L'Oreal Says Consumer Needs Drive Technology Efforts

L'Oreal ensures that its innovation efforts in fields, such as wearable technology and product personalization, are focused on actual consumer needs and are not just driven by new technologies, according to Guive Balooch, global VP of the company's Technology Incubator unit. Speaking at the South by Southwest in Austin, Texas, Balooch said his company has always wanted to use technology in creating “platforms and things that we felt were based on real consumer needs that could go multi-brands later.” For example, the company created My UV Patch, a wearable sensor that lets consumers monitor their exposure to ultraviolet radiation using their smartphones.