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Unilever bulks up on prestige with Dermalogica

Unilever continued its march into high end personal care market on Wednesday with the acquisition of Dermalogica, a Los Angeles-based skin care brand.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed. But with sales of $240m last year, Dermalogica will be no more than a bolt-on acquisition for Unilever, which had sales of €48.4bn last year.

The maker of Dove soap, Flora margarine and Persil washing powder has been looking inject more growth into its portfolio by increasing sales of personal care goods to two-thirds of the total, up from 37 per cent currently.

As part of this effort, the Anglo-Dutch company acquired REN Skincare, a niche brand that specialises in natural ingredients, earlier in April. It also struck a deal to buy independent prestige brand, Kate Somerville Skincare last month.

Founded in 1986, Dermalogica has grown to become the leading skincare brand used in professional salons and spas.

Paul Polman, Unilever CEO, said in a statement:

Dermalogica enjoys an outstanding reputation and incredible awareness among skin care professionals and consumers alike, and has a clear positioning as a superior skin health brand that perfectly complements the rest of our Prestige offering.