Which family is L’Oréal’s largest shareholder, descended from founder Eugène Schueller?

The Bettencourt Meyers family is L’Oréal’s largest shareholder, descended from founder Eugène Schueller.

Eugène Schueller founded the company that became L’Oréal in 1909 after developing a hair-colouring formula for professional use. His business grew from laboratory-based beauty products into the world’s largest cosmetics company by revenue.

Schueller’s daughter, Liliane Bettencourt, inherited the family stake and became one of France’s wealthiest people. Her daughter, Françoise Bettencourt Meyers, later became the family’s leading representative and chairwoman of the family holding company, Téthys.

The Bettencourt Meyers family does not own all of L’Oréal. Nestlé is another major shareholder, while the remainder of the company is publicly traded. This distinction matters because L’Oréal is a listed corporation with a powerful founding-family stake, rather than a wholly private family company. L’Oréal’s portfolio includes brands such as Lancôme, Maybelline New York and La Roche-Posay.