From haircare to luxury fragrances, and from China to the United States, French beauty giant L’Oréal reported a 5.8% increase in first-half sales (+6.8% like-for-like), on Wednesday, July 29, driven by growth across all divisions and regions, including Asia.
The beauty group, whose portfolio includes Garnier, Maybelline and Lancôme, reported a 5.3% increase in net profit to EUR 3.55 billion for the period from January to June, compared with the same period a year earlier. Revenue rose to nearly EUR 23.8 billion, supported in particular by strong performances in professional products, such as Kérastase, and dermatological brands, including La Roche-Posay and Vichy. The result was in line with the consensus forecast compiled by FactSet.
L’Oréal’s operating margin reached 21.3% in the first half, which the group described as a record level.
“L’Oréal maintained its strong momentum and expanded its outperformance of the global beauty market,” commented Nicolas Hieronimus, Chief Executive Officer of L’Oréal. Looking ahead to the second half of the year, he said he expects demand to remain “strong” and anticipates “another year of growth in sales” together with a further improvement in profitability.
“We are confident about the second half because our innovation pipeline remains very active, with several exciting launches ahead, and because we continue to roll out recent acquisitions such as Medik8, Color Wow and Dr.G,” Hieronimus told AFP.
Recovery in Asia
First-half sales increased across all regions, with particularly strong momentum in Europe, L’Oréal’s largest market, where revenue rose 8% to EUR 8.1 billion. North America, the group’s second-largest market, also delivered solid growth, with sales up 4.2% to EUR 6 billion.
North Asia, where the luxury market had previously weakened amid a broader economic slowdown, continued its recovery, with revenue increasing 2.3% to EUR 5.5 billion. The improvement was driven primarily by China, where market conditions are gradually strengthening.
“Over the past year, the beauty market in China has been recovering, particularly in selective distribution channels,” Nicolas Hieronimus told AFP. “L’Oréal is continuing to outperform the market, notably thanks to double-digit growth in luxury, dermatological beauty and professional haircare.”
By division, professional products delivered the strongest growth in the first half, with sales up 14.7%, driven by the premiumization of haircare and the continued expansion of personalized salon services. Dermatological Beauty also posted strong momentum, with sales rising 9.3%, while the Luxury division grew 4.4%, supported by strong fragrance performance. L’Oréal highlighted the success of Prada Paradoxe and the continued rollout of Emporio Armani fragrances. The group’s largest division, Consumer Products, recorded more moderate growth of 2.7%.
According to consulting firm McKinsey, the global beauty market is expected to grow at an annual rate of 5% through 2030, as consumer purchasing criteria continue to evolve, with greater emphasis on product quality and efficacy while maintaining a focus on affordability.
