French multinational beauty products company L’Oréal will invest more than US $80 million next year to expand production at its two factories in Mexico, creating 1,000 direct and indirect jobs.

The upgrades to its plants in San Luis Potosí and Mexico City will include sustainable technologies and automation to improve efficiency and reduce the environmental impact of production processes. 

“The Mexican market is really very attractive,” said Luis Miguel Moreno, director of corporate affairs for L’Oréal México. “We have been in Mexico for more than 63 years, and we believe we will continue to grow above the country’s economic growth.”

Mexico is one of L’Oréal’s top 10 markets, valued at nearly US $14 billion in 2024.

L’Oreal employs more than 2,800 people directly in Mexico, while generating an additional 15 jobs for each formal position via partnerships with salons and dermatologists, according to the consulting firm Asterès.

The synergistic effect is “distributed among suppliers of raw materials, packaging, distributors, beauty salons and other businesses related to its consumer ecosystem,” according to Asterès.

The city’s Economic Development Ministry (Sedeco) describes the L’Oréal plant in San Luis Potosí as a benchmark for industrial infrastructure, lauded as the largest hair color production plant in the world in terms of production capacity when it opened in December 2012. It runs on 100% renewable electricity.

Sedeco said the plant — featuring a total area of 178,700 square meters and built at a cost of US $100 million — has a capacity of 39 packaging lines and operates with renewable energy. 

The company’s Mexico City factory, located in the southernmost borough of Xochimilco, is notable for its use of recycled water. Its reduced water consumption — 25% savings, according to Sedeco — benefits the local community given the shortage of water in the community.

The San Luis Potosí factory exports 70 percent of output, primarily to the U.S., while the Xochimilco plant serves domestic demand and exports to Latin America.

Both plants are in keeping with the company’s global sustainability program, “L’Oréal for the Future.”

With reports from El Economista, Mexico Now and Personal Care Insights