Founded in 1909, L'Oréal's journey started in France, more precisely in Clichy, Hauts-de-Seine, with the creation of "Oréale", a hair dye formula. To this day, the company has not only become a consumers' favorite, but it also gained the first place as the leading beauty manufacturer worldwide, with revenues amounting to about 44.5 billion U.S. dollars as of 2023. L'Oréal is primarily focused on perfumes, hair care, make-up, and skin care, with the latter generating nearly 40 percent of its global cosmetic sales during fiscal year 2023. A year before, the group's global market share added up to an impressive 14 percent.
L'Oréal's impact
L'Oréal currently owns more than 30 brands and registered over 610 patents in 2023 alone. Among its brands, L’Oréal Paris is the most successful, followed by Lancôme and Garnier. In the year 2023, L'Oréal's market share in Europe was estimated to amount to about 20 percent, and consolidated sales in that region reached a value of over 13 billion euros. However, L’Oréal’s fame is not limited to Europe: some of its brands are among the most chosen health & beauty brands worldwide.Innovating the world of beauty
L'Oréal's research and development expenses have increased overtime, reaching a peak of 1.29 billion euros in 2023. The company has been working towards the innovation of the world of beauty in the latest years, especially focusing on beauty tech, a market that is expected to generate revenues of nearly nine billion U.S. dollars by 2026. AI and AR are among some of the tools L'Oréal has been using to produce devices or software aimed at improving the beauty consumer's journey, and the company also recently entered the metaverse. However, L'Oréal's expansion is not only happening online: in 2023, it also announced the purchase of beauty brand Aesop for over two billion U.S. dollars.L'Oréal's contribution plays a very big role in the fast-paced world that is the beauty industry, to the point where it becomes almost impossible not to wonder what its next move will be.