In 1974 the family that controlled L'Oreal, a French cosmetics firm, invited Nestle, a Swiss food company, to take an indirect holding in the firm. The Bettencourts feared that Francois Mitterrand, presidential candidate for France's Socialist Party at the time, might otherwise nationalise the firm if he was elected. This defensive move proved to be unnecessary. But as a result, 35 years on, the Swiss food giant may now be poised to seize control of L'Oreal, the world's biggest cosmetics firm and one of France's best-known companies.
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