Today, media reports stated that L’Oréal has announced the appointment of Meng Yingqi, General Manager of La Roche-Posay China, as the General Manager of L’Oréal Paris China. This appointment will officially take effect on April 1, 2025.
According to publicly available information, Meng Yingqi graduated from the Advertising Department of Fudan University’s School of Journalism. She joined L’Oréal China as a management trainee in 2009, initially responsible for customer management, online marketing, and sales for the Shu Uemura brand. Later, she transferred to the hair coloring team of L’Oréal Paris before taking on marketing roles for the brand’s skincare and makeup categories.
In March 2022, Meng Yingqi left her position as Business Director of L’Oréal Paris to become the Brand Director of La Roche-Posay China. In 2023, L’Oréal rebranded its Active Cosmetics Division as the Dermatological Beauty Division, with La Roche-Posay being the primary revenue contributor, generating over €1 billion annually.
In the announcement, L’Oréal stated that despite a complex market environment over the past three years, Meng Yingqi led the La Roche-Posay team to continuously increase market share and strengthen its signature B5 Repair series, making the B5 Repair Cream and Mask among the company’s best-selling recruitment products.
Reports indicate that after achieving double-digit growth in 2023, L’Oréal’s Dermatological Beauty Division has seen a significant slowdown. Sources close to L’Oréal told the media that domestic regulations on the marketing of “dermatological-grade skincare products” are stringent, particularly concerning sensitive terms such as doctor recommendations. L’Oréal prioritizes compliance in marketing these products, which has somewhat constrained growth.
According to L’Oréal China’s official website, the business model of the Dermatological Beauty Division is primarily built on “doctor recommendations,” and expanding collaborations with healthcare professionals is crucial for the division’s brand development. The aforementioned sources believe that compared to domestic brands specializing in dermatological skincare, L’Oréal still has limited penetration in hospitals and clinics.
L’Oréal Paris operates under the Consumer Products Division, which generated nearly €16 billion in revenue last year, making it the largest division within the group. However, the division has seen a noticeable contraction in its China business. In 2022, Maybelline withdrew from department stores and supermarkets, while last year, makeup brand NYX officially exited China, and sheet mask brand MG closed all its online stores.
