BeautyRival – “Sustainability is a team sport,” said Ezgi Barcenas, Chief Corporate Responsibility Officer at L’Oréal, reflecting on her vision for the company’s future just days before Climate Week NYC. Since stepping into the role in March 2024, Barcenas has been shaping a strategy that blends science, innovation, and collaboration to tackle one of the world’s most pressing challenges.
Engineering Mindset in a Beauty Giant
With her background as an engineer and a family history rooted in science, Barcenas views sustainability as a design challenge. To her, every decision — from product development to market operations — requires careful thought about long-term impact. “How do we design products, processes, and systems that truly create a better world? That question has guided my entire career,” she explained.
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Four Pillars of L’Oréal for the Future
Barcenas leads L’Oréal for the Future, the company’s sustainability framework built on four main pillars:
- Leading the climate transition
- Safeguarding nature
- Driving circularity
- Supporting communities
Each pillar contains ambitious goals, from reducing emissions to supporting global communities. For example, the company is piloting water-saving solutions like the L’Oréal Water Saver, developed with Gjosa, to address challenges in regions facing high water stress.
Innovation and Partnerships at the Core
L’Oréal invests heavily in research, with 4,000 scientists worldwide, but Barcenas emphasizes that partnerships are essential. In 2024, she launched the Sustainable Innovation Accelerator, backed by €100 million over five years, to support breakthrough technologies. “We openly share our challenges with the market,” she said. “It helps us spark innovation ecosystems and find partners who can co-create solutions.”
The company’s collaborations include a major funding round with Abolis Biotechnologies and Evonik, focused on developing sustainable ingredients for beauty products. These partnerships reflect her belief that scale — not just innovation — creates transformative change.
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Balancing Growth with Responsibility
Financially, L’Oréal continues to grow steadily. Net profit rose 16 percent in the first half of 2025, while revenues climbed over 10 percent. Yet Barcenas insists growth must align with environmental responsibility. “We aim for gentle, sustainable growth. It’s about creating resilience for both the business and the communities we serve.”
Tackling Carbon and Circularity
One of the toughest challenges lies in reducing scope 3 emissions across the supply chain. To address this, L’Oréal launched Solstice, a €50 million debt fund with Chenavari Investment, designed to help suppliers decarbonize operations. Meanwhile, the Fund for Nature Regeneration, introduced in 2020, continues to support projects that combine ecological performance with financial viability.
On the circularity front, the company is pushing boundaries in recycled materials and sustainable packaging. Transparency has also become a cornerstone, as seen in L’Oréal’s adoption of the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) in 2024, which aligns sustainability reporting with the rigor of financial data.
A Human-Centered Culture
At the heart of L’Oréal’s success is its people. Nearly 68 percent of its workforce are women, many artisans based in Umbria, Italy. The company fosters balance with structured work hours and a culture that values family life. It also invests in education through the Brunello Cucinelli-inspired school in Solomeo, where traditional Italian craftsmanship is passed to future generations.
A Long-Term Commitment
Barcenas sees sustainability not as a side initiative but as a thread woven through every aspect of L’Oréal. “We’re encouraged to buy less but buy better,” she noted, emphasizing durability and responsibility over fast consumption.
Looking ahead, she believes collaboration, innovation, and shared values will carry L’Oréal toward its ambitious net-zero goals for 2050. “There’s a shared sense of commitment here,” she said. “Those convictions are not just the foundation of our legacy — they are the drivers of our future.”
