L'Occitane en Provence, "the Occitan woman (in Provence)," commonly known as L'Occitane, is a French luxury retailer of body, face, hair, fragrances, and home products based in Manosque, France. Founded in 1976 by Olivier Baussan, with the purpose to create a company that celebrates and preserves the traditions of his native Provence. In 2010, the company became listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. History In 1976, 23-year-old Olivier Baussan used steam distillation to produce essential oil from wild rosemary and lavender which he sold at open-air markets in his native Provence. L'Occitane was named for the women of Occitania. This area existed during the Middle Ages, spanning southern France, north-eastern Spain and northern Italy. Occitan was the native language and is still spoken as a second language in some areas of this region. In 1976, using an old soap factory that was donated to him, Olivier Baussan revived the traditional art of Marseille soap-making in Manosque, another Provençal village. He manufactured vegetable-based soaps. The first L'Occitane factory and boutique opened in 1981 in Volx, a village in Provence. In the 1990s, Baussan sold a majority stake in the business to venture capitalists to finance expansion. As their approaches were incompatible, Baussan found himself excluded from daily management and strategic decision-making. In 1994, Austrian businessman Reinold Geiger bought a 33% stake in the group. Through a series of capital increases, Geiger became majority shareholder in 1996. Geiger, as the new chairman, asked Baussan to return as creative director and lead product development. The company's new focus on marketing strategy paved the way for international expansion. In the late 1990s the company changed its name to 'L'Occitane en Provence', to strengthen the connection with the company's roots and because the term 'Provence' had more meaning to an international audience. On 20 April 2001, Clarins became a financial investor in the company through subscription to approximately 5.18% of the company's shares and €11,433,750 convertible debenture loan. On 22 February 2005, Clarins further invested €16,525,580 in convertible debentures. When the debentures were converted, Clarins held 23.33% of the shares. The management executed a leveraged buyout in May 2007 following which Reinold Geiger's stake rose from 31.9% to 48.7%, and Clarins' stake was diluted to 10.0%. L'Occitane has shops in over 90 countries, in North America, South America, Europe, Asia, Australia and Africa; with 170 shops in the United States. At the launch of