Corporate Sales

$9 billion

Beauty/Personal Care Sales

$7 billion

Key Personnel

Vincent Warnery, CEO; Executive Board Members: Oswald Barckhahn, Europe, USA/Canada; Grita Loebsack, Nivea; Ramon A. Mirt, emerging markets. Executive Committee: Harald Emberger, corporate senior vice president, supply chain and quality management; Dr. Gitta Neufang, corporate senior vice president, research and development. Jean-Francois Pascal, vice president corporate sustainability; Eva Bredehorst, global packaging sustainability manager; Julia Wiedemann, global category manager specialist in packaging development, Hannah Rasel, senior packaging specialist in packaging development.

Major Products/Brands

Nivea, Eucerin, La Prairie, Labello, Florena, 8x4, Atrix, Aquaphor, Hidrofugal, Gammon, SlekMaestro, Coppertone.

New Products

Eucerin Dermopure Triple Effect Serum, Nivea MagicBars, Nivea Men Sensitive-Pro Ultra-Calming facial skin care, Nivea EcoRefill hand soap, OWN (Only What’s Needed) facial skincare, Hydra Skin Effect, Cellular Luminous630 Anti-Dark Spot Night Cream, Anti-Dark Circles eye treatment, Labello Naturally Vegan, La Prairie Platinum Rare Haute-Rejuvenation Protocol, Coppertone Sport Mineral sunscreen spray, Pure & Simple sunscreen spray.

Financial Summary

Beiersdorf’s overall group sales climbed 8.6% in fiscal 2021, with its skincare-led consumer business segment posting a sales increase of 7.5%, which the company largely attributed to e-commerce.

Regionally, the highest consumer business growth rates were seen in Latin America (18.8%) and North America (13.0%), followed by markets in Africa, Asia and Australia, where demand increased by a total of 8.9%. However, there was also buoyant sales growth in Eastern Europe (6.3%) and Western Europe (5.7%).

The company’s core brand, Nivea, recorded organic sales growth of 5.5% in 2021, driven by the successful performance of the Nivea Luminous630 product range. Demand for La Prairie increased by 20.1%, driven by a recovery in travel retail business, which was hit hardest by the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020. In particular in China, La Prairie sales rose above average and were far above the pre-crisis level of 2019 by the end of the fiscal year.

The Derma business unit, comprised of brands like Eucerin and Aquaphor, also performed well with a +19.5% increase in fiscal 2021. Main growth drivers were the strategically important markets of the United States, Germany, Latin America and China.

2021-2022 Highlights

At the end of 2020, Beiersdorf announced its partnership with Sabic, a supplier of renewable plastic, and the joint goal to launch more sustainable cosmetic packaging.

Four months into 2021, the company unveiled Nivea Naturally Good, an eight-product face care range, housed in certified renewable PP from Sabic’s Trucircle portfolio derived from “second generation feedstock that eschews crude oil in favor of tall oil, a byproduct of the forestry industry.”

The company said that converting the packaging to renewable plastic not only conserves fossil resources, but also reduces CO2 emissions;  approximately 76g of CO2e are saved per jar produced, a reduction of around 60% compared to the fossil-based jar. Beiersdorf touted the project’s contribution to its climate target of reducing its greenhouse gas emissions by 30% absolutely across the entire value chain by 2025.

“Any remaining emissions that cannot be avoided or further reduced during the manufacturing of the product are–for the first time–climate-neutralized via carbon offsetting, through afforestation projects,” according to the company. This step is new for Beiersdorf and its largest skincare brand. The Nivea Naturally Good face care range comprised of eight products will be clearly recognizable as “climate-neutralized” on pack and on shelf.

In August, Beiersdorf completed its $550 million acquisition of Coppertone, a milestone in the implementation of its CARE+ strategy to invest in its core skincare business while accelerating the company’s growth and presence in North America.

In December, the company announced its intent to acquire the beauty brand Chantecaille, which offers botanical ingredient-based skincare, fragrance and cosmetic products. At the time of the announcement, Chantecaille was valued at between $590-$690 million.

Looking Ahead

In June, the company rolled out a collaborative, cross-industry program called Design4Circularity in partnership with Clariant, Siegwerk and Borealis. Targeted to give packaging waste a second life in personal care applications by supporting reduced plastic waste, using less new/virgin plastic material, and reducing climate impact, the program’s first concept package was designed to be recycled again and again and consisted of a colorless, 100% PCR bottle, equipped with a printed, “de-inkable,” full body shrink sleeve.

In August, Beiersdorf reported a strong first half of 2022, with organic group sales rising 10.5% led by Nivea (+11.2%), Derma brands Eucerin and Aquaphor (+26.6%) and La Prairie (+1.8%).

Read Next: Coty is #11