L’Oréal has invested in Swiss longevity skin care brand Timeline.
The biotech company raised CHF 56M (US$66m) in an “oversubscribed” series D funding round, with investments from both L’Oréal and Nestlé.
This was led by L’Oréal’s corporate venture capital fund, BOLD (Business Opportunities for L’Oréal Development).
"This strategic collaboration reflects the breakthrough multidimensional approach that we've always believed is necessary to make meaningful advancements for longevity and healthspan,” said Patrick Aebischer, co-founder and chairman of Timeline.
L’Oréal said the funds will support Timeline’s business growth, helping to expand its science division and enter into new markets across the food, beauty and health sectors.
“Longevity is about living healthier for longer and L’Oréal has been working for a decade to understand and anticipate what this could mean for beauty,” said Barbara Lavernos, Deputy CEO and in charge of Research, Innovation and Technology at L’Oréal.
“Longevity is a new definition of beauty, at the intersection of different scientific disciplines, from decoding biological markers to analysing external exposure.”
L’Oréal has been upping its investments into technology and biotech companies in recent months.
In December 2023, the brand owner acquired probiotic and microbiome research firm Lactobio for an undisclosed sum.
The French beauty giant bought the Copenhagen firm to “strengthen” and “accelerate” its microbiome research, which it has been conducting for the past 20 years.
It also acquired the outstanding shares of water tech startup Gjosa in January 2024.
L’Oréal said the investment aimed to scale the Switzerland-based company’s water-saving solutions for use in the beauty industry.
It added that the move also reinforced its environmental goals and aims to improve the business’ water management systems and technology.
