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Why L’Oréal Is Investing in Niche Chinese Fragrance Brands

The French beauty giant’s two latest deals are part of a wider M&A push by global players to capture a larger slice of the China market, targeting buzzy high-end brands that offer products with distinctive Chinese elements.
To Summer is a luxury fragrance maker founded in 2018 by Li Shen and Liu Huipu that secured investment from L’Oréal Groupe's China-focused corporate venture fund Shanghai Meicifang Investment Co.
To Summer is a luxury fragrance maker founded in 2018 by Li Shen and Liu Huipu that secured investment from L’Oréal Group's China-focused corporate venture fund Shanghai Meicifang Investment Co. (To Summer)
By
BoF PROFESSIONAL

When Li Shen and Liu Huipu launched luxury fragrance maker To Summer six years ago, the tastes of the Chinese market tilted decidedly towards sweet, fruity and floral options. But the company, which now operates 11 mono-brand stores across the mainland, found a different route to success offering perfumes like Triple Tea and Cedarwood. This month L’Oréal Group announced that its corporate venture arm would take a minority stake in the company for an undisclosed amount. The deal follows the French beauty giant’s 2022 investment in Documents, another Chinese perfume maker.

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About the author
Tiffany Ap

Tiffany Ap is Senior Correspondent at The Business of Fashion. She is based in New York and covers marketing and the critical China market.

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