L'Oréal Inaugurates its Global Hair Research Centre

Clichy, France (ots/PRNewswire) -

Exclusively dedicated to hair, L'Oreal's Research Centre is the
head of a network of six regional centres around the world. The new
Centre uses cutting-edge automation and modelling tools across
collaborative platforms conducive to innovation.

To meet consumers' highly diverse needs with regards to the
beauty of their hair, L'Oreal announced today the inauguration of its
Global Hair Research Centre located in Paris Saint-Ouen. The Centre's
Research & Innovation programmes (R&I) is exclusively dedicated to
the haircare profession which includes hair colouring, hair care
(shampoos, conditioners), styling, (sprays, gels, waxes) and perms,
smoothing or straightening.

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A 100-million-euro investment

One of the largest investments in L'Oreal's R&I history, the
25,000msquared Centre hosts 500 employees. These include chemists,
physico-chemists, opticians, materials scientists, metrologists,
rheologists, computer scientists and statisticians. With its
architecture and amenities designed to foster collaborative spaces
conducive to the sharing and transfer of skills, the Research Centre
offers these specialists the methods and tools of the future in a
pleasant and high-quality environment.

At the technological forefront: automation, modelling and sensory
evaluation

To support the innovation flow, ambitious and effective tools
allow researchers to explore more broadly the endless possibilities
offered by the science of formulation and evaluation. For example,
robots mimic product applications on hair or prepare time-saving
formulae. Thus to date the automatic weighing robot has weighed
nearly one million colouring samples for approximately 100,000
formulae that require testing.

Original numerical modelling tools using already acquired data,
evaluate virtual formulae so that only those most likely to meet
consumer needs are to be developed.

Besides their scientifically proven technical efficacy, products
also generate emotions. To measure the emotional components of
product performance, this Research Centre has developed sensory
evaluation expertise carried out by fifty expert technicians and
established procedures which monitor consumers' actions and record
their feelings.

All the information thus collected in this Global Centre and the
six regional centres, is fed back into the hair innovation processes.

The head of a network of regional centres around the world

The Saint Ouen Research Centrer is the head of a global network
of six R&I regional centres and the headquarters for the
International Departments in hair colour, hair care and hair styling.
These department heads define the innovation strategy for each type
of hair treatment worldwide and manage the worldwide innovation
portfolio. The six R&I regional centres are located in Japan, China,
India, USA, Brazil and in Saint-Ouen for Europe.

The six regional hair centres also have a dual mission:
interpreting the innovation strategies identified by the Saint Ouen
Research Centre and tailoring them to the specific features of their
markets as well as inventing new products that meet local consumers'
needs. These local innovations may also be internationalised via a
"reverse innovation" deployment process.

This Research Centre and the six regional centres thus contribute
to the conquest of new sources of growth and as such to the Group's
strategic target of gaining one billion new consumers. Jean-Paul
Agon, Chairman and CEO of L'Oreal, said "The Saint Ouen research
centre exemplifies our strategy which aims to make beauty universal
based on a deep understanding of consumers' needs and aspirations, in
order to offer products that match women's and men's different
cultures, beauty routines and purchasing power."

About L'Oreal

L'Oreal, the world's leading cosmetics company, has catered to
all forms of beauty in the world for over 100 years and has built an
unrivalled portfolio of 27 international, diverse and complementary
brands. With sales amounting to 20.3 billion euros in 2011, L'Oreal
is present in 130 countries and employs 68,900 people. Regarding
sustainable development, Corporate Knights, a Global Responsible
Investment Network, has selected L'Oreal for its 2012 ranking of the
Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations in the World. L'Oreal has
received this distinction for the 5th consecutive year.
http://www.loreal.com

Appendix - Key figures

L'Oreal Research and Innovation in 2011

- 721 million euros
- 613 patents
- 3,670 employees
- 55% of product raw materials of plant origin in 2011
- 45% of new raw materials used comply with green chemistry principles

The Global Hair Research Centre

- A centre exclusively dedicated to hair
- A 100-million-euro investment
- Thirty disciplines within 25 000m2
- 500 employees

Global Presence Investments Patents
2011: 721 million euros
19 Research Centres 2010: 665 million euros 2011: 613
16 Evaluation Centres 2009: 609 million euros 2010: 612

Press Contact:

Ms. Laurence Balmayer
laurence.balmayer@loreal.com
Tel : +33-1-47-56-76-88

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ots Originaltext: L'Oréal
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