Consumer Products

Increasingly expert consumers on a quest for innovation

Consumers are increasingly knowledgeable and demanding thanks to the beauty information they glean from social media. These insights into new rituals and trends draw them to increasingly innovative, high-end products. They perfect their beauty regimens by adding new steps, such as the use of targeted haircare products after shampooing and serums in addition to moisturising creams. L’Oréal is seizing on this unique impetus for offer-driven growth in the consumer products beauty market through new, exceptional high-value products.

Democratising new beauty rituals

L’Oréal Paris is inventing products that provide additional benefits for consumers. For example, the brand’s new skincare routine Revitalift Clinical pairs a 12% Vitamin C serum with an anti-UV SPF 50+ fluid, combining the antioxidant power of vitamin C with the added benefits of SPF 50+ sun protection. This combination meets consumer demand for quality, efficacy and safety, and is popularising a new ritual of daily sun protection in beauty products. Brow beauty is another ritual on the rise. Maybelline New York is riding the trend with its Build a Brow pen and sealing gel, a two-in-one solution that allows users to draw precise lines and sculpt their eyebrows.

Innovation driving demand for premium products

To keep pace with consumers’ growing expertise and launch innovative new products, the Division’s brands are also capitalising on L’Oréal’s experience and Research. To cite just one example, Garnier’s Good hair colour range is positioned at a higher price point than traditional at-home hair dyes because it provides a completely revamped and more sustainable beauty experience. Good has broken new ground with innovative packaging featuring 45% less plastic than previous Garnier kits and enabling consumers to mix the dye directly in the tub. The ingredients in its formula, which provides a more enjoyable sensory experience, are of 90% natural origin.

As a champion of innovation through science, L’Oréal Paris has continued to premiumise with products featuring revolutionary technology. The Bond Repair haircare range is a prime example: eight years of research culminated in the development of a formula enriched with citric acid, using precise molecular technology to penetrate deep inside damaged hair fibres. The results speak for themselves: the four-product Bond Repair routine (pre-shampoo treatment, shampoo, conditioner and leave-in serum) reduces breakage by 98% and enhances shine by 90%.

L’Oréal’s Consumer Products Division is ideally positioned to seize the potential in the emerging markets of South-East Asia, the Middle East, Africa and Latin America. These markets accounted for about a third of the Division’s growth this year. And this is only the beginning.

The digital beauty boom

Young, connected consumers who are big beauty fans are driving rapid growth in emerging markets, particularly among the Consumer Products Division’s target group, the upper middle class. By 2030, emerging markets will be home to more than 40% of this cohort, representing a billion consumers worldwide. This is a colossal opportunity for growth in the coming years. Consumer habits are shifting as emerging markets experience a real digital revolution. E-commerce is an important tool for market penetration, particularly in countries like India, where cities and towns may be isolated or remote. Highly connected younger generations follow iconic, celebrity influencers who fuel their followers’ interest in beauty while expanding their product expertise and knowledge. Social media is also a window into consumer trends and expectations. The data analysed by our teams is a precious tool for developing and creating the products consumers want.

Innovations specially designed and deployed for emerging markets

Thanks to its powerful brands and innovation capabilities, the Consumer Products Division is perfectly poised to seize this tremendous opportunity. A winning example is Garnier’s Vitamin C serum, which helps create a radiant complexion and combat imperfections. The brand has been a pioneer in the Indian market in particular, thanks to a successful strategy building on its high-quality formula, smaller sizes to ensure affordability for all, distribution of free samples on university campuses and awareness-raising campaigns both on- and offline. The approach has led to unprecedented penetration in a market where consumers are highly interested in beauty and on the lookout for innovations. The serum is now a star product in all emerging markets, and Vitamin C is among the top ingredients consumers search for on all platforms.