North Asia
Sales in North Asia contracted, -3.2% like-for-like and -3.4% reported.
In mainland China, beauty market growth was negative, strongly impacted by the softness in the selective segment. In this challenging context, L’Oréal demonstrated its resilience, posting a low single digit decline in sales. L’Oréal Luxe, Dermatological Beauty and Professional Products outpaced their respective markets; Consumer Products slightly underperformed the mass market.
In Japan, L’Oréal outperformed a very dynamic market. In Travel Retail, given that sell-out continued to be under significant pressure, notably in Hainan, focus remained on securing healthy inventory levels.
In North Asia, Dermatological Beauty posted double-digit growth; all brands contributed with a particularly strong performance from CeraVe. Professional Products outpaced the market, boosted by the continued success of Kérastase. Given the continued challenges in the Chinese ecosystem, sales in L’Oréal Luxe declined and the Division performed in line with the market; in this context, the couture brands including Yves Saint Laurent, Maison Margiela, Prada and Valentino maintained strong momentum. In Consumer Products, L’Oréal Paris’ sales declined in very low single-digits.
In December, L’Oréal announced the acquisition of Dr.G, a leading Korean dermo mass skincare brand.
SAPMENA – SSA
Sales in SAPMENA-SSA grew 12.3% like-for-like and 12.0% reported.
In SAPMENA, growth was broad-based with all categories and Divisions contributing; it was driven by mix and a positive contribution from both price and volume. By country, key contributors were the Australia-New Zealand cluster, Thailand, Saudi Arabia, Vietnam, and India. By Division, Dermatological Beauty saw the strongest growth, fuelled by CeraVe’s outstanding momentum and La Roche- Posay’s successful Mela B3; Luxe maintained its double-digit rhythm, powered primarily by Yves Saint Laurent and Prada.
The most dynamic categories were fragrances and skincare, the latter driven by Dermatological Beauty and Consumer Products. Growth in haircare, both in mass and professional, was boosted by the continued premiumisation strategy.
Online remained a key growth driver, notably in Saudi Arabia, India and South-East Asia.
Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) delivered another record year with all countries and Divisions growing in double digits. By category, momentum was particularly dynamic in skincare, followed by haircare and fragrances. By Division, key growth contributors were Consumer Products and L’Oréal Dermatological Beauty.
Latin America
Sales in Latin America advanced 11.0% like-for-like and 13.3% reported.
Growth was fuelled by well-balanced contributions from value and volume.
Momentum was broad-based by country, led by Mexico and Brazil - the third and sixth largest contributors to growth at Group level respectively. Excluding Argentina, which was negatively impacted by the economic crisis, sales in the region grew +14.7%.
By Division, Consumer Products delivered exceptional growth, with each of the three international brands contributing; Elsève further consolidated its position as the top haircare brand in Brazil by value. L’Oréal Luxe achieved robust growth, driven by strong performances in Brazil and especially Mexico, where the market was very dynamic.
Haircare remained the fastest-growing category across the three relevant Divisions, followed by makeup and fragrances.
Online remained a key growth driver for the region, boosted by the strong performance of pure players.
