L'Oréal reports "very strong" start to FY23 as Q1 sales rise

L'Oréal has reported a 14.6% increase in sales to £9.1 billion (€10.38 billion) for the first quarter, revealing "outstanding performance" in its Consumer Products and Dermatological Beauty divisions.

The group saw double-digit growth in all geographic zones except for North Asia, largely due to a reduction of stock-in-trade in mainland China at the beginning of the year. In Europe, sales increased 16.6% to £2.93 billion (€3.2 billion).

Sales of consumer products increased 15.7% to £3.3 billion (€‎3.8 billion), largely driven by "successful innovations" across all categories, with makeup reported as the fastest growing category.

Dermatological beauty, which was previously named active cosmetics, saw sales rise 34.6% to £1.4 billion (€‎1.6 billion). La Roche-Posay was the primary contributor to the division’s growth, with sales also boosted by CeraVe and SkinCeuticals.

The L'Oréal Luxe division saw a 7.7% in sales to £3.2 billion (€‎3.7 billion), whilst Professional Products increased 9.8% to £1 billion (€‎1.1 billion), driven by the performance of Kérastase and the "great success" of Serie Expert by L’Oréal Professionnel with Metal Detox.

Nicolas Hieronimus, CEO of L'Oréal, said: “L’Oréal has maintained strong growth momentum and posted an excellent first quarter. The group has outperformed the market in all geographic zones and strengthened its leadership position. This performance, which has yet to benefit from China’s reopening, demonstrates the strength of L’Oréal’s balanced multipolar model.

"Mindful of the current uncertainties, we remain optimistic about the outlook for the beauty market, ambitious for the future and confident in our ability to keep outperforming the market and achieve another year of growth in sales and profits in 2023.”

The announcement also follows the recent acquisition of Aēsop by L'Oréal, opening a new chapter of the luxury brand's growth story after 10 years under Natura &Co's stewardship.

Under the transaction, L'Oréal will acquire Aēsop for £1.81 billion ($2.525 billion). The transaction is still subject to customary regulatory approvals and is expected to close in Q3 2023.