L'Oreal says weight loss drugs are impacting beauty and skin care sales
The beauty giant's CEO says the use of GLP-1s was "a very important phenomenon for us".
L'Oreal says weight loss drugs are affecting beauty and skin care sales
The growing use of weight loss drugs, known as GLP-1s, has risen sharply in recent years.
Beauty giant L'Oreal says the surge in weight loss drugs has had an effect on beauty and skin care sales, as it develops products aimed specifically at some side effects of rapid weight loss.
Company chief Nicolas Hieronimus said the beauty market was holding up well in a difficult global environment, and that GLP-1s were "a very important phenomenon for us".
Speaking on an investor call, he said the increase in their use was "having an impact on beauty consumption and skin care consumption in particular".
L'Oreal, which owns other well-known brands including Maybelline and La Roche-Posay, said on Thursday that sales in the three months to September increased by 7.7%, beating analyst forecasts.
GLP-1 use has surged in popularity in recent years after diabetes drugs such as Ozempic, Wegovy and Mounjaro were found to also cause significant weight loss because they suppress appetite.
Although GLP-1 drugs do not directly cause it, rapid weight loss can, for some people, lead to loose skin, including around the face.
Hieronimus said L'Oreal's SkinCeuticals and Kiehl's brands have products "that have been designed to work alongside and complement GLP-1 and its side effects on skin sagging" and other effects linked to rapid weight loss.
L'Oreal has also expanded further into the clinical aesthetic sector, raising its stake in dermatology company Galderma to 20% last December.
According to Reuters, both companies have been testing products on GLP-1 users concerned about loose skin in separate clinical trials.
Galderma owns popular aesthetic products including Sculptra, an injectable designed to stimulate collagen production, and Restylane, an injectable dermal filler.
Last year, the aesthetic company published a report on the rise in GLP-1 use and related concerns about changes in facial appearance.
Its own survey of users of weight loss medication found that the vast majority had noticed changes to their facial appearance after taking those drugs.