L'Oréal has announced the acquisition of ModiFace, a Canadian supplier of augmented reality and artificial intelligence solutions to the beauty industry.
Founded 11 years ago in Toronto, ModiFace enables 3D virtual make-up and colour and skin diagnosis services, using proprietary know-how which track facial features and colour. The company employs nearly 70 engineers, researchers and scientists.
Digital Acceleration
The acquisition forms part of L'Oréal's digital acceleration strategy, through which it intends to boost its customer experience levels.
"We are thrilled to welcome ModiFace to L'Oréal to become the heart of our digital services R&D," commented Lubomira Rochet, chief digital officer at L'Oréal.
"With its world-class team, technologies and sustained track record in terms of beauty tech innovations, ModiFace will support the reinvention of the beauty experience around innovative services to help our customers discover, try and chose products and brands."
Rocket added that with the acquisition, L'Oréal is looking to "pioneer [a] new page of the beauty industry and serve our customers with innovative services and experiences."
Digital Services Factory
ModiFace will be part of L'Oréal's Digital Services Factory, a dedicated network to design and develop new digital services for the group's brands.
Parham Aarabi, founder and CEO of ModiFace, added, "L'Oréal's acquisition of ModiFace provides an incredible opportunity to innovate on beauty augmented reality (AR) and artifical intelligence (AI) at an unprecedented scale, the results of which will shape the beauty industry for the decades to come."
ModiFace will remain based in Toronto.
© 2018 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Stephen Wynne-Jones. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine
