“Whenever we see a small company with a good idea, we’re on fire”: How M&A and innovation keep L’Oréal ahead in global beauty

“Whenever we see a small company with a good idea, we’re on fire”: How M&A and innovation keep L’Oréal ahead in global beauty

A decade ago, while L’Oréal stood as the clear global leader in beauty, a new set of independent brands was beginning to gain traction. Despite their at first comparatively microscopic scale, digital natives Glossier and e.l.f. Beauty, celebrity challengers such as Fenty (Rihanna) and Kylie Cosmetics (Kylie Jenner), and the jostling ranks of Korean beauty brands all had a key advantage. While L’Oréal and the other big players had marketing model…