The Operations Division harnesses the most specialised, agile, effective and connected technological expertise, from packaging design and product development, sourcing and production through to distribution of all the Group’s products, contributing with brands to offer consumers worldwide the most advanced cosmetic products and services.
The Operations Division guarantees consumers compliance with strict standards of quality, safety, security and societal and environmental responsibility all over the world.
Relying on an approach of operational excellence conducted for years, high-tech industry is at the core of L’Oréal’s Operations Division. As a result, the integration of data and new technologies all along the value chain responds specifically both to the new challenges of personalisation, agility and traceability expected by consumers and to the new needs of its employees: simplification, ergonomics, real-time access to data, new capacities related, for example, to the use of virtual reality, 3D printing, artificial intelligence, etc.
For product development, 3D printing of prototypes for products and/or functional packaging components reduces development times and therefore brings products to the market faster. This fast prototyping ensures an agile response to consumers’ new consumer beauty expectations and cosmetic trends.
In production, the combination of technologies such as 3D printing, artificial intelligence, connected objects (Internet of Things, IoT), cobots (collaborative robots) and virtual reality are new tools to assist operators and to develop new, agile and more flexible production lines.
In traceability and productivity, the IoT and data management (Big Data) open up exciting prospects for improving the supply chain, creating smoother flows for the customer experience, managing the omni-channel experience and increased interaction with consumers.
The packaging of a product is the first identifying link between a brand and its consumers. Beyond science, experience and performance, packaging is a key differentiating factor for the product and therefore for the value perceived by the consumer. The L’Oréal teams, distributed over five Packaging Hubs around the world, specialise in design, consumer experience (ease of use and creativity), innovation in packaging, and product development.
They rely on the expertise of laboratories dedicated to materials and packaging to offer cutting-edge innovations worldwide. L’Oréal filed 517 patents for packaging and processes in 2021.
Since 2007, L’Oréal has been committed to an eco-design process for sustainable packaging and has very significantly intensified its progress in recent years. The process occurs in three steps: Reduce the intensity of packaging and thus avoid using too many resources; Replace impactful materials with materials that have a better environmental footprint (renewable, post-consumer recycled); Recycle by creating packaging that will contribute to the circular economy.
At the end of 2021, 96% of the Group’s products were eco‑designed. By 2025, 100% of the Group’s plastic packaging will be refillable, reusable, recyclable or compostable. By 2030, all the plastics used in L’Oréal’s product packaging will be recycled or biosourced in origin. As part of an innovative, long‑term partnership with green biotech company Carbios, L’Oréal announced the design of the first cosmetic bottle for Biotherm in 2021 to be made from fully recycled plastics using Carbios’ enzymatic technology. In 2021, with its partner Paboco, L’Oréal developed the first cardboard-based bottle for the La Roche Posay and Kiehl’s brands.
To accompany the Group’s growth, the Purchasing teams select the most economically, environmentally and socially effective suppliers in accordance with the L’Oréal Buy & Care responsible purchasing policy. Supplier performance is monitored thanks to precise indicators relating to social, environmental and ethical criteria and through their ability to innovate and to meet the Group’s requirements in terms of quality, agility, service and competitiveness.
L’Oréal builds solid relationships with its suppliers which makes it possible to work with them on their supply chains for responsible sourcing and ensure the agility, reliability and traceability of sourcing. In 2021, the Group conducted 1,236 social audits, a total of more than 14,900 since 2006.
Furthermore, by creating the Solidarity Sourcing responsible purchasing programme, L’Oréal chose as from 2010 to enable sourcing from suppliers with an inclusive solidarity model, in other words, companies that offer employment to vulnerable workers and people in economically or socially disadvantaged communities, such as people with a disability, the long-term unemployed or fair trade suppliers (see section 4.3.3.6. “Measures taken in favour of local communities” of this document). At the end of 2021, 89,093 people had been able to access employment via the Solidarity Sourcing programme.
