Rahquel Purcell Named Chief Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Officer of L’Oréal, North America

Rahquel Purcell Named Chief Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Officer of L’Oréal, North America

Wed, August 5, 2026 at 11:01 PM GMT+3 2 min read

L'Oréal has appointed a new chief diversity, equity and inclusion officer for its North America division.

Rahquel Purcell will assume the role right away and report directly to Alexis Perakis-Valat, chief executive officer of L'Oréal USA and president of L'Oréal North America. The executive will keep her post on the leadership team of Margaret Johnston-Clarke, L'Oréal's global diversity, equity and inclusion officer, as well as her seat on the management committee of L'Oréal USA.

More from WWD

In a statement, Perakis-Valat said: "I am confident that Rahquel's operational expertise, business acumen and transformational leadership will help us continue to foster an innovative and inclusive culture for our teams and accelerate our progress in this high-priority area for our company."

Purcell has spent more than a decade of her career at L'Oréal in a number of high-level positions, including vice president of operations and chief operations officer. She joined the company in 2016 as vice president of supply chain, North America, and most recently, she inaugurated the role of chief transformation officer. Under this title, she strategized and delivered a portfolio of "enterprise-wide transformation initiatives," while building her own team of experts.

"I'm honored to bring my experience leading operations, supply chain and transformation to help advance the L'Oréal culture and to connect strategy, people and execution to harness the value of difference and drive business growth," Purcell said. "We have phenomenal products, leading innovation capabilities and best-in-class consumer insights, and I'm eager to partner with our brands and leverage these core assets to create authentic connections with diverse consumers and communities."

Purcell succeeds Liliahn Majeed, who, after three years, has decided to pursue career opportunities outside of the company, according to L'Oréal.

Best of WWD

Sign up for WWD's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.