L’Oréal is establishing itself as a pioneer in sustainable fragrance, using a new, more eco-conscious way to produce its luxurious perfumes and colognes. A slower extraction process is not only more sustainable, but it also creates authentic fragrances that harness the scents of the natural world.
With sustainability at the forefront of the consumer's consciousness, transparency over how products are crafted has become key for brands. L’Oréal is setting the bar high with its new, slower method of extracting fragrance, developed with Green Sciences thinking.
Green Sciences refers to applying eco-friendly principles to scientific disciplines—and has become an integral part of the L’Oréal brand. To champion this, the beauty giant has partnered with Cosmo International Fragrances, who have developed new patent-pending technology exclusively for L’Oréal.
This new technology offers a waterless, low-energy and slow extraction process that reveals the exact smell of an ingredient while preserving its integrity. Barbara Lavernos, Deputy Chief Executive Officer in charge of Research, Innovation and Technology at L’Oréal, refers to the new approach as "from field to fragrance," explaining: "Through this Green Sciences extraction process, we can experience the olfactive power of flowers in an authentic way, as if walking in a garden, field or forest."
We can experience the olfactive power of flowers in an authentic way, as if walking in a garden, field or forest
Barbara Lavernos
As well as boosting the brand's sustainability credentials, this new method of fragrance production marks an exciting breakthrough in fragrance development. "True-to-life scents are the perfumer’s dream come true," explains Cyril Chapuy, President of L’Oréal Luxe, explaining that this new method of fragrance production will take "fine fragrance crafting to new heights by offering unprecedented olfactive authenticity, allowing natural ingredients to express their full olfactive identity like never before."
A MORE SUSTAINABLE FUTURE
A 'self-set' approach to sustainability has long been part of L’Oréal's ethos as a brand, with a 2030 mission statement—L'Oréal for the Future—launched in 2020.
Marie-Pia Schlumberger, L’Oréal Luxe Sustainability Director, explains L’Oréal Groupe’s three-fold approach to sustainability. This consists of transforming the company, engaging its ecosystem of customers, retailers and suppliers, and contributing to solving the challenges of the world.
"At L’Oréal Luxe, we have a vision: to reinvent the codes of luxury beauty through innovation and education. We also aim to give consumers the means to adopt more sustainable consumption habits."
We have a deep belief at L’Oréal Luxe that the true essence of luxury is to create products that are made to last
Marie-Pia Schlumberger
With statistics from Zero Waste Week reporting that 120 billion units of packaging are produced every year by the global cosmetics industry, it's at the forefront of all our minds to reduce our consumption—and refillable products are a great place to start.
L’Oréal Luxe is constantly expanding its offer of refillable products, including fragrances loved by millions, such as Lancôme La Vie Est Belle or YSL MYSLF, so customers can hold on to the same beautiful objects, refilling them at home with the help of optimised refill bottles.
“We also have 'refill in store' initiatives, such as the famous Mugler fountain, created in 1992. Inspired by its success, we have launched the pilot of a multi-brand fragrance 'refill wall' in partnership with Sephora in France, allowing consumers to refill iconic L’Oréal Luxe fragrances directly in store."
Refilling reduces the use of materials: for example, in the case of refillable fragrance Prada Paradoxe: one 50ml bottle and a 100ml refill allow us to use 40% less material than three 50ml bottles.”
L’Oréal Luxe’s ambition is also to make the idea of being sustainable more attractive to consumers. "To make refills the 'new normal' they need to become 'the new cool'. Our spokesperson Emma Watson talks about the Prada Paradoxe refill and the significant materials saving that can be achieved."
ART AND THE SCIENCE OF FRAGRANCE
L’Oréal's partnership with Cosmo complements the brand's new Art and Science of Fragrance series, which focuses on ingredients. And when they say focus, they really mean it, with heavy scrutiny on the ingredient's origin, right to selecting ingredients based on the soil that's nourished them.
The Art and Science of Fragrance series also honours the heritage of fragrance across the globe. As L'Oreal expert Barbara Lavernos-Dupuis explains, "Perfumery is an important part of European heritage because of the important role perfume has played throughout history. Perfumery is considered a cultural treasure that reflects centuries of creativity, craftsmanship and artistry."
This fragrance line uses Green Sciences thinking to create scents that honour their original ingredients, using 100% natural and pure extracts. This results in fragrances that lean away from synthetic scents and truly champion the ingredients available to us in the natural world. It's a win for the planet, but also for consumers who crave authentic fragrances. Welcome to a new era of sustainable fragrance.
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