L'Oreal Hair Color

Company History

L'Oreal is a French company, based in Clichy, France. It is the world's leading cosmetics and beauty company, with 2004 sales of more than 14.5 billion Euros. The company was founded in 1909 with one product, a hair color called aureole, which it sold via hair dressers and salons. From that humble beginning, L'Oreal grew to encompass 50 different brands of hair color, makeup, fragrance, and skin care products. Today, the company is represented in 130 countries and employs over 2,000 research specialists.

L'Oreal Hair Color Product Line

L'Oreal hair color products include a variety of consumer and professional lines. Among the most popular are:

• L'Oreal Preference - L'Oreal's main consumer line, which includes dozens of shades. The biggest selling colors in the United States are "Light Ash Blonde", "Lightest Golden Brown", and "Extra Light Ash Blonde".
• L'Oreal Excellence Crème - A complementary line to L'Oreal Preference, these hair color products are designed to moisturize hair and are easy to apply. L'Oreal Excellence Creme also comes in a wide range of colors.
• Feria - A relatively new line for L'Oreal, Feria features a select number of dramatic, European-style hair color looks, from blazing red to deep, dramatic chocolate brown.
• Feria for Men - A similar line to "Feria", designed with the needs of men in mind. Like "Feria", the colors are dramatic and have a European flair.
• Garnier - Garnier is a wholly-owned, French-based, subsidiary of L'Oreal. Their hair color products include the Fructis line as well as the Garnier Nutrisse permanent color line. All of their products include a fruit concentrate mixed with vitamins B3 and B6. They claim the mixture improves hair's silkiness and shine.
• L'Oreal Professional Products - This line of L'Oreal hair color products is created specifically for hair professionals. The professional product line includes five brands of permanent hair color, four brands of semi-permanent hair color, lightening paste, powder lightener, and a variety of developers and color essentials. L'Oreal is the number one selling professional hair color, used by over one million colorists in 130 countries.

Where to Buy L'Oreal Hair Color

L'Oreal consumer products are available in a wide variety of outlets, including grocery stores, drugstores, variety stores such as Target, and from online retailers, such as Amazon.com. L'Oreal professional products are available from more than one million stylists worldwide.

L'Oreal hair color products are generally affordable, with most products available at under $10. L'Oreal also frequently offers coupons for $1-3 off their products in the Sunday newspaper supplements.

What's Next for L'Oreal

L'Oreal continues to develop more and better hair coloring products. With over 2,000 research specialists based in five facilities worldwide -- one in Clark, NJ, look for great things from L'Oreal hair color in the years to come.