Who owns Urban Decay?
Urban Decay is owned by L'Oréal (France, EPA: OR), which has owned the brand since 2012.[1]
This ownership is reported in official statements but has not yet been matched to a regulatory filing.
Evidence: L'Oréal Universal Registration Document 2025, L'Oréal S.A, 1 March 2026. Last checked .
Key facts
- Current owner
- L'Oréal S.A. reported
- Owned since
- Owner HQ
- 🇫🇷 France, Clichy
- Origin
- 🇺🇸 United States
- Founded
- 1996
- Category
- Personal care & beauty › Cosmetics & fragrance › Makeup
- Parent ticker
- EPA: OR
- Trademark registrant
- L'OREAL USA S/D, INC. (USPTO)
- Last verified
- · 2 sources
About Urban Decay
Urban Decay was founded in California in 1996 to sell colours the cosmetics industry then ignored, launching with shades named Roach and Bruise as a deliberate rejection of the pinks and reds that dominated counters. L'Oréal acquired it in 2012, and its Naked eyeshadow palettes became among the best-selling in the category.
Trademark record for Urban Decay
The USPTO record for the Urban Decay mark lists L'OREAL USA S/D, INC. as the owner of record (serial number 77696574). A trademark is often held by a group company rather than the listed parent, so the registrant's name can differ from the owner named above.[2]
Ownership timeline of Urban Decay
Where Urban Decay sits in L'Oréal
Controlling ownership as of . Brands grouped under the entity that owns them; large groups are collapsed.
Open the full L'Oréal ownership tree →
See the full L'Oréal brand portfolio (21) →
Other brands owned by L'Oréal
L'Oréal controls 21 brands on Brandtree, 21 of them in personal care & beauty.
Also in personal care & beauty
- Aesop (1987)
- CeraVe (2005)
- Creed (1760)
- Essie (1981)
- Garnier (1904)
- Kérastase (1964)
- Kiehl's (1851)
- L'Oréal Paris (1909)
- La Roche-Posay (1975)
- Lancôme (1935)
- Matrix (1980)
- Maybelline (1915)
- Mixa (1924)
- NYX Professional Makeup (1999)
- Redken (1960)
- shu uemura (1983)
- SkinCeuticals (1997)
- Thayers (1847)
Other brands in makeup, and who owns them
L'Oréal has more brands in makeup on Brandtree than any other owner: 5 of 43.
| Brand | Owner | Owner based in |
|---|---|---|
| ADDICTION | KOSÉ | 🇯🇵 Japan |
| CoverGirl | Coty | 🇺🇸 United States |
| Bobbi Brown | Estée Lauder | 🇺🇸 United States |
| Eudora | Grupo Boticário | 🇧🇷 Brazil |
| Flower Knows | Proya | 🇨🇳 China |
| Little Ondine | Yatsen | 🇨🇳 China |
| AGE20'S | Aekyung | 🇰🇷 South Korea |
| PIXY | Mandom | 🇯🇵 Japan |
About the owner: L'Oréal
L'Oréal is a publicly listed company headquartered in Clichy, France, founded in 1909. Brandtree records 21 brands under its control, and it is listed as EPA: OR.
L'Oréal was founded in 1909 by chemist Eugène Schueller, who had developed a hair dye. It is the largest cosmetics company in the world and is organised into consumer products, luxe, dermatological beauty and professional products. The Bettencourt Meyers family and Nestlé are its two largest shareholders.
🇺🇸 Urban Decay and other American brands
Brandtree records a controlling owner for 2,549 brands that began in the United States. 478 of them (19%) are now controlled by a company headquartered in another country, Urban Decay among them.
Frequently asked questions
Who is the parent company of Urban Decay?
The parent company of Urban Decay is L'Oréal, a publicly listed company headquartered in France.
Is Urban Decay American or French?
Urban Decay originated in the United States in 1996, but it is owned today by L'Oréal, which is headquartered in France. So Urban Decay is an American-origin brand under French ownership.
Since when has L'Oréal owned Urban Decay?
L'Oréal has owned Urban Decay since 2012.
Is Urban Decay still owned by L'Oréal?
Yes. As of 28 September 2026, Urban Decay is still owned by L'Oréal. The ownership record was last checked against primary sources on that date.
Sources (2) & corrections
Last verified . Every ownership fact above is backed by one of these primary documents. Numbers in brackets in the text refer to this list.
- [1] L'Oréal Universal Registration Document 2025 — L'Oréal S.A., Annual report, published 1 March 2026; retrieved 16 September 2026.
- [2] USPTO: URBAN DECAY, serial 77696574 — United States Patent and Trademark Office, Trademark registry; retrieved 28 September 2026.
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