L’Oréal Group: strong start for the 1rst quarter of 2023

The L'Oréal group has confirmed its position as a leader in the beauty industry in the first quarter of 2023, thanks to a 13% increase in sales at constant exchange rates reaching 10.38 billion euros, an increase observed in both value and volume. All divisions recorded growth, but the "Dermatological Beauty" division (formerly the Active Cosmetics Division) showed the most spectacular increase at +30.6% at constant exchange rates, with sales of 1.6 billion euros compared to 1.2 billion in the same period in 2022. This segment includes brands often sold in pharmacies, such as La Roche-Posay, which is the main contributor to the growth of this division. The other leading brand in this segment is CeraVe, which is particularly popular with the younger generation for its adapted formulations and affordable prices. Created in the United States in 2005 with dermatologists, CeraVe quickly became the North American dermo-cosmetic market leader. It was acquired by L'Oreal from the Valeant Group in 2017 and was part of a combined acquisition with the AcneFree and Ambi brands for US$1.3 billion.

Recently, L'Oréal Group's strategic purchase was of Australian luxury cosmetics brand Aēsop on April 3 for 2.525 billion US dollars.

Another significant increase was in the Consumer Products Division, which generated the group's most important revenue at €3.8 billion, up +14.7% compared to Q1 2022. The press release states, "Each of the Division’s global brands recorded double-digit growth and outperformed the market, powered by successful innovations across all categories." It is worth noting that the make-up segment recorded the best performance. L'Oréal Luxe, the second largest division, recorded growth of +6.5% on a like-for-like basis, with sales of 3.7 billion euros. In perfumes - the most dynamic category in the luxury beauty market - the division strengthened its leadership, driven by the success of Yves Saint Laurent.

In terms of geographical areas, the leading market for the L'Oréal group remains Europe, with revenues of 3.3 billion euros, up "+16% compared to the same period last year, followed by North Asia with 2.8 billion euros, although with a weak increase of +1.9% due to the destocking of distribution in mainland China at the beginning of the year.

In 2022, the L'Oréal group employed 87,400 people worldwide and generated sales of 38.26 billion euros.