The toothpaste is transferred from Henkel to Katjes International.
(Photo: © Year Henkel AG & Co. KGaA)
If you eat sweets, you also need toothpaste. In any case, the confectionery specialist Katjes International sees growth opportunities in dental care and has now acquired the Henkel Oral Care business, including all trademark rights. The company from Emmerich am Rhein announced this on Wednesday evening.
Dental care brands include Theramed, organic toothpaste Vademecum and Licor del Polo, and Antica Erboristeria, herbal oral and hair care. These brands achieved net sales of over 50 million euros in the past financial year. The business is profitable, emphasized Katjes International. The takeover will be financed by an acquisition loan and current cash flow.
Henkel is in the process of massively restructuring its consumer goods division. The group therefore wants to part with badly performing brands worth around 200 million euros in sales in the cosmetics business alone by the end of the year or discontinue them altogether.
Theramed and Vademecum are not the first personal care brands to be acquired by Katjes International, sister company of confectionery manufacturer Katjes Fassin. Bübchen was taken over two years ago, according to its own statements the German market leader for baby and child care. At that time, the manufacturer from Soest had a turnover of around 50 million euros and was profitable.
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“Following the successful Bübchen acquisition of Nestlé/Galderma in 2020, we are pleased to be able to acquire other strong brands in this area from a large and reliable partner like Henkel,” said Tobias Bachmüller, Managing Partner of Katjes International.
Bübchen cream, treets and sage candies
Katjes International regularly purchases locally well-known consumer goods brands in Europe. In August, the insolvent panettone manufacturer Paluani was swallowed up from Italy. The turnover of the specialist for seasonal baked goods was around 40 million euros in 2021. “With our profitability in mind, we want to continue to grow – both through acquisitions and organically,” the managing directors once described their strategy.
>> Read here: Katjes founder Klaus Fassin died at the age of 89
For 2022, Katjes International expects sales of between 260 and 280 million euros and a return on sales of eight to nine percent. However, the consolidated operating result in the first half of the year was minus 3.5 million euros, which the company justified, among other things, with the effects of an acquisition.
Katjes International belongs to the Katjes Group together with the legally independent sister companies Katjes Fassin and Katjes Greenfood. Katjes Fassin, founded by Klaus Fassin in 1950, produces the well-known liquorice and fruit gums, which have been vegetarian since 2016. Katjes Greenfood invests in innovative food start-ups.
Katjes International has seven subsidiaries: In Germany, these are chocolate and praline manufacturers Treets Piasten and Dallmann’s Pharma. Bübchen also belongs to the manufacturer of sage candies, which also sells cough drops Wick. Bübchen, in turn, was responsible for taking over the toothpaste brands from Henkel.
Katjes International also owns the Italian confectionery manufacturer Sperlari and Dulcioliva, as well as Harlekijntjes, the Dutch market leader in liquorice. In addition, Katjes International has a stake in the British fruit gum manufacturer Candy Kittens and the French confectionery manufacturer Carambar.
More: How Katjes improves the climate balance with vegetarian fruit gums