Henkel boss Knobel is reorganizing the company. Brands that no longer fit the core business are also being sold. These include dental care products. A well-known confectionery manufacturer was awarded the contract.
The consumer goods group Henkel passed on its dental care brands such as Theramed and Vademecum to the confectionery manufacturer Katjes International. The company announced that Katjes had acquired Henkel’s entire dental and oral care business, including all trademark rights. In addition to Theramed and Vademecum, these also include Licor del Polo and Antica Erboristeria. A Henkel spokesman declined to comment on the purchase price.
According to Katjes, the acquired brands generated net sales of over 50 million euros in the past financial year. They are profitable.
Katjes International specializes in acquiring companies with established brands. Most recently, the company bought the Italian panettone manufacturer Sperlari in August. However, Katjes has long since ceased to limit its acquisitions to the confectionery sector. Already in 2020, Katjes took over the child care manufacturer Bübchen, according to its own statements the German market leader for baby and child care.
“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. The legally independent Katjes International GmbH
Henkel, on the other hand, is in the process of being restructured, and CEO Carsten Knobel is merging the ailing cosmetics business with the detergent division. The Düsseldorf group is also parting with brands that Knobel no longer sees as part of the future core business.
Henkel, to which brands such as Persil, Fa and Pritt belong, has recently sold fewer detergents and cosmetics, but has nevertheless significantly increased its sales through price increases. Overall, group sales between July and September grew by 17.3 percent to almost six billion euros, as Henkel announced in November. Organically, i.e. adjusted for currency and portfolio effects, growth in the third quarter was 11.3 percent.
