f advanced digital tools across L’Oréal’s sprawling portfolio of brands. From market to platform  India is already one of L’Oréal’s most strategically important growth markets for sales and capability building. While China and the US continue to lead headline growth, the group has highlighted sustained momentum across South Asia, the Middle East and North Africa.  The Hyderabad hub suggests L’Oréal now sees India less as a downstream consumer market and more as an upstream innovation platform. This is where data engineers, AI researchers and product teams can work at scale on tools that are then deployed globally.  The strategic pivot comes as growth becomes harder won in a slowing global beauty market. For the first nine months of last year, L’Oréal reported sales of €32.8 billion, up 1.2 per cent year on year and 3.4 per cent on a like-for-like basis.  AI moves into the core Christian Westphal, co-founder of SilverSpoon Consultancy, described the investment as a clear marker of where beauty is heading. “AI is moving into the core of the business, shaping how brands build, launch, and scale,” he said. “Experience isn’t everything, but it matters. The next step-change comes from personalization that feels natural, not creepy or random, and from an omnichannel experience that stays consistent across app, store, service, and re-purchase.” That consistency is increasingly difficult to achieve. As beauty brands juggle direct-to-consumer platforms, third-party marketplaces and physical retail, consumer data is often fragmented across channels and systems. AI offers a way to unify those touchpoints into a single operating view, enabling more relevant recommendations, smoother journeys and tighter feedback loops. Done well, this can lift conversion rates, reduce friction, and deepen loyalty. Done poorly, it risks undermining trust at a time when consumers are more sensitive to how their data is used. “The operational upside is just as real. Better forecasting and inventory planning mean less overproduction, fewer markdowns, and less waste tied up in stock. Beauty will still be won on product, brand, and desire. AI just changes the precision, consistency and experience required to compete,” Westphal said.  Geopolitics and economics align L’Oreal investment also lands amid warming economic ties between India and France. Bilateral trade reached around $15 billion in 2024, and Narendra Modi and Emmanuel Macron have made closer cooperation a diplomatic priority. Both governments have been working to modernize their bilateral tax treaty since 2024, adapting it to global transparency standards, according to Reuters. As growth in mature markets becomes more volatile and China’s recovery remains uneven, companies are diversifying both their demand and capability footprints. India, with its scale, digital maturity and improving infrastructure, offers a rare combination of growth and leverage. Further reading: L’Oréal’s China recovery tells a bigger story about a market in flux.