![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/france\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/1205_digital_cannes26_bts_Carlos-Sainz_dmi_static_na_no-cta-tizianoraw-21.jpg\")
Carlos Sainz attended the Cannes International Film Festival with L\u2019Oreal Paris in the week between his F1 races in Miami and Montreal. Image: L\u2019Or\u00e9al Paris<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tPublished on\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\tMay 22, 2026\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
While Carlos Sainz is famous for his exploits on the F1 track, his coveted head of hair has earned him a different kind of spotlight: a global ambassadorship for L\u2019Or\u00e9al Paris. We caught up with the F1 star at the Cannes International Film Festival to discuss prioritising high-performance over high-maintenance.<\/p>\n
Carlos Sainz attended the Cannes International Film Festival with L\u2019Oreal Paris in the week between his F1 races in Miami and Montreal. Image: L\u2019Or\u00e9al Paris<\/p>\n
Early in May, Carlos Sainz stepped out of his Atlassian Williams F1 car drenched in sweat, having just wrestled for points in the brutal Florida humidity. Last week, he was walking the red carpet in Cannes in a crisp bow tie, his trademark hair catching the French Riviera breeze.<\/p>\n
As a global ambassador for L\u2019Or\u00e9al Paris, Sainz isn\u2019t just a face for the brand; he is a \u201cmuse\u201d for its Barber Club<\/a> initiative and Elvive Growth hair care line. For the 31-year-old Spaniard, grooming is a part of everyday life and indicative of a wider shift he sees on his travels across the globe.<\/p>\n \u201cI see a lot of men all around the world starting to be a lot more careful about their image, skin, their hair,\u201d Sainz tells Forbes Australia.<\/p>\n \u201cI also see it with my friends and my dad. I think we\u2019ve all realised that when you focus and invest two or three minutes of your time each day, it makes a difference.\u201d<\/p>\n That cultural shift is showing up in the beauty industry\u2019s bottom lines. The male grooming market was valued at $135 billion in 2025, and is expected to reach $143 billion this year, according to Custom Market Insights (CMI). A decade ago, it was worth half that, and in 2006, just a quarter.<\/p>\n By 2035, men\u2019s grooming is projected to reach $240 billion, according to CMI insights, driven by a steady CAGR of 5.8 per cent.<\/p>\n \u201cI definitely think it\u2019s here to stay,\u201d Sainz says, noting he can see a difference in the hydration of his male friend\u2019s skin when they use grooming products. As for his own regimen, the Monaco resident says it starts in his morning shower.<\/p>\n \u201cI use my Elvive shampoo, the Growth Booster. Obviously, as you know, I wear a lot of helmets and caps all the time and I\u2019m constantly having to, let\u2019s say, take care of my hair and protect it,\u201d he says. <\/p>\n \u201cThen I go through my grooming routine, I use the L\u2019Or\u00e9al Men Expert Hydro Energ\u00e9tique, the one that hydrates my skin, and gets me ready.\u201d<\/p>\n An avid golfer and cyclist when not in an F1 car, Sainz also leans into protecting his skin from the elements.<\/p>\n \u201cIf I\u2019m going to go play golf, which I do quite often, or I\u2019m gonna be exposed to the sun, I definitely use SPF 50,\u201d says Sainz.<\/p>\n That rule also applies when he is south of the Equator, in his favourite race city in the world.<\/p>\n \u201cI protect my skin with SPF 50, especially in places like Australia. I always say Melbourne is my number one city, and I say it exactly because of the lifestyle that you guys have there. It\u2019s always full of people doing sports, taking care of themselves, going for their morning coffees, people in a good mood.\u201d<\/p>\n While he is in town for the Australian Grand Prix each March, Sainz says he is often jetlagged and wakes up early.<\/p>\n \u201cI love seeing the sunrise, it\u2019s a beautiful sunrise there by the Yarra River or by St Kilda. Then, normally, I grab a great coffee somewhere. And then I do my half hour, 45 minutes of cardio, and go and have a really nice breakfast.\u201d<\/p>\n Melbourne, he says, seems like a city that is easygoing and well-balanced. It holds a special place in his heart because it was where he completed his very first F1 race in 2015. His legendary father, Sainz Snr \u2013 also known as \u201cEl Matador\u201d \u2013 also raced in Australia during his WRC rally career.<\/p>\n Reflecting on his career and what continues to drive him ten years on from his F1 debut, Sainz Jnr says he revels in the rigorous regimen required to make it to the top.<\/p>\n \u201cHigh-pressure environments make you focus on what\u2019s important. For me, it\u2019s all about delivering when it matters, and for that, you need a lifestyle that requires a lot of discipline and routines. That\u2019s all the work that maybe people don\u2019t see.\u201d<\/p>\n Putting his helmet on for Williams again this weekend, Sainz notes it is important to focus on the journey, and not just the destination.<\/p>\n \u201cPeople only see when you are successful, standing on the podium and celebrating, but behind the scenes, there\u2019s a lot of work that makes it worth it. I actually enjoy all that process, all the discipline, all the routine. I am someone who enjoys investing that time; it makes me feel productive and successful when I accomplish things.\u201d<\/p>\n As for how he accomplishes the full, rich hair for which he is known, Sainz attributes it both to high-quality products and the genes handed down to him by The Matador.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m lucky, because I think it is definitely something related to genetics. Probably my parents gave me good hair, and I cannot thank them enough for that, because that also brought me things like collaborations with L\u2019Or\u00e9al,\u201d he says with a smile.<\/p>\n Want to see more Forbes articles on your feed?\u00a0Tap here to make Forbes Australia a preferred source on Google.<\/a><\/p>\n Look back on the week that was with hand-picked articles from Australia and around the world.\u00a0Sign up to the Forbes Australia newsletter here<\/a>\u00a0or\u00a0become a member here<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Published on May 22, 2026 While Carlos Sainz is famous for his exploits on the F1 track, his…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":19719,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[12905],"tags":[1576,14872,3726,1580,14385,244,14873],"class_list":["post-19718","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-loreal","tag-beauty","tag-entrepreneurs","tag-hair","tag-loreal","tag-productivity","tag-technology","tag-workplace"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/france\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19718","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/france\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/france\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/france\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/france\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19718"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/france\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19718\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/france\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/19719"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/france\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19718"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/france\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19718"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/france\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19718"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/france\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/1205_digital_cannes26_cocktail_Carlos-Sainz_dmi_static_na_no-cta-3.jpg\")
Image: L\u2019Or\u00e9al Paris<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/france\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/1205_digital_cannes26_redcarpet_Carlos-Sainz_dmi_static_na_no-cta_021.jpg\")
L\u2019Oreal men\u2019s grooming ambassador Carlos Sainz attends the 79th annual Cannes Film Festival on May 12, 2026 in Cannes, France. (Photo by Neilson Barnard\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/france\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/1205_digital_cannes26_bts_Carlos-Sainz_dmi_static_na_no-cta-tizianoraw-7.jpg\")
Image: L\u2019Or\u00e9al Paris<\/p>\n