L’Oréal off to a good start in Q1
Encouraging results posted by the French company
L’Oréal has released its Q1 results for 2011 which show the French giant is off to a good start for the year. Sales reached €5.16bn, up 9.3% based on reported figures and up by 5.8% in like-for-like terms. Chairman and ceo Jean-Paul Agon commented on the results: “The start to this year is encouraging, as it confirms the group’s good dynamics, to which all divisions are contributing, particularly consumer products and luxury products, driven by the vitality of the major brands, L’Oréal Paris and Maybelline on the one hand, and Lancôme, Giorgio Armani and Kiehl’s, on the other.” Western Europe had a reported growth of 1.5% and 0.5% in like-for-like terms. The consumer product division here is flat, except in cosmetics, where it’s continuing to win market share while the luxury division’s sales were boosted by Yves Saint Laurent and Kiehl’s, which are improving their geographical presence. Elsewhere in eastern Europe like-for-like sales fell by 1.5%. According to the company, growth is accelerating strongly in North America while good results were also recorded in emerging markets like Latin America and Asia – excluding Japan – and Africa and the Middle East. The Body Shop is recording very strong growth rates in the new markets, particularly in the Middle East, eastern Europe and southern Asia, and is continuing to extend its distribution in these areas. “Although it is not possible to extrapolate from these figures, and despite an uncertain exchange rate environment, the first months of the year give us confidence in our ability to outperform the market in 2011, strengthen our worldwide position and achieve another year of growth in both sales and profits,” concluded Agon.