L'Oreal Constantly Fights for Women's Equality

L'Oreal announces the launch of the L'Oreal BOLD FEMALE FOUNDERS program, aiming to support women-led start-ups. L'Oreal is constantly committed to empowering women. In China, L'Oreal has helped more than 8,000 Chinese women engage in or start businesses in the beauty industry and create a new and better life.

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L'Oreal, the world’s largest beauty group, has announced the launch of the L'Oreal BOLD FEMALE FOUNDERS program, which aims to support women-led start-ups. The project will be allocated 25 million euros (about 26.8975 million US dollars) by L'Oreal's venture capital fund BOLD as a special initial development fund.

This strategic investment is the latest measure of L'Oreal Group's long-term commitment to women's equality and empowerment. It will focus on finding investment opportunities in a broader beauty ecosystem around the world, including brand, beauty technology, biotechnology and green science.

Nicolas Hieronimus, CEO of L'Oreal, said that L'Oreal has been committed to empowering women through numerous programs of the L'Oreal foundation for many years. 30% of the start-ups in BOLD venture capital fund are led by women, and bold female foundations aim to support and promote women's entrepreneurship.

Gouzelle Ishmatova, Chief Strategic Officer of BOLD, added that though the start-ups led by women attracted fewer funds, they always performed well. L'Oreal hopes to invest in the creativity and talents of the next generation of female entrepreneurs through BOLD FEMALE FOUNDERS to change the game rules.

L'Oreal has always been committed to speaking for women, encouraging women to find their strengths, and women should have a correct understanding of self-worth and be full of confidence. In this year's "L'Oreal's 25th Anniversary Development Strategy Annual Online Communication Meeting", L'Oreal North Asia President and China CEO Fabrice Megarbane once said, "We are committed to empowering women, not only within L'Oreal, but also globally". More than 50% of the management team of L'Oreal (China) are women. In 2021, L'Oreal China and the World's Leading Scientists Association successfully held the first "WLA SHE Forum", mainly to explore solutions to provide a more inclusive workplace environment for female researchers.

The new era has given women a bigger stage, but in China's rural areas, there are still some women who lack opportunities to shine. L'Oreal is constantly committed to focusing on and empowering women, helping them achieve their own beautiful careers and create a better life.

In 2009, L'Oreal launched the "Beautiful Career, Beautiful Life" beauty public welfare training program around the world, providing free professional skills training for employment in the field of beauty for disadvantaged groups. At the end of 2014, in response to China's targeted poverty alleviation strategy, L'Oreal joined hands with the China Women's Development Foundation to introduce the project in China, and worked with partners to work out a set of innovative poverty alleviation public welfare models that empowered by skills based on local conditions. As of the end of 2020, the project has set up 48 training points in 13 major cities, provinces and autonomous regions in China, helping over 8,000 Chinese women find jobs or start businesses in the beauty field and create a new and better life.

"This is an equal society where both men and women should contribute their own strength." Lan Zhenzhen, Liaison Officer of L'Oreal North Asia and China Chief Corporate Affairs and Public, expressed that L'Oreal always encourages employees, project beneficiary students, and consumers to become a "light" in a better life, and continue to pass on the beautiful energy they have witnessed and touched to more people around them. "If everyone can radiate the power of chasing progress, society will have the drive to keep moving forward."