11. Henkel

Germany

www.henkel.com

Corporate Sales: $22 billion

Beauty Sales: $4.7 billion

Key Personnel: Kasper Rorsted, chief executive officer; Hans Van Bylen, executive vice president, beauty care; Carsten Knobel, executive vice president, finance and purchasing.

Major Products: Hair care, skin care, body care and oral care products under brands including Schwarzkopf, Indola, Clynol, Seah Hairspa, BC Bonacure, Clynol, Dial, Fa, Right Guard, Tone, La Toja, Coast, Dry Idea, Mont St. Michel, Aok, Diadermine, Antica Erboristeria.

New Products: Gliss Kur, Schwarzkopf Igora Expert Mousse, Schwarzkopf BC Oil Miracle, Fa Shower and Lotion, Right Guard TD5 Cooling, Syoss Beauty Elixir Absolute Oil.

The Dial brand is a top performer at Henkel.

Comments: All of Henkel’s business sectors achieved growth in 2012. CEO Kasper Rorsted said they had met their goals, reduced their debt and improved cash flow, as well as set a strong foundation for the coming years. With corporate sales that rose 5.8% to $22 billion in a challenging economy, Rorsted declared: “2012 was the most successful year for Henkel so far. We achieved excellent results in a highly volatile and competitive market environment and met or exceeded all financial targets.”

In 2012, the Beauty Care business sector—which accounts for 21% of Henkel’s sales—continued its profitable growth recorded in previous years. Sales increased to $4.7 billion.

From a regional perspective, business performance was especially strong in the emerging markets, with Asia (excluding Japan) achieving strong double-digit growth thanks to China. The Africa/Middle East region also posted double-digit growth rates. Sales growth was also strong in Latin America, despite political instability. Henkel said it was able to increase overall sales in the mature markets, with particularly good sales performance in North America. In Europe, the company managed to sustain the level of sales achieved in 2011 despite the economy. Sales in the mature markets of the Asia-Pacific region, however, fell short of the previous year’s level. This was due to the difficult market environment in Japan, which was not compensated by the good performance in the other mature markets in this region.

Henkel said the increase in sales was once again much higher than the growth rate of its relevant markets. Success was attributed to its strong innovation program, along with selectively increasing prices.

Notable beauty innovations in 2012 included Schwarzkopf Color Mask, the first Schwarzkopf colorant in a jar; Right Guard TD5 Cooling, in which cooling active ingredients stimulate the skin’s cold receptors for a long-lasting fresh, cool feeling; and Syoss Beauty Elixir Absolute Oil, a professional lightweight micro-oil formula that nourishes and smooths hair without weighing it down.

Henkel continues to strengthen its global presence. For example, in November 2012, it opened a Beauty Care Asia-Pacific logistics hub in Thailand, to serve as a platform to enable future growth in the Asia-Pacific region.

Going forward, Rorsted proposed three lofty goals targeted for 2016: 20 billion euros in sales; 10 billion euros in emerging markets; and 10% earnings per share. By 2016, 12 out of Henkel’s top 20 countries in terms of sales are expected to be emerging markets. “Outperform,” “Globalize,” “Simplify,” and “Inspire” are the four strategies the German manufacturer has set forth to further succeed in its growth efforts.

Strong performance continued into 2013. Sales in the second quarter rang in at $5.6 billion, an increase of 1.9% versus the prior-year quarter.

Beauty Care recorded solid sales growth in the second quarter and a strong increase in adjusted return on sales. Nominally, sales rose by 0.2% to $1.2 billion.

As in previous quarters, Africa/Middle East and Asia (excluding Japan) recorded a particularly strong performance, each region posting double-digit percentage growth rates. The growth driver in these markets remains China. Sales in the mature markets increased, despite the difficult business climate. North America once again registered a solid growth rate, and Western Europe, too, continued its positive development.