L’Oréal USA Announces COVID-19 Initiative

L’Oréal USA announced its multi-faceted initiative to support Americans during the COVID-19 outbreak and recovery, and the five-part response includes help for small hair salons.

The company’s brands include the L’Oréal Professional Products Division: Matrix, Redken, L’Oréal Professionnel, SalonCentric, Biolage, Mizani, Pulp Riot, Pureology, Kérastase, Baxter of California and Shu Uemura Art of Hair. The company also owns a Consumer Products Division and L’Oréal Luxe Division, including brands like essie, IT Cosmetics, Kiehl’s and Lancôme.

The U.S. initiative will be implemented immediately and includes the following measures:

• Relief for small businesses: L’Oréal USA will freeze the payments of very small and small-sized enterprises in its distribution network, including hair salons, until their businesses resume. Additionally, L’Oréal USA will shorten its payment times for small suppliers who have been most exposed to this economic crisis.

• Corporate donation and employee match campaign to Feeding America: L’Oréal USA will donate $250,000 to the U.S. hunger relief organization Feeding America to provide emergency support for their COVID-19 Response Fund and help relieve food-insecure families across America. This is part of a company-wide giving campaign in which L’Oréal USA will match additional employee donations dollar for dollar up to $25,000.

• L’Oréal’s North American manufacturing facilities to begin production of alcohol-based hand sanitizer: L’Oréal’s production facilities will begin producing alcohol-based hand sanitizer this week to be provided free of charge to U.S. employees, partners, and healthcare professionals working on the frontlines of this emergency.

• Donating high-need personal care and hygiene products to Feed the Children: L’Oréal USA will make a donation of personal care products valued at more than $1 million, including cleansers and moisturizers, to the non-profit organization Feed the Children as part of its community-based emergency response to COVID-19.

• Donating surgical and N95 respirator masks to local hospitals: L’Oréal USA will donate protective masks from its operations facilities in North Little Rock, Arkansas, and Franklin, New Jersey, to local hospital systems in each surrounding community.

“I know I speak for all of my colleagues when I say that we at L’Oréal USA feel a deep responsibility to do our part to help address this crisis in the many communities in which we live and work,” said Stéphane Rinderknech, President and CEO of L’Oréal USA, and Executive Vice President, North America. “We stand in solidarity with the brave people who are tirelessly and selflessly working to end this pandemic, and it is our hope that, through these actions, we are able to provide some relief during this challenging time.”  

The U.S. commmittments are made in addition to L’Oréal’s Europe-wide Coronavirus Solidarity Program. L’Oréal Group last week began using its manufacturing facilities in Europe to make hand sanitizer and hydroalcoholic gel for French and European health authorities. The company also froze payments for European hair salons in L’Oréal distribution networks until business resumes. In addition, the L’Oréal Foundation is donating 1 million euros to its partner nonprofit organizations to help combat the virus and help withstand the consequences of the pandemic. Click here to read the rest of the Coronavirus Solidarity Program.

Click here for more info on SalonCentric’s COVID-19 response.