L’Oreal established its first investment company in China, The Shanghai Meicifang Investment Co., which is dedicated to investing in innovative beauty technology and promoting the high-quality development of open innovation in China. At the entrance of the next 25 years, L’Oreal will continue co-developing with China. Together with all partners in the ecosystem, it will co-evolve and create the beauty that moves the world!
The Promotional Investment and Contract Signing Online Conference 2022 Fengxian Shanghai was successfully held in the form of an online video conference. At the conference, the global beauty giant L’Oreal Group and China’s top cosmetics hub, The Oriental Beauty Valley, once again joined forces and held a signing ceremony for L’Oreal’s first investment company in China, The Shanghai Meicifang Investment Co.
“The conference is emblematic of Fengxian’s economic restoration and will accelerate the resumption of work in the city after the COVID-19 resurgence is brought under control,” Shanghai Mayor Gong Zheng said in a video speech at the meeting.
This time, L’Oreal, an international giant cosmetics group that has been in China for 25 years, officially announced the establishment of its first investment company, The Shanghai Meicifang Investment Co., in the Chinese market, located in the Lingang Nanqiao Science and Technology City in the core area of the Oriental Beauty Valley in Fengxian District, Shanghai, dedicated to investing in innovative beauty technology and promoting the high-quality development of open innovation in China.
The Company is supported by L’Oréal’s innovative venture capital fund BOLD (Business Opportunities for L’Oréal Development) will accelerate the cosmetics industry’s scientific innovation and contribute to the development of Shanghai and China’s cosmetics sectors, according to the newly BOLD is committed to investing in high-quality products and services.
BOLD is committed to investing in high-growth potential innovative technology companies in Marketing, Digital, R&I, Communications, Supply Chain, Packaging, and other areas. BOLD supports the development of startups at a financial level and provides them with access to the L’Oréal global ecosystem.
Fabrice MEGARBANE, President of L’Oréal North Asia Zone and CEO of L’Oréal China, highlighted the strategic importance of China for the L’Oréal Group, which has proven over 25 years in China to be a key growth engine for the Group and a unique location for technological innovation. In L’Oreal’s 25th year in China, it brought Open Innovation investment to China, demonstrating its commitment to the Chinese market and its determination to further enhance and empower China’s innovation ecosystem, accelerating open innovation and results translation in China. “
L’Oréal started the “Big Bang Beauty Tech Startup Challenge” program in China three years ago. Last year, L’Oréal China held the campaign in collaboration with Fengxian and Oriental Beauty Valley, the Chinese beauty industry’s first technological entrepreneurship contest. At the second edition of the China International Import Expo, the project was extended internationally in partnership with Business France.
So far, the program has been very fruitful attracting more than 1000 domestic startups and 50 French startups, and more than 30 projects have been successfully implemented. At the same time, the project has become a benchmark for Sino-French cooperation in the cosmetics industry. The third edition of BIG BANG was officially launched in March, and it continued to work together with Oriental Beauty Valley. With the help of the new investment company, L’Oréal is confident to work with more partners and talented people to discover more potential innovative companies and incubate forward-looking innovations and promote their commercial implementation to promote the construction of an open innovation ecosystem in China and lead the high-quality development of the beacon industry in the consumer field of beauty.
Beauty companies, especially in Shanghai, have been hit hard by the epidemic that has been going on in Shanghai since March. However, it is worth noting that according to L’Oréal Group’s financial report for the first quarter of 2022, L’Oréal achieved a 13.5% year-on-year growth in global sales during the period with sales recording $9.53 billion, a growth rate of nearly five years, and a 19% increase in consolidated statements. In China, L’Oréal continued to achieve double-digit growth.
“Despite the uncertainty, L’Oréal maintained solid growth in the first quarter,” Fabrice stated that thanks to L’Oréal China’s successful campaigns during Chinese New Year, Valentine’s Day, and Women’s Day in the past few months, the first quarter still saw double-digit growth exceeding the average for the beauty market. Fabrice added that “We are now seeing a milestone victory in the response to the epidemic in Shanghai. We hope to resume full production and normalcy as soon as possible. “
In 2007, L’Oréal upgraded Shanghai as the headquarters of the L’Oréal Group in North Asia and one of the three global beauty technology centers. This is a move that also reflects the important strategic position of China for the L’Oréal Group – not only as an engine of business growth but also as a source of scientific and technological innovation for the Group to achieve the beauty of the future.
