On Thursday that business, now an empire, a top French brand and a leader in the world of cosmetics under the name of L'Oreal, celebrates 100 years of satisfying vanity and riding the long rise of spending on body care products.

Since the early years when Schueller invented new recipes by night and delivered to hairdressers by bicycle by day, L'Oreal has survived through the Great Depression, two world wars and the growth of competition in ever-more prosperous economies.

However, Schueller attracted controversy for having extreme right-wing connections before and after the occupation of France in World War II.