Like-for-like group sales grew by 5.1% to reach a total of €6.01 billion, while like-for-like sales for the first nine months of the financial year were up 4.5% to €19.5 billion.
On a reported basis the sales gains were negated by the impact of the acquisitions and the sale of the Body, while currency fluctuations had a minimal impact. This meant that for the third quarter reported group sales were down by 0.9% and up by 2.4% for the first nine month period.
L’Oréal Luxe steams ahead
“L’Oréal Luxe delivered an excellent performance with double-digit growth, driven by the robust health of its four key brands: Lancôme, Yves Saint Laurent, Giorgio Armani and Kiehl’s, and the momentum of its recent acquisition, IT Cosmetics,” said Jean-Paul Agon, L’Oréal chairman and CEO.
“The Active Cosmetics Division is growing significantly, reflecting the quality of its launches and the good performance of CeraVe. The Consumer Products Division is reinforcing its positions in several major Zones, but is still being slowed down by continuing difficulties in the American and French markets.”
On a geographical basis, the results were driven by new markets, and in particular in the Asia Pacific region, where like-for-like sales grew by 14.7% in the third quarter.
The company also reported that the gains in the Asia Pacific region were particularly driven by the China market, but also said that Latin America and Eastern Europe were strong.
Luxury make-up and skin care were big
The company noted that within its Luxe division, sales were particular strong for facial skin care and make-up products.
In particular Lancōme was noted for its performance, in particular Advanced Génifique Sensitive skincare and the fragrance La Vie Est Belle L’Éclat, while Yves Saint Laurent continued to “grow strongly”.
The division notched up particularly strong results in the Asia Pacific region, on the back of a robust China and Hong Kong, while travel and e-commerce were also strong drivers.
Professional Product sales slump
While the Active Cosmetics division also performed strongly, notching up a like-for-like sales increase of 6.2% during the third quarter, things were not quite so rosy for the professional product division.
The professional product division reported a like-for-like sales increase of 0.5% for the third quarter, while the figure stood at – 0.3% for the first nine months, as the company faced increased competition in this category.
In the consumer products division third quarter sales were up 2.3% on a like-for-like basis, while the figure came in at 2.0% for the first nine months.