Givaudan boosts botanical cosmetic ingredients segment with Indena cosmetic branch acquisition

28 Nov 2019 --- Givaudan’s Active Beauty division is set to acquire the cosmetics business of Indena. The move is part of Givaudan’s 2020 strategy to globally expand its capabilities in botanical active cosmetic ingredients. Givaudan and Indena are to sign a long term partnership agreement under which Indena will continue to manufacture ingredients for Givaudan, as well as provide innovation capabilities and other supporting services. This partnership will allow both companies to focus on their respective core competencies to cater to the needs of their customers and consumers. The transaction is expected to close in Q1 2020.

“Natural ingredients, including botanicals, are currently the global megatrend. Besides growing organically in this space, we will further profit from value-creating acquisitions going forward,” Peter Wullschleger, Givaudan Media and Investor Relations, tells NutritionInsight.

Wullschleger adds that the companies will not be disclosing the financial terms of the transaction, nor financial targets. However, Givaudan plans to fund the transaction from existing resources. Indena’s cosmetic ingredients business would have represented approximately €8 million of incremental sales to Givaudan’s results in 2018 on a proforma basis. 

“The acquisition fits very well with our long term strategy for Givaudan Active Beauty. Indena has an excellent reputation in the market, thanks to the quality of its ingredients, its strong focus on innovation, as well as the mastering of its supply chain. It offers Active Beauty an expanded portfolio of plant-based ingredients that nicely complement our current portfolio. The acquisition will further enhance our position in the active cosmetic ingredients industry,” says Maurizio Volpi, President of Givaudan’s Fragrance Division.

 The acquisition offers Active Beauty an expanded portfolio of plant-based ingredients, says Maurizio Volpi, President of Givaudan’s Fragrance Division.The use of active ingredients derived from botanicals in cosmetic applications is seeing exponential growth. This follows consumer demands for naturality and clean beauty – a derivative of the clean label trend. During last week’s in-cosmetics Formulation Summit in London, UK, NutritionInsight caught up with cosmetic industry experts who identified planet-friendly, clean ingredients as a core of consumer demand. According to Amit Tewari, Group Leader, Phytochemical Ingredient Science at L’Oréal Research and Innovation, the biggest consumer trend to anticipate in skincare is a further move toward the natural, with a back-to-basics approach. 

“Indena’s cosmetics business will add high quality new active ingredients to our current portfolio of products. Their four strategic pillars – botanical expertise, research, scale-up, quality safety and efficacy – fit perfectly with Givaudan Active Beauty’s future ambitions as well as with our sustainability approach ‘A Sense of Tomorrow.’ It is exciting to add such expertise to our existing capabilities and they will greatly contribute to our 2020 strategic ambitions and beyond,” notes  Laurent Bourdeau, Head of Givaudan’s Active Beauty Business.

Headquartered in Milan, Italy, Indena is a global player dedicated to the identification, development and production of high-quality active ingredients derived from plants, for use in the pharmaceutical, health food and personal care industries. With almost a century of botanical experience, Indena has developed an extensive breadth of expertise in the field, while ensuring biodiversity and protecting the ecosystem from uncontrolled harvesting.

“This transaction enables Indena to focus on its core markets of pharmaceuticals and health food, whilst continuing to support the cosmetic ingredients business which has been a valuable part of our portfolio. We believe that Givaudan with its very long history and tradition in innovating taste and scent, coupled with its strong commercial presence, is the right partner to further strengthen this business in the future,” says Daniele Giavini, Managing Director of Indena.

Givaudan Active Beauty has had a prolific 2019, with a slew of new releases and innovation. Most notably, the company recently unveiled the “world’s first” instant microbiome analysis and profiling system, coined i-MAPS. The scientific breakthrough boasts improved speed and personalization capabilities. 

By Kristiana Lalou