About

About Valerie McMurray

Valerie Rodriguez McMurray, founder and CEO of Soleil Toujours LLC, a luxury sun and skincare brand launched in 2015, is at the forefront of changing the sunscreen market. Her product line elevates sunscreen to its previous glory days (à la Bain de Soleil), combines the highest-quality, safe sun care with anti-aging skin technology, and is wrapped in eco-friendly packaging. She also wants to educate consumers on using clean and reef-safe sunscreen 365 days a year and make enjoying the sun fun and safe.

“From the outset, the two tenets of the business have been to be good to our bodies and be good to our environment,” says Valerie.

The Quest for Clean Sun Care Products

The genesis and ethos of Soleil Toujours came to Valerie when she was expecting her third child and was concerned about the products she was using. After reading the products’ long list of chemicals (parabens, oxybenzone, to name just a few), she began researching the potentially harmful chemicals and ingredients used in sunscreens on the market, including their effects when breastfeeding. She decided there must be something better out there.

Valerie searched for high-quality, natural-based sunscreens and moisturizers and found they were largely unavailable. To fill the market gap and the demand for the products she envisioned, Valerie

McMurray brought Soleil Toujours to life.

Launching and building Soleil Toujours LLC came naturally to Valerie. She previously owned a luxury resort-wear line with cover-ups and swimsuits called MerSoleil, so entering the sun and skincare market made perfect sense. Before donning her entrepreneurial hat, Valerie had an 18-year career in investment banking and the financial services industry, which helped her when starting her companies.

Revolutionary Sun Care

Valerie McMurray, a discerning entrepreneur with strong “green” sensibilities, embarked on redefining sun care. In creating Soleil Toujours products, Valerie knew she wanted mineral-based sunscreens and had to find the right lab and packaging partners. After a few years of trial and error, she developed a mineral-based lotion that is safe, with non-toxic, cutting-edge formulations and ingredients. Each product contains curated, potent antioxidants and anti-aging ingredients, such as peptides, stem cells, and advanced actives. They also contain a complex that Soleil Toujours created called EcoSun, comprising vitamin C ester, D, red algae, and bisabolol (a chamomile derivative). 

Scientists believe that sun exposure is the root cause of 80% of all cases of premature aging. Sun protection is the first step toward radiant, youthful skin. No other anti-aging skincare product can shield the skin from the sun like Soleil Toujours. It gives you the best of both worlds: protection from harmful UV rays and a boost from antioxidants and anti-aging ingredients.

Life in the Sun with Soleil Toujours LLC

Soleil Toujours received immediate press when it was first launched, featuring top U.S.-based and international magazines as a cult favorite of editors from Vogue, Marie Claire, Elle, Glamour, Cosmopolitan, and others. In May 2023, Vogue ranked Soleil Clean Conscious Body Sunscreen Mist as the best sunscreen spray.

High-end resorts and retailers like Blue Mercury began carrying the line. Valerie also built the company’s direct-to-consumer market through digital marketing.

Since Soleil Toujours’ market introduction nearly ten years ago, Valerie has added a full line of premier sun care and skincare products, including various sunscreens/tint moisturizers, a lip masque, hydrating mists, and an eye glow for the discerning and health-conscious consumer. Future products include organic self-tanners—a gradual tanner and more instant, longer-lasting bronzers—and lipsticks.

Soleil Toujours Lands in Sephora

One of the highlights of Valerie’s brand is the placement of Soleil Toujours in Sephora in January 2023. Each product is branded on the multinational retailer’s website with the “Planet Aware at Sephora Clean” green seal.

Valerie also launched Summer Camp at Walmart in June 2022 as a clean sun care brand with more moderate/prestige skincare products targeted to a younger demographic. 

Giving Back and Sustainability

In alignment with Valerie’s mission, some of the company’s proceeds go to the Goldeneye Foundation to support coral reef restoration. In addition, for the last several years, Soleil Toujours has had a net zero carbon footprint, calculating all its carbon emissions from all operations and offsetting them by investing in carbon projects through Cool Effect.

On the Personal Side

Valerie McMurray is a native of the New York City metropolitan area. She lives in Bronxville, a Westchester suburb, with her husband Scott, three children, and two dogs. She received a bachelor’s degree in English and economics from Barnard College and an MBA from the Darden School of Business Administration, University of Virginia.

Valerie was on the Board of Trustees at The Convent of the Sacred Heart 91st Street in New York City and remains active in her community through her service at Graham Windham, the Reformed Church Nursery School, and The Bronxville School.

She is an avid skier and enjoys playing tennis and traveling on her time off.