A look inside L'Oral's New York office, where employees can try products before they're on the mar

Posted by Jenniffer Sheldon on Tuesday, May 7, 2024
Updated

When L'Oréal decided to move its US headquarters, the $102.9 billion company knew that it wanted its new offices to exude a "startup" vibe. The brand had outgrown the Midtown offices it had inhabited for 60 years, and Hudson Yards, the mega-development on Manhattan's West Side, seemed like the ideal place for a fresh start.

"L'Oréal is a 108-year-old company with the spirit of a startup. We have never stopped reinventing and transforming ourselves, and to us, Hudson Yards represents the reinvention of Manhattan," Frédéric Rozé, president and CEO of L'Oréal USA, said in a press release.

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Aside from the 360-degree view of the city, the new location has some major perks, including an in-house nail salon, a consumer beauty lab, a cafeteria that takes up an entire floor, and an outdoor terrace that employees are welcome to work on when the weather permits.

Ahead, take a tour of the company's chic new space.

The new L'Oréal office takes up 10 floors and 418,000 square feet at 10 Hudson Yards.

Garrett Rowland/Courtesy of Gensler

Here, product development, marketing strategy, and merchandising is done for L'Oréal brands like Maybelline, Essie, Urban Decay, Lancome, and SkinCeuticals.

Garrett Rowland/Courtesy of Gensler

The new office catered to a trending wish among much of today's workforce: more informal meeting spaces.

Garrett Rowland/Courtesy of Gensler

Living room-inspired libraries like this one are located on every floor, with a total of 12,740 square feet of meeting space throughout the entire office.

Garrett Rowland/Courtesy of Gensler

The stylish furnishings come from a list of vendors that includes Design Within Reach, ABC Carpet and Home, and Bernhardt Design.

Garrett Rowland/Courtesy of Gensler

The space was designed by Gensler, the firm that also worked on Etsy and Condé Nast's new offices.

Garrett Rowland/Courtesy of Gensler

Click here to tour Etsy's New York office »

Aside from the ample collaborative space and natural light, perks include an in-office store that's stocked with products from more than 30 brands under the L'Oréal umbrella. Employees can receive up to 50% off products in the store.

Garrett Rowland/Courtesy of Gensler

There's also a "Consumer Beauty Lab" on the premises. It has vanities and hair-washing stations where products are tested before they hit the market.

Photo courtesy of L'Oréal

There's also an employee nail salon that gives employees a chance to try Essie's new nail polish colors.

For breakfast or lunch, employees can head down to the café, which takes up an entire floor.

Garrett Rowland/Courtesy of Gensler

It comes complete with a juice bar, hot food bar, and a view of the Hudson River.

Garrett Rowland/Courtesy of Gensler

Stylish white "Quo" chairs in the cafeteria can easily be stacked to accommodate groups of different sizes.

Garrett Rowland/Courtesy of Gensler

There are also more formal dining rooms that can be used for hosting executives, customers, or partners.

Garrett Rowland/Courtesy of Gensler

When employees need some fresh air, they can step out onto the 4,000-square-foot terrace.

Garrett Rowland/Courtesy of Gensler

"Our goal was to design a modern space from the ground up that would allow us to provide ... state-of-the-art technology and infrastructure to meet both our current and future needs as we continue to grow our business," Rozé said.

Garrett Rowland/Courtesy of Gensler

These new technologies include a virtual reality room that was built to save time for the merchandising team. The room, which is meant to simulate a real store, gives team members and retail partners a way to understand how customers might be interacting with products. This cuts time when it comes to designing new displays and designs within stores.

Photo courtesy of L'Oreal

The new space accommodates 1,400 US employees in an open floor plan. L'Oréal also has workers in offices and distribution facilities across 13 other states.

Garrett Rowland/Courtesy of Gensler

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