but also by all procurement system users. That’s around several dozen people across our three legal entities,” confirms Lucas. 

Tangible results and measurable benefits 

The benefits for NOAS are clear: 

• Order processing time has dropped from around ten minutes to under one minute. 

• Manual entry errors have virtually disappeared. 

• One-off supplier creation is no longer needed. 

• Every order is now fully traceable, from purchase order issuance to delivery, achieving 100% compliance on documentation and a 98% on-time delivery rate. 

Looking at the future with Unite 

Looking ahead, NAOS plans to expand Unite to other European entities using the same procurement system and to further strengthen its commitment to local and responsible purchasing. Because beyond operational efficiency, the goal is to weave a supply chain that’s both environmentally sustainable and supportive of local economies.