Colgate-Palmolive Co is to buy the skin care unit of France's Laboratoires Filorga Cosmétiques for €1.5 billion, as the consumer goods company bolsters its personal care business.
Filorga's anti-aging skin care products are sold in over 60 countries, with its largest markets being France, Italy, Spain and Greater China.
'Distinctive Positioning'
“Filorga is a strong, premium-priced brand with distinctive positioning that fits well within our long-term personal care growth strategy," commented Noel Wallace, Colgate’s president and CEO.
"We are excited that this acquisition will add a high-growth, profitable, global skin care asset to the Colgate portfolio with the opportunity to drive continued growth through expanded distribution and awareness. This acquisition also provides Colgate entry into the fast-growing and sizeable travel retail channel, particularly in Asia.”
Colgate, which is known for its dental-care products, is looking to expand its presence in the high-margin personal care business and had acquired skin-care brands PCA Skin and EltaMD in 2017.
The Filorga transaction will be financed with a combination of debt and cash and is currently expected to close in the third quarter, Colgate said, adding that the deal is expected to have no impact on its diluted earnings per share in 2019.
Citi was Colgate's financial adviser, while Goldman Sachs and BNP Paribas advised Filorga.
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