Sales: $7.2 billion

Major Products: Skin care—Nivea, Eucerin, La Prairie, Labello, Florena, 8×4, Atrix, Aquaphor, Hidrofugal,
Gammon; Hair care—Slek and Maestro

New Products: Nivea Deep skin care, Nivea 48 Hour Deep Nourishing Moisture, Nivea Cellular Luminous630; Eucerin Sun, La Prairie Skin Caviar Harmony; S-Biomedic (acquisition)

Comments: Beiersdorf called 2022 one of its most successful financial years in recent history—despite market volatility. Group sales rose nearly 16%. The 10.2% gain in organic terms marked, for the first time in at least two decades, that the company delivered double-digit organic sales growth. Consumer product sales increased 16.3%, with all regions and brands contributing to the gains. Beiersdorf gained market share on every continent led by Nivea and the Derma business. Africa/Asia/Australia (+10.2%) and Americas (23.2%) posted double-digit gains for the second year in a row. Despite the War in Ukraine, sales in Europe rose 5.0%.

Sales of derma brands Eucerin and Aquaphor jumped more than 26% to reach €1 billion for the first time. Derma sales rose in all categories and regions, but were especially strong in the US, Latin America and China. The Eucerin face care category, especially the anti-pigment and acne segment, were key growth drivers. The expansion of the successful Thiamidol range, provided a sales lift.

Luxury brand La Prairie’s sales increased more than nine percent. Beiersdorf credited the gain to a recovery in travel retail and improvement in brick-and-mortar retail in North America. In contrast, sales in China were hampered by covid-19 restrictions.

The strong results continued in the new year. Q1 corporate sales rose 12% and consumer product jumped 14.9%.

“Our efforts to transform Nivea are clearly paying off. Our brand icon grew in all regions and March was actually the best month in the history of the brand,” said CEO Vincent Warnery. “With strong, double-digit sales growth, Nivea in Europe and in the emerging markets, along with our successful Derma business, compensated for a difficult quarter at La Prairie – one that was negatively impacted by the effects of the corona lockdown in China. That clearly shows that we’re like a four-wheel drive vehicle: If one wheel loses traction, the others will keep the vehicle moving forward. That gives us even greater stability and security in times shaped by volatility and crises.”

Nivea, including Labello, grew organically by 18% in Q1. Beiersdorf derma brands, Eucerin and Aquaphor, posted organic sales growth of 26.9%. On the downside, La Prairie, the company’s luxury brand, reported a 12% sales decline, which was due to covid restrictions in China.

In April, Beiersdorf marked the 25th anniversary of Nivea Q10, its No. 1 face care range. Based on coenzyme Q10, the line is available in more than 60 countries.

“In 1998, we succeeded in making Q10 available in anti-aging skin care products for the first time,” noted Dr. Gitta Neufang, corporate SVP-R&D. “Today, coenzyme Q10 is one of the most important active ingredients in this segment.

We are equally proud of this pioneering work as we are of our other globally recognized contributions to skin research. For our consumers, we are continuously developing our Q10 formulas technologically and sensorially to improve their care performance.”

The latest example is Nivea Q10 Targeted Wrinkle Filler. It combines Q10 with Bioxifill peptides. It helps improve stubborn wrinkles in delicate facial areas, according to Beiersdorf.

Nivea developed a unique sunscreen for a young girl with a rare light disease called EPP.

Sales: $6.9 billion

Corporate sales rose 8.6% last year to more than $9 billion. Consumer product sales improved 7.5%. By region, Europe accounted for 48.2% of sales, followed by Africa/Asia/Australia (31.8%) and Americas (20.0%). In January 2021, Nivea launched the “Care for Human Touch to Inspire Togetherness.” By 2025, the brand plans to invest more than $20 million in local projects around the world to improve the health and well-being of more than 150,000 people, including premature babies, the elderly and girls experiencing gender discrimination.

Beiersdorf’s Oscar & Paul venture capital unit, together with Belgian venture capital fund 9.5 Ventures, invested in the new, personalized skin care brand Routinely. Routinely is based on a modular skin care routine that takes into account skin’s dynamic nature. An initial online questionnaire and an app help consumers put together a combination from 13 unisex serums that is ideally suited to their own skin. Using the consumer’s self-appraisal and an advanced algorithm, the app adapts the recommendations for daily care in real time based on the latest measurement results.

Earlier this year, in March, Beiersdorf opened an innovation center in Florham Park, NJ. The company also moved North American headquarters from Wilton, CT to Stamford, CT. Both facilities represent a strong commitment to the region and will help drive growth for Beiersdorf with a strengthened position in the North American market, according to the company. The New Jersey site gives local insights to help identify unmet consumer needs and fuel innovation.

“The opening of our new headquarters in Stamford and our new Innovation Center marks an exciting new beginning for Beiersdorf North America,” said Mauricio Valdes, general manager Beiersdorf North America. “These new hubs—positioned in fast-growing, business and science centers close to New York City—demonstrate our deep commitment and investment in North America, and will expand our capabilities, open up exciting possibilities, and be at the heart of our continued growth in this pivotal region.”

The innovation center is one of two Beiersdorf regional Innovation Centers in the world; the other is in Shanghai. The Innovation Center is the first global center of excellence for OTC and sun care products outside of Hamburg. Beiersdorf’s R&D division has more than 900 scientists globally in the consumer business segment, including 45 in the new US facility.

“Regional Innovation Centers are a vital part of our global R&D strategy. With this new center we significantly enhance our R&D capabilities, allowing us to accelerate innovation as well as to facilitate close collaboration with our local partners. It therefore enables us to fuse and fully leverage internal and external skin expertise in order to identify unmet consumer needs, and to develop innovative, therapeutic skin care products,” said Dr. Gitta Neufang, corporate SVP, global R&D.

Apart from the two regional Innovation Centers in China and, now, in the US, Beiersdorf has regional development labs in Brazil, India, Japan and Mexico. The new LEED-certified center in New Jersey spans about 32,000 square feet of office and laboratory space with room for expansion, and includes state-of-the-art GMP laboratory suites for the development of OTC products.

For Q1 2022, corporate sales increased 10.3%. Consumer product sales did even better, rising 11.6%.

Sales: $6.2 billion
Corporate sales: $8.0 billion

Corporate sales fell 8.2% last year; consumer product sales dropped 5.7%. The declines didn’t stop the company from investing in its C.A.R.E.+ initiative. As reported in Happi, the C.A.R.E.+ program comprises five strategic priorities:

• Accelerate the presence in white spots and new business areas;
• Strengthen skin care categories of the portfolio;
• Step up digitalization, from consumer engagement to business processes;
• Improve productivity gains to fuel growth; and
• Make Social and environment commitment that truly benefits people.

As for last year, Beiersdorf noted the sales decline was cushioned by the strong performance in the derma business with the Eucerin and Aquaphor brands. Here, Beiersdorf recorded year-on-year organic sales growth of 8.3%, with double-digit growth rates in North America, Latin America and Asia. According to Beiersdorf, the global skin care market declined in 2020, some months saw a double-digit drop, due to the coronavirus pandemic. So it’s no surprise to learn that Nivea’s sales fell 6% in 2020. Yet, the brand maintained its strong overall position worldwide in all categories and gained additional market share in over half of countries.

The pandemic wreaked havoc with prestige skin care brand, La Prairie. Organic sales fell 23.9% due to significantly reduced travel and the resulting fall in sales in the important travel retail business. Despite sales recovering for a time in the course of the year and double-digit growth in China, the brand was unable to match its strong prior-year figures. With the recent launch of La Prairie at Tmall, Beiersdorf expects to further strengthen the brand’s presence in this key market.

E-commerce sales rose 50% across the Group. Sales were helped by new digital innovations such as the Nivea Skin Guide web app. The company also invested in its global research and development network with a new innovation center in Shanghai, boosting local expertise in the strategically important Asia region. In addition to La Prairie, Nivea and Eucerin sales rose in China.

In December, teamed up with Sabic to create renewable plastics for mass-market cosmetics packaging. The material, which debuts this year, is made of certified, renewable polypropylene from Sabic’s Trucircle portfolio.
Earlier this year,  Beiersdorf launched O.W.N., a personalized skin care brand that includes facial cleanser, and day and night creams. O.W.N uses artificial intelligence and is built around a proprietary algorithm that combines 140 years of skin care expertise and consumer knowledge. As a result, O.W.N. selects the single best unique product offering out of 380,000 formula combinations. The products are only available at www.ownskincare.eu, where consumers fill out a questionnaire to determine which care formula is best suited to their skin.

For the first quarter of 2021, group sales rose 6.3% driven, primarily by demand for Tesa adhesives. The consumer business was up 2.7%, on the strength of the skin care business.

In May, Vincent Warnery was appointed chief executive officer. He replaced Stefan De Loecker. Warnery, 52,  has been a member of Beiersdorf’s executive board since February 2017 and was previously responsible for the pharmacy & selective division with the Eucerin, Hansaplast and La Prairie brands as well as the North American business. Warnery has spent his entire professional life in the consumer health care and cosmetic industry. He started his career in marketing at Procter & Gamble in 1991. In 1996 he joined L’Oréal where he successively held various marketing positions as well as local and regional general management positions in Portugal, Germany, Latin America, Japan and France. In 2011, he moved to Sanofi where he developed and led the global consumer health care division until 2017. He then joined Beiersdorf where he took the responsibility for the pharmacy and selective brands (La Prairie, Eucerin, Hansaplast) and since 2020 the overall responsibility of Beiersdorf North America.

In a related move, Patrick Rasquinet was appointed head of Beiersdorf’s pharmacy and selective division on July 1. Rasquinet will also join Beiersdorf’s executive board. The move follows the appointment of Warnery to chief executive officer of Beiersdorf on May 1.

Last month, the company said it will build a state-of-the-art hub for the European market in Leipzig, near the company’s new production plant. This would be the company’s largest investment worldwide at a single location.

Sales: $7.0 billion for skin care and personal care products.
Corporate sales: $8.5 billion

Corporate sales rose 5.8%. Consumer product sales rose 6.5%, helped by a 3% gain from the Nivea franchise. Nivea Body posted good gains in Asia and Latin America. At the country level, results were especially positive in Germany, Thailand and South Africa; while Nivea Face sales rose in Germany, Italy and Brazil. Overall, Nivea gained share in Germany, Thailand, Brazil and South Africa; but lost share in the UK, China and Russia.

Sales rose 7.5% in the Derma business unit, with good gains in the US, Germany, Asia and South America. Eucerin’s sales were up on the launch of an Anti-Pigment range featuring Thiamidol. Consumers see results after two weeks of use.

In selective channels, La Prairie’s sales surged 20%, propelled by gains in Asian travel retail, and China and Australia.

By region, sales in Europe rose 2.9%; sales in the Americas increased 8.9%; and Africa, Asia, Australia sales rose 10.8%.

In February, Beiersdorf laid the foundation for its new headquarters, which will combine about 3,000 state-of-the-art office and laboratory workplaces in new and existing buildings. The company will remain in Hamburg—its home for more than 135 years. Also in February, Beiersdorf launched CARE+, a multiyear strategic program designed to meet the disruptions taking place in the consumer segment. CARE+ has a variety of goals. For example, by 2025, 100% of packaging will be recyclable, compostable or reusable. According to CEO Stefan De Loecker, CARE+ will meet new challenges by increasing consumer centricity through new digital channels and technologies; convincing consumers by offering superior skin care innovations and a strong portfolio of global brands; tapping into new growth markets and business areas; and fulfilling consumers’ expectations by making a decisive contribution to more sustainability.

In the second half of 2019, Beiersdorf completed its $550 million purchase of the Coppertone brand from Bayer. With sales of about $200 million, Coppertone joins Nivea, which is the No. 1 sun care brand in the world, according to Euromonitor.

In September, Beiersdorf unveiled a new business unit Oscar&Paul—Corporate Indie Brands Skin Stories—Performance Cosmetics. The initial Skin Stories launch included sun protection stick; body lotion with UV filters; a repair balm that’s said to aid skin regeneration; and defining serum to give tattoos intensive care and strengthen the skin’s structure. All formulas contain something called InkGuard Technology, an active ingredient combination that helps to optimally care for tattoos, according to Beiersdorf.

In December, Beiersdorf acquired a significant stake in Lycl Inc., a K-beauty startup. Lycl combines three different business models: unpa.me, a review and content platform for K-beauty products, palett.me, an influencer network platform, and unpa.Cosmetics, its own skin care brand. This combination, according to Beiersdorf, leads to the fast creation of data-driven, consumer-centric and highly innovative skin care products. Lycl products are sold solely online.

The pandemic pushed Q1 2020 sales down 3.6%, as La Prairie was high particularly hard by the drop in international travel. At the same time, Nivea sustained only a slight drop in sales. Of course, Beiersdorf’s health care business is thriving. More specifically, Eucerin and Aquaphor sales jumped 11.5%, while Nivea sales fell 0.6% and La Prairie sales plunged nearly 36%.

“Beiersdorf’s foundations are strong enough to enable us to master and overcome this unprecedented crisis together and emerge from it stronger in the long term,” said De Loecker. “Despite today’s major economic challenges, we will stay on course with our strategy and will maintain investing in our initiatives under CARE+.”

Sales: $6.9 billion for personal care products.
Corporate sales: $8.5 billion.

Corporate sales rose 2.5%, but consumer product sales increased just 1.6%. Sales of skin, sun and hair care products were strongest in North America, Asia, Africa and Australia. The Middle East and Europe also saw positive growth, albeit at a relatively low level in the case of the latter region. Only in South America did the growth rate fall short of the previous year’s figure, according to Beiersdorf. In some emerging markets, the company posted double-digit gains. Nivea and the Derma business unit, which includes the Eucerin and Aquaphor brands, once again achieved healthy growth rates overall. Beiersdorf said results for La Prairie were outstanding.

Sales of Nivea grew organically by 2.8% globally. The key growth drivers were body, shower and sun. In these categories, Body Pleasure, which was introduced in the previous year, as well as the newly launched body mousses and the Sun face care range, were significant growth drivers. Innovations, such as the Deep range for men, and the face-cleansing MicellAir Skin Expert range, contributed substantially to growth.

Overall, Nivea maintained its strong position despite various challenges in the markets. In the body category, the brand added market share particularly in Saudi Arabia, India and Mexico. Nivea shower was particularly strong in Germany. In the deodorant category, market share gains were achieved in Indonesia and Mexico. At country level, Nivea achieved especially positive growth in market shares in Germany, India, Saudi Arabia and Mexico. A decline in market share was seen particularly in Thailand, Italy and Poland.

The Derma business unit increased sales by 5.9% on gains in the US, Germany and Thailand. Eucerin’s main categories, body, face and sun as well as Aquaphor played an especially large part in growth.

In the selective cosmetics segment, the La Prairie brand increased organic sales by a whopping 38.5%. Growth came from higher sales in the travel retail business, especially at airports, and the Skin Caviar Collection (particularly Skin Caviar Liquid Lift). The newly launched Platinum Rare Cellular Night Elixir and White Caviar Crème Extraordinaire were also major growth drivers. Sales performed especially well in China, Hong Kong, Australia and North America.

Sales in the Europe region grew 2.8% to nearly $3.5 billion. In Western Europe, sales were up 3.9% due to big gains in Germany and the UK. In contrast, sales in France and Greece declined. Within the region, sales of Nivea shower, deo and sun rose. The Derma segment also showed encouraging growth. Sales growth was significantly influenced by the very good performance of the La Prairie brand’s travel retail business.

In Eastern Europe, sales were 5.3% higher than in the previous year. This increase was driven by big gains in Russia, Poland, Serbia and Romania as well as by double-digit growth in Ukraine. Nivea Deo, Face and Universal Creams performed especially well. Eucerin also saw strong growth in the region.

Sales in North America climbed 7.3% compared with the previous year. Nivea Body was especially successful. The Derma business unit and La Prairie both saw double-digit growth in the region. In Latin America, sales were down 2.8%, due to a big decline in Argentina. In Brazil, sales were slightly lower than in the previous year. Excellent growth was recorded in Mexico. Nivea Body, Universal Creams, Shower and Men performed especially well.

Sales in Africa/Asia/Australia rose 4.2% on double-digit growth in India, Indonesia and Turkey, as well as very good growth in Africa and a good development in Thailand. In particular, Nivea Deo, Body and Face all performed very well. Eucerin and La Prairie posted double-digit growth rates.

CEO Stefan De Loecker took the helm on Jan. 1, 2019. In other moves, Ralph Gusko, a member of the executive board since July 2011 and until now responsible for brands, R&D as well as the Asia Pacific region, will leave the company by mutual consent. He will continue to be responsible for the Asia Pacific region latest until the end of 2019.

Asim Naseer was appointed to the executive board as chief marketing officer for consumer brands. Ramon A. Mirt was named to the executive board in charge of Near East and Americas regions.
Management of the Beiersdorf Group’s consumer business segment is now overseen by the new executive committee, which commenced at the start of 2019. Aside from the group executive board, the committee includes the global head of research and development Dr. May Shana’a, as well as then global head of supply chain Harald Emberger.

For the first quarter of 2019, corporate sales rose 7.8% to nearly $2.2 billion. Consumer product sales increased 6.8% to nearly $1.8billion. In the first quarter of this year, Beiersdorf successfully launched its new C.A.R.E.+ business strategy, that has been announced in late February. With this multi-year investment initiative, Beiersdorf will put an extra €70 to 80 million annually into internationalization, innovation, digitalization, and up-skilling of workforce.

In May, Beiersdorf agreed to purchase Coppertone from Bayer for $550 million. Founded in 1944, Coppertone, was the first sun care brand in the US. It had sales of $213 million last year.

“This transaction demonstrates our commitment towards competitive, sustainable growth and investment in skin care outlined in the new C.A.R.E.+ strategy. Skin care is at the heart of Beiersdorf—and caring for skin health through sun protection has been an essential pillar of our business for over 60 years,” said Beiersdorf CEO Stefan De Loecker. “We are pleased to offer the iconic Coppertone brand and its dedicated, experienced employees a new home next to Nivea Sun and Eucerin Sun. The sun care pioneers of Europe and the US will join forces under one umbrella to provide trusted sun protection to consumers around the world. We are convinced that Coppertone and its team will add complementary expertise to our leading brand portfolio and significantly strengthen our position, particularly in the US.”

Sales: $6.5 billion for personal care products.
Corporate sales: $7.6 billion.

Corporate sales rose 4.5% and consumer sales were up 3.4%. The credit goes, in part, to Beiersdorf’s Blue Agenda business strategy, which was implemented in 2012. Last year, the strategy was expanded with Blue & Beyond, which intends to leverage the potential of Eucerin, La Prairie and Hansaplast (a medical brand), to make them as successful as Nivea which, everyone knows, is the best-selling skin care brand in the world. To achieve that goal, Eucerin, La Prairie and Hansaplast were folded into a single board division last year to increase these brands’ impact and leverage synergy effects.

The moves came during a year when Beiersdorf posted good gains in Asia and Africa. By region, Europe accounted for 50.6% of sales; followed by Africa, Asia and Africa, 30.9% and Americas, 18.5%. Deodorant sales improved due to gains in the UK, Russia and South Africa; but sales declined in face care, due to weakness in Germany, Italy, France and the UK.
Overall, Beiersdorf noted that Nivea improved its market share in India, South Africa and Russia; however, the brand lost share in Italy, Switzerland and Thailand. Specifically, Nivea sales were up on the strength of double-digit gains for Protect & Care, Black & White deodorant, Active Clean and Crème Care, Milk, Pleasure and Nivea Men Crème.

Eucerin generated organic growth of 3.4%, driven by demand with the face and sun categories. Sales were said to be particularly strong in the Argentina, Thailand and Korea.

Regarding hard assets, Beiersdorf built a new production facility in Nigeria, expanded production capabilities in Thailand and expanded production in Brazil. Finally, Beiersdorf began construction of new headquarters in Eimsbüttel in Hamburg. The job is expected to be completed in 2021.

For the first quarter of 2018, group sales rose less than 1% and consumer sales declined less than 1%, though Beiersdorf noted that organic sales rose 6.1%. Nivea sales increased 1.9 %. The Derma business unit, which includes Eucerin and Aquaphor, finished the first quarter with an increase in sales of 8.5%. Finally, sales of La Prairie soared 55.5%.

In May, Beiersdorf announced a partnership with NetEast Kaola, which is billed as China’s leading online platform for cross-border trade. It gives Beiersdorf access to a market that grew more than 80% last year, and the agreement gives Beiersdorf access to more than 900 million users, according to the companies.

Sales: $6.2 billion

Corporate sales rose 1% and consumer sales were just a tiny bit better, with a gain of 1.1%. But company executives proudly noted that emerging markets accounted for more than half of sales last year in the consumer segment, driven by double-digit gains in Russia, Brazil, Mexico, India, Korea and South Africa.

As part of its Blue Agenda, Beiersdorf is intent on expanding the Nivea brand and expanding into emerging markets, two objectives that the company more than met in 2016. In fact, Nivea was again voted Germany’s most trusted brand in 2016. In an effort to give the people what they want, Beiersdorf successfully expanded the Nivea name with the rollout of Nivea Deo Protect & Care to more than 100 countries. Meanwhile, a new conditioner, shampoo, shower milk and facial cleanser were all launched under the Nivea umbrella.

Sales of Nivea products rose 3.8% last year thanks to gains posted by existing products like Nivea Deo, Shower, All-Purpose Creams, Men, Black & White and Fresh.

Eucerin’s sales rose 1.5% driven by gains within the sun care category and particularly good results in Germany, Italy and Korea.

La Prairie sales were buoyed by the Skin Caviar collection, especially Skin Caviar Liquid Lift and the rollout of Skin Caviar Essence-in-Lotion. Another new product, Cellular Radiance Perfecting Fluide Pure Gold, also drove sales higher. Travel retail, China, Australia and the UK were all good markets for this prestige brand.

The good news continued into 2017, as corporate sales rose 7.7%, thanks to a 13.3% gain in the Americas. Most of the increase could be tracked back to the Tesa medical business, but consumer product sales rose 3%. Within the consumer business, Eastern European sales surged more than 18% and Latin American sales soared 20.3%.

Earlier this Summer, Beiersdorf noted that, like many other multinationals, its IT system was hit by a cyberattack. The perps disrupted phone and email operations, but both were up and running within a couple of days—all without any data leakage.

Beiersdorf plans to build a new €230 million headquarters and research center in the company’s home district of Hamburg-Eimsbüttel. For decades now, the company has used three neighboring sites. The new headquarters will replace the headquarters situated between Unnastrasse and Quickbornstrasse. By adding the research building (which will be ready in early 2020), Beiersdorf will expand its research and development capacities in Hamburg to 45,000 square meters.

“With the construction of our new headquarters in Hamburg, Beiersdorf is sending a clear signal about its future growth. We have been very successful in recent years. We have significantly expanded our international business, developed outstanding innovations and put Beiersdorf on a stable and profitable growth path. This is the result of all our employees’ hard work,” said Stefan F. Heidenreich, CEO of Beiersdorf AG. He added: “Building a new headquarters shows the confidence we have in our business strengths. With this major investment, we are also expressing our commitment to Hamburg and Germany as business locations. Beiersdorf and Hamburg are connected by their open-mindedness and internationality. It’s a good fit.”

Sales: $6.1 billion

Corporate sales rose 6.4% last year, and consumer product sales did a tad better, up 6.5%. All three major brands posted gains, with Nivea sales up 4.5%, Eucerin up 5.4% and La Prairie up 1.2%.

Nivea gained market share in its core categories and most key markets, according to the company. The sales gain was attributed to the success of deodorant, shower and all-purpose creams under the Nivea banner. In the deodorant category, both Nivea Black & White and Fresh variants posted double digit gains. The company added market share in several countries including Thailand, the UK and Russia.

The launch of Nivea Protect & Care in Latin America provided a lift as well. Nivea Shower benefitted from the launch of Active Clean and Cream Smooth while Care Cream boosted all-purpose cream results.

Sales of Eucerin rose due to gains in France, Spain, South Africa and Korea. Consumers were particularly enamored with Eucerin face and sun products, according to the company.

La Prairie’s sales were up slightly, driven by the success of the Caviar Collection, as well as the launch of the Anti-Aging Rapid Response Booster and Skin Caviar Concealer Foundation.

Europe accounted for 50.8% of consumer sales last year, followed by Africa, Asia and Australia (29.8%) and Americas (19.4%). Consumer sales in Western Europe increased less than 1% last year, as sales fell in several countries, including Italy and Switzerland, but rose in Germany, Spain and the UK. It was a different story in Eastern Europe (up 7%), where Russia provided a big lift; Beiersdorf said sales of both Nivea and La Prarie increased in the region.

Sales surged more than 10% in the Americas due to market gains and favorable exchange rates. US sales of Nivea Body, Eucerin, Aquaphor and La Prarie were strong. In Latin America, exceptional gains in Argentina, Columbia, Peru and Mexico  were partially offset by declines in Mexico. Sales in Africa, Asia and Australia jumped 15.1% thanks to positive Forex. But Beiersdorf noted that stabilizing sales in China, coupled with excellent results in South Africa, Japan, India and Turkey, deserved credit, too.

For 2016, Beiersdorf expects group sales to grow 3-4%; if so, it has some catching up to do. For Q1, group sales rose 2.4%, but consumer sales increased 3.6%. Consumer sales were due to strength in Europe, Africa, Asia and Australia. Only the Americas fell short of 2015’s Q1 results.

Sales: $6.3 billion

The folks at Beiersdorf are feeling blue these days…no, they’re not down in the dumps, it’s all about the Blue Agenda which aims to be the No. 1 skin care company in its relevant categories and markets. How will it get there? By strengthening its brands, especially Nivea; increasing innovation; expanding its presence in emerging markets and consolidating its European position; and maintaining a strong corporate culture. While Nivea will always be the primary focus, the company has created a “Pearl Brands” unit that is intended to boost sales for the Labello, 8×4, Hidrofugal and Florena brands.

To boost its presence in emerging markets, last year, Beiersdorf opened a production facility and regional laboratory in Silao, Mexico. It’s the first cosmetics plant to be awarded LEED Platinum certification. Now, Beiersdorf is building a production plant in Sanand, India to expand its presence in that fast-growing market.

By region, European sales rose less than 1% and accounted for 54.4% of sales last year. Sales in Africa, Asia and Australia (27.8% of sales) increased 5.4%. In the Americas, sales increased 2.2% (17.8% of sales).

By brand, Nivea achieved organic growth of 6.2%. Leading the way were Nivea Deo, Nivea Shower and Nivea Body. All were helped by gains in emerging markets. At the same time, the introduction of products such as Nivea Deo Stress Protect, Nivea Deo Powder Touch, and Nivea Shower Crème Care and Original Care were well-received. While sales of Nivea Deo were up in Brazil and Australia, and Nivea Men sales rose in Brazil, Russia and Spain, Beiersdorf noted that Nivea Sun sales declined, due to weakness in Switzerland, Germany and Italy. At the country level, sales of Nivea improved most in Japan, Australia, Spain and Brazil, but were weakest in Poland.

Organic sales of Eucerin were up 6%, driven by the popularity of Eucerin Body Care and Eucerin Aquaphor, along with sales gains in the US, Thailand and France.

Organic sales of La Prairie rose 5.1% driven by gains in the US, China, Russia and Japan, as well as the debut of the Cellular Swiss Ice Crystal Collection.

On the sustainability front, by 2020, Beiersdorf aims to:

• Generate 50% of its sales from products with a significantly reduced environmental impact (base year 2011);
• Reduce its CO2 emissions by 30% per product sold (base year 2005); and
• Reach and improve the lives of one million families (base year 2013).

To measure its progress, the company introduced a new global sustainability management system.
While company executives predicted that consumer product sales would grow 3-5% in 2015, the unit got off to a slow start, increasing just 0.7%—as sales in Europe rose 0.2%, sales in the Americas jumped 6.9% and sales declined 2.0% in Africa, Asia and Australia. By product category, sales of Nivea rose 1.7%, La Prairie’s sales increased 1.1%, but sales of Eucerin jumped 5.3%.

Sales: $6.9 billion

Beiersdorf executives hope their Blue Agenda, first outlined in 2012, will lead to blue skies in the future. The strategy defines the company’s objectives and is focused on five goals: strengthening brands (especially Nivea), increasing innovative power, systematically expanding impact and presence in emerging markets and Europe, increasing efficiency and speed and employing dedicated workers.

So, how’s it going? Corporate sales rose 1.7% last year to $8.4 billion. Consumer sales, which include Nivea, Eucerin and La Prairie, rose just over 1%, but organic sales were up 7%. In January, Beiersdorf unveiled its new corporate logo, which aligns the company with Nivea, the world’s best-selling skin care brand. The global rollout of the new logo will be completed by the end of the year.

Worldwide Nivea sales increased 7.5% on an organic basis, helped along by the introduction of Nivea Stress Protect deodorant, Nivea In-Shower, Nivea Sun Protect & Refresh spray and Nivea Cellular Anti-Age. Good gains in emerging markets were due to the strong demand for Nivea deodorants.

Eucerin posted organic sales gains of 11.5%, on strong growth in the US, Latin America and Scandinavia. The launch of Eucerin Volume Filler and the continued growth of Eucerin Even Skin provided a lift.

La Prarie’s organic sales also rose 7.5% due, in part, to the expansion of the White Caviar Collection and the introductions of Skin Caviar Luxe Sleep Mask and Skin Caviar Luxe Soufflé Body Cream. The company added that growth in China and Russia was particularly strong.

For the first quarter of 2014, corporate sales rose just over 1% to nearly $2.2 billion. Consumer sales rose less than 1% to $1.8 billion.

On July 1, Beiersdorf added three new members to its executive board: Thomas Ingelfinger, Stefan De Loecker, and Zhengrong Liu.

“The appointment of three top managers to the executive board sends an important signal both internally and externally,” said Stefan F. Heidenreich. “We are confident to further advance our successful Blue Agenda strategy with this team. In the coming years, regionalization will be the key priority.”

Thomas Ingelfinger will be responsible for Europe (excluding Germany), Stefan De Loecker for Near East (including Russia, Turkey, the Middle East, Africa and India), and Zhengrong Liu for Human Resources, including the position of Labor Director.

Sales: $6.6 billion

Beiersdorf executives are seeing blue—thanks to the Blue Agenda that was introduced last year. It called for strengthening brands (especially Nivea), increasing innovation and expanding in emerging markets. That’s because the company estimates that skin care will drive the global cosmetics market during the next few years, accounting for 45% of growth.

To boost innovation, during the past year, R&D efforts were realigned to more closely match consumer expectations in the areas of body, face, sun, men, deo and shower. The goal is to develop innovative products that quickly meet consumers’ needs. To help meet the needs of folks in emerging markets, Beiersdorf began construction of a new production center in Silao, Mexico that will speed products to market and bundle resources in a single location. The site, which will cost more than €100 million, is expected to open next year. Finally, to increase efficiency and speed, Beiersdorf encourages and requires employees to think and act like entrepreneurs and to take a decisive approach.

The Blue Agenda worked, as corporate sales rose more than 7% last year to nearly $8 billion and consumer product sales were up nearly 5%. Sales of Nivea rose 6.4% on higher demand for Nivea Deo, Body and Shower products. Products that provided a lift included Invisible for Black & White, and the launches of Pure & Sensitive, Repair & Care and In Shower. Eucerin sales rose 6.6% thanks to the launches of Even Brighter and DermoCapillaire and good gains in Chile, Thailand and Sweden. Sales of La Prairie rose 6.1% due to gains in China, France and the US.

By region, European sales rose 1.4%. Although sales in Germany were flat and sales in western Europe fell nearly 2%, sales in Eastern Europe jumped 8.7% with good gains in Russia, Poland, Ukraine and Serbia.

Sales in the Americas rose more than 12%, driven by a 17.7% increase in Latin America and a 2% rise in North America.

Sales in Africa, Asia and Australia increased nearly 10%, propelled by results in India, Thailand and South Africa. Sales were up in Japan and flat in China.

To kick off 2013, Beiersdorf unveiled a new Nivea logo that is said to make it easier for consumers around the world to find Nivea products on store shelves.

People are getting older and Beiersdorf is determined to do something about it, by conducting research on aging in the scientific network AgeNet. Backed by funding from the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research, two Beiersdorf researchers, Sabine Hageman, research scientist, and Marc Winnefeld, head of the special and aged skin lab, are investigating the influences of environmental factors that speed up aging such as UV light and air pollution.

For the first quarter of 2013, corporate sales rose 2.9% to $2.0 billion. Sales were weak in Europe, falling 4% in Germany, and 2% in Western and Eastern Europe. In contrast, sales rose more than 5% in North America, more than 16% in Asia and Africa, and more than 20% in Latin America. At the close of the first quarter, emerging markets accounted for 49% of corporate sales.

Sales: $6.5 billion

Consumer product sales fell less than 1% last year. Corporate sales rose 2% to $7.8 billion. The company said sales of Nivea products rose 2.1% worldwide, driven by the success of Nivea deodorant, bath care and men’s products.

With its continued focus on the Nivea brand, Beiersdorf exited the color cosmetics market and sold its regional brands Juvena and Marlies Möller. Overall, Beiersdorf reduced its European product range by nearly 20%. Why? Because skin care will account for 45% of global cosmetics sales by 2015 and Nivea is the No. 1 skin care brand in the world, according to Beiersdorf. Meanwhile, sales of Eucerin rose 4.8%, with sales within the Anti-Age line providing a lift. Sales of La Prairie rose 3.4%.

By region, sales in Western Europe fell 3.7%, primarily due to streamlining measures. Sales in Eastern Europe increased 5.2% due, in part, to good gains in Russia, Ukraine and Serbia. Sales in the Americas jumped 10.3% as North American sales rose 2.1% and Latin American sales surged 15.2%. Sales in Africa, Asia and Australia rose 1.8% as gains in India and South Africa were partially offset by weakness in China.

For the first quarter of 2012, group sales rose 6.9% as consumer sales increased 6.8%. Sales of Nivea products rose 10.1%, sales of Eucerin increased 7.8%, but sales of La Prairie declined 1.2%.

In personnel moves, in April, Thomas-B. Quaas retired as chairman of the executive board and switched to the supervisory board. His replacement, Stefan F. Heidenreich, 50, had been with Reckitt Benckiser, Bertelsmann and, most recently, the Hero Group. He began his career with Procter & Gamble.

This month, Ümit Sbasi, who had been responsible for emerging markets for nearly a year, left Beiersdorf to pursue new opportunities. He was replaced by Stefan De Loecker, corporate senior vice president for the Near East region, and Patrick Kaminski, corporate senior vice president for the Far East.

Sales: $7.0 billion

Consumer product sales rose 1.6% last year. Sales of Nivea rose 1.8%, sales of Eucerin increased 9% and La Prairie sales jumped 7.5%.The best performing products under the Nivea umbrella were Nivea deodorant, Nivea for Men, Nivea Sun, Nivea Deodorant Calm & Care, Nivea for Men Silver Protect and Nivea Sun Protect & Bronze. In contrast, sales fell for Nivea Hair Care and Nivea Hair Styling.

Consumers in the US, Thailand and Chile were particularly enamored with Eucerin, according to Beiersdorf, while in the exclusive cosmetics segment, La Prairie rebounded in part to the successful launches of La Prairie Platinum Rare Serum and La Prairie White Caviar Illuminating Systéme.

By region, Europe accounted for 61.1% of consumer sales, Africa, Asia and Australia represented 21.6% of sales and the Americas represented 17.3% of sales. As for Europe, Beiersdorf reported a significant sales increase in the UK and Russia, but results in the rest of Europe were mixed, as sales declined sharply in Italy, Portugal and Spain. Overall, sales rose 1.4% in Western Europe and declined 2.2% in Eastern Europe. Sales in Germany declined. Beiersdorf said sales in North America and Latin America rose significantly, while Africa/Asia/Australia posed slight gains. Sales jumped 14.9% in the Americas. During the year, the company disposed of the Juvena and Marlies Moller skin care brands.

To get things moving again, Beiersdorf is making a big bet on Nivea, which celebrates its 100th anniversary this year. Chairman Thomas-B. Quaas told shareholders that Nivea will get a multimillion-dollar investment in an effort to strengthen the brand for the long-term.

For the first quarter of 2011, consumer product sales declined 1.6%, which the company blamed on the streamlining of European product ranges, which resulted in a 5.8% decline in German sales and a 6.5% drop in Western Europe. Sales were flat in Eastern Europe. The good news was that sales in the Americas jumped 8.7%, led by a 12.9% gain in Latin America and 3.4% increase in North America. Sales in the Africa/Asia/Australia region rose less than 1%.

In April, the company announced plans to discontinue operations in Baden-Baden, citing declining capacity utilization.

In June, Ralph Gusko joined the executive board with brand and supply chain responsibilities. He had been general manager, Northern Europe.

Sales: $6.9 billion

Corporate sales fell less than 1%, while personal care sales actually grew 1.2%. China and Latin America posted double-digit sales growth, and Eastern Europe, the U.S. and Germany also exceeded 2008 sales. In contrast, sales declined in Western Europe, the company reported.

By brand, sales of Nivea rose 1.3%, due to strong demand for Nivea deodorant, which received a boost from the launch of Nivea for Men Silver Protect, as well as Nivea Bath Care and Nivea Shower Crème Oil. However, Nivea Body Care sales fell.

Sales of Eucerin jumped 6.5% driven, for the most part, by the relaunch of Eucerin Sun Protection and strong demand for the Eucerin Body series in the U.S.

The economic slowdown wreaked havoc on prestige beauty sales, which is why sales of La Prairie tumbled 8.7%.

The good news is that results were better in the first quarter of 2010. Group sales rose 6.9% to $2.1 billion. Consumer product sales rose 4% to $1.8 billion.

“In the first quarter of 2010, we showed that we are back on a growth path. Our development has yet to quite match our ambitious growth expectations, but we are on the right track,” said chief executive officer Thomas B. Quaas. “Beiersdorf’s growth will outperform the market in the coming years. In order to leverage our growth potential even more effectively, we are focusing more strongly on our core competencies while at the same time increasing our regional flexibility in Europe, Asia and the Americas in particular. This will ensure that our business can stand out even more from the crowd.”

Looking toward the future, Quaas said he expects the next few years will be shaped by uneven growth in global markets, changed trade structures, increasing consumer interest in low prices with an excellent price to performance ratio and intensified competition from private label manufacturers.

To successfully navigate this new reality, the executive board has decided to further develop its successful strategy with two core elements: “Focus on skin care. Closer to markets.”

“Fifty percent of the expected growth in the global cosmetics markets will occur in the skin care category. This translates into excellent growth opportunities for Beiersdorf, because skin care has always been our core competence,” explained Quaas at an internal executive managers meeting in Hamburg. “With innovative product developments, flat organizational hierarchies and quicker decision processes, we will be able to respond to local consumer wishes even more flexibly and align ourselves even more precisely with the respective market development.”

Effective May 1, the executive board was reorganized into three functional and three regional areas of responsibility. Quaas remains chairman of the reorganized executive board, board member Pieter Nota continues to be responsible for marketing and innovation, while Dr. Bernhard Düttmann remains in charge of finance and added human resources responsibilities. Markus Pinger added responsibilities for the Americas region, and continues to be in charge of the global supply chain and James C. Wei heads up the Asia region. On Sept. 1, Peter Feld will take over as executive board member for Europe, which had been managed by Quaas on an interim basis.

For the full year 2010, the Beiersdorf Group said it will generate organic sales growth in excess of the market, driven by gains in China, Russia and Brazil.

Sales: $7.5 billion

In 2008, Beiersdorf’s consumer business segment—which incorporates all of its personal care and beauty products including bandages—recorded sales of $7.5 billion, a rise of 12.3% when adjusted for currency translation effects, or 10% at current exchange rates. Excluding the acquisition of its Chinese hair care business at the end of 2007 and the increase in the interest in Beiersdorf AG (Switzerland) to 100%, organic sales growth was 8.6%, the company said.

On a brand level, Nivea’s sales rose 10% (adjusted for currency translation effects), driven by deodorant, hair care, bath care and Nivea for Men products.In particular, the launches of Nivea body My Silhouette and the Nivea for Men Extreme Comfort range were extremely encouraging, according to the company. Nivea Hair Care continued its success following its relaunch in 2007, however, Nivea body recorded significantly weaker growth compared to 2007’s performance.

Beiersdorf reported that it met all of its targets for Eucerin, and as a result, sales of the brand rose 12.6% (adjusted for currency translation effects) in 2008. Eucerin’s anti-aging products performed especially well, according to the company.

La Prairie recorded growth of 12.3% (adjusted for currency translation effects), with key contributions made by new launches in the Advanced Marine Biology series (see “Wonders of the Sea” at Happi.com), Anti-Aging Stress Cream and the La Prairie Caviar Collection.

Beiersdorf has increased its production presence in the Asia-Pacific region. In July it invested €10 million to double manufacturing capacity for Nivea products at its production facility in Bangplee, Thailand to 31,000 tons a year. According to Beiersdorf, Nivea is now the largest skin and beauty care brand in Thailand and the Eucerin brand also occupies the pole position in the dermo-cosmetics segment with a market share of more than 70%. The site also supplies Indonesia, Vietnam, Malaysia and Singapore, as well as Australia and New Zealand.

In June, Beiersdorf inaugurated a new production plant in Shanghai. The company invested approximately €18 million in the new facility, which will manufacture body care products. Beiersdorf plans to shutter its old production facility, which is just 30 kilometers away from the new site.

In the Americas, Beiersdorf’s sales rose 13.1% (adjusted for currency translation effects) in 2008. At current exchange rates, sales rose by 7.5%. In North America, sales rose 3.8%, with the launch of Nivea Lip Care and Nivea for Men shower products in the U.S. proving extremely successful. In Latin America, sales rose an impressive 20.9%, with all major markets contributing double-digit growth rates.

Sales: $6.38 billion for cosmetics and toiletries.
Corporate sales: $7.54 billion.

Sales of Beiersdorf’s consumer business segment—home to its skin care cosmetics and toiletries operations—rose 7.7% at current exchange rates to $6.38 billion.

Nivea’s sales rose in all regions in 2007, allowing the brand to record global growth of 11.4%. Driving the success were products such as Nivea deodorant, Nivea body and Nivea for men. In addition, Beiersdorf said Nivea Visage Oxygen Power had a very good start, while the relaunch of Nivea Hair Care continued its success. However, bad weather hampered growth rates of the Nivea Sun line.

Eucerin met targets, recording growth of 19.6% in 2007 and the La Prairie Group recorded growth of 10.7%.

On a geographical basis, sales rose 4.8% in Europe. Sales results in Germany—which were affected by the shifting of exports to Dubai and Russia for Middle East and CIS regions, respectively—dropped 4.2%. Sales to customers within Germany were up 0.2%. In Western Europe (excluding Germany), sales rose 4.3%, and in Eastern Europe, Beiersdorf recorded another year of double-digit growth with sales up 27.7%. In the Americas, sales rose 12.5%, with North America up 4.9%. In Latin America, Beiersdorf recorded double-digit growth of 20%, with Brazil (+22.4%) and Mexico (+15.0%), and affiliates in Venezuela (+47.2%) and Argentina (+35.7%) bolstering the strong performance. In Africa/Asia/Australia, sales rose 26.2%.