02.13.23
L’Oréal has shared its annual results for the year ended December 31st, 2022.
In mainland China, the beauty market was affected by the public health restrictions. In this challenging context, L’Oréal grew appreciably, with a double-digit increase in online sales.
“We’re probably one of the only major groups to grow in China, which is a strong sign of the strength of our teams and brands there,” Hieronimus said.
Leveraging brand love and operational agility, L’Oréal succeeded in providing consumers with quality premium and innovative products. This remarkable success resulted in strong offline and online market share gains throughout the year, as well as during Double 11, the world’s biggest shopping festival; L’Oréal brands topped the rankings for each beauty category on Tmall, further consolidating the Group’s leadership, notably in luxury, where L’Oréal surpassed 30% of market share in 2022.
Looking forward, Hieronimus noted that “the reopening of China right now is a very good and positive signal for the future.”
See the full interview below:
Commenting on the figures, Hieronimus said: “We achieved a remarkable performance this year, thanks to our innovation leadership, our highly desirable brands, our operational agility and the tremendous commitment of our teams. Comparable growth vs. 2019 accelerated quarter after quarter and reached +23% over the full year.”
The Division strengthened its position in the professional beauty market, maintaining its growth momentum across all geographic Zones, with outstanding performances in mainland China, India and Brazil. It continued to perform in all distribution channels – in salons, in its SalonCentric network in the United States and in e‑commerce – again confirming the success of its omnichannel strategy.
Growth in the premiumizing haircare market was largely driven by the performance of Kérastase, whose sales exceeded the symbolic one-billion-euro mark for the first time, and Série Expert by L’Oréal Professionnel, with the success of the Metal Detox innovation. The Division also achieved growth in hair color, with its lines Shades EQ by Redken and Inoa by L’Oréal Professionnel.
The Division’s growth was driven by innovation and sound valorization, without sacrificing volume. All major brands outperformed the market, thanks to successful initiatives in the different categories.
The Division achieved sustained growth in haircare, with Elvive Hyaluron Plump confirming its worldwide success. Makeup was the Division’s fastest growing category, with successful launches including Superstay Vinyl Ink by Maybelline New York—the first long-wear, shiny, liquid lipstick—as well as Bare With Me concealer and Jumbo False Eyelashes by NYX Professional Makeup. In skincare, Garnier was the Division’s top growth contributor, with its Vitamin C Brightening Serum a standout success.
North America and Europe saw very robust performances. At the same time, growth accelerated significantly in Latin America and SAPMENA-SSA, with remarkable performance in high-potential countries such as Mexico, India and Brazil. This more than compensated for the challenging market conditions in China, where the Division accelerated its market share gains in the fourth quarter.
L'Oréal Luxe strengthened its leadership in fragrance, the fastest-growing category in the selective market. This performance was driven by global bestsellers, such as Libre by Yves Saint Laurent, La Vie Est Belle by Lancôme and Acqua di Gio by Armani, as well as launches that had an impressive start, including Prada Paradoxe. In skincare, the Division grew three times faster than the market, spurred by the ultra-premium segment, with a spectacular performance from Helena Rubinstein, cutting-edge innovations such as Lancôme’s Rénergie H.C.F Triple Serum, and the success of recent acquisitions including the Japanese brand Takami. The Division also grew in makeup, thanks to the initiatives of Yves Saint Laurent and Urban Decay.
In an unsettled environment, particularly in the second half of the year with the drastic slowdown of the Chinese market, the Division confirmed the strength of its geographic footprint which has allowed it to reinforce its global market share since 2019. The Division grew in step with the market in Europe and significantly increased its position in North Asia.
Reinforcing its medical prescription leadership, the Active Cosmetics Division strengthened its recommendation-based model and grew twice as fast as the dermocosmetics market. The Division posted double-digit growth in all Zones, with a remarkable performance in North America, SAPMENA–SSA and mainland China.
La Roche-Posay and CeraVe contributed equally to the Division’s growth. La Roche-Posay, the Division’s biggest brand, sustained its outstanding momentum, driven by its main pillars Cicaplast and Effaclar, and by the success of the UVMune 400 breakthrough innovation in sun protection. CeraVe continued to expand internationally, achieving spectacular growth in both the United States and the rest of the world. Vichy maintained its strong momentum thanks to Dercos and the Capital Soleil UV franchise in both seasonal and daily sun protection.
On the aesthetic front, SkinCeuticals recorded double-digit growth, fuelled by the excellent performance of A.G.E Interrupter anti-wrinkle cream. The newly acquired brand Skinbetter Science, integrated into the Division in the fourth quarter, showed promising potential.
“Our balanced growth across Divisions and regions once again demonstrates the relevance of our multipolar model: strategically centralized and operationally decentralized with a strong entrepreneurial mindset, this model is ideally suited to the current environment,” said Hieronimus.
“Mindful of the current uncertainties, we remain ambitious for the future, optimistic about the outlook for the beauty market, and confident in our ability to keep outperforming the market and achieve in 2023 another year of growth in sales and profits,” he added.
Performance in China
Nicolas Hieronimus, CEO of L'Oréal, recently gave an interview for CNBC in which he emphasized how proud he is of L’Oréal’s achievements in China.In mainland China, the beauty market was affected by the public health restrictions. In this challenging context, L’Oréal grew appreciably, with a double-digit increase in online sales.
“We’re probably one of the only major groups to grow in China, which is a strong sign of the strength of our teams and brands there,” Hieronimus said.
Leveraging brand love and operational agility, L’Oréal succeeded in providing consumers with quality premium and innovative products. This remarkable success resulted in strong offline and online market share gains throughout the year, as well as during Double 11, the world’s biggest shopping festival; L’Oréal brands topped the rankings for each beauty category on Tmall, further consolidating the Group’s leadership, notably in luxury, where L’Oréal surpassed 30% of market share in 2022.
Looking forward, Hieronimus noted that “the reopening of China right now is a very good and positive signal for the future.”
See the full interview below:
Full Year 2022 Results
Sales amounted to 38.26 billion euros ($40.9 billion) for the year, up by +18.5% reported, with firm demand in the United States and Europe helping to offset the dent from coronavirus disruptions in China.Commenting on the figures, Hieronimus said: “We achieved a remarkable performance this year, thanks to our innovation leadership, our highly desirable brands, our operational agility and the tremendous commitment of our teams. Comparable growth vs. 2019 accelerated quarter after quarter and reached +23% over the full year.”
Professional Products Division
The Professional Products Division recorded strong growth, at +10.1% like-for-like and +18.3% reported.The Division strengthened its position in the professional beauty market, maintaining its growth momentum across all geographic Zones, with outstanding performances in mainland China, India and Brazil. It continued to perform in all distribution channels – in salons, in its SalonCentric network in the United States and in e‑commerce – again confirming the success of its omnichannel strategy.
Growth in the premiumizing haircare market was largely driven by the performance of Kérastase, whose sales exceeded the symbolic one-billion-euro mark for the first time, and Série Expert by L’Oréal Professionnel, with the success of the Metal Detox innovation. The Division also achieved growth in hair color, with its lines Shades EQ by Redken and Inoa by L’Oréal Professionnel.
Consumer Products
The Consumer Products Division posted its best growth in 20 years: +8.3% like-for-like and +14.6% reported.The Division’s growth was driven by innovation and sound valorization, without sacrificing volume. All major brands outperformed the market, thanks to successful initiatives in the different categories.
The Division achieved sustained growth in haircare, with Elvive Hyaluron Plump confirming its worldwide success. Makeup was the Division’s fastest growing category, with successful launches including Superstay Vinyl Ink by Maybelline New York—the first long-wear, shiny, liquid lipstick—as well as Bare With Me concealer and Jumbo False Eyelashes by NYX Professional Makeup. In skincare, Garnier was the Division’s top growth contributor, with its Vitamin C Brightening Serum a standout success.
North America and Europe saw very robust performances. At the same time, growth accelerated significantly in Latin America and SAPMENA-SSA, with remarkable performance in high-potential countries such as Mexico, India and Brazil. This more than compensated for the challenging market conditions in China, where the Division accelerated its market share gains in the fourth quarter.
L'Oréal Luxe
L’Oréal Luxe recorded strong growth, at +10.2% like-for-like and +18.6% reported, outperforming a global luxury beauty market that proved dynamic again this year.L'Oréal Luxe strengthened its leadership in fragrance, the fastest-growing category in the selective market. This performance was driven by global bestsellers, such as Libre by Yves Saint Laurent, La Vie Est Belle by Lancôme and Acqua di Gio by Armani, as well as launches that had an impressive start, including Prada Paradoxe. In skincare, the Division grew three times faster than the market, spurred by the ultra-premium segment, with a spectacular performance from Helena Rubinstein, cutting-edge innovations such as Lancôme’s Rénergie H.C.F Triple Serum, and the success of recent acquisitions including the Japanese brand Takami. The Division also grew in makeup, thanks to the initiatives of Yves Saint Laurent and Urban Decay.
In an unsettled environment, particularly in the second half of the year with the drastic slowdown of the Chinese market, the Division confirmed the strength of its geographic footprint which has allowed it to reinforce its global market share since 2019. The Division grew in step with the market in Europe and significantly increased its position in North Asia.
Active Cosmetics
The Active Cosmetics Division ended the year with outstanding growth, at +21.9% like-for-like and +30.6% based on reported figures.Reinforcing its medical prescription leadership, the Active Cosmetics Division strengthened its recommendation-based model and grew twice as fast as the dermocosmetics market. The Division posted double-digit growth in all Zones, with a remarkable performance in North America, SAPMENA–SSA and mainland China.
La Roche-Posay and CeraVe contributed equally to the Division’s growth. La Roche-Posay, the Division’s biggest brand, sustained its outstanding momentum, driven by its main pillars Cicaplast and Effaclar, and by the success of the UVMune 400 breakthrough innovation in sun protection. CeraVe continued to expand internationally, achieving spectacular growth in both the United States and the rest of the world. Vichy maintained its strong momentum thanks to Dercos and the Capital Soleil UV franchise in both seasonal and daily sun protection.
On the aesthetic front, SkinCeuticals recorded double-digit growth, fuelled by the excellent performance of A.G.E Interrupter anti-wrinkle cream. The newly acquired brand Skinbetter Science, integrated into the Division in the fourth quarter, showed promising potential.
“Our balanced growth across Divisions and regions once again demonstrates the relevance of our multipolar model: strategically centralized and operationally decentralized with a strong entrepreneurial mindset, this model is ideally suited to the current environment,” said Hieronimus.
“Mindful of the current uncertainties, we remain ambitious for the future, optimistic about the outlook for the beauty market, and confident in our ability to keep outperforming the market and achieve in 2023 another year of growth in sales and profits,” he added.
