L'Oreal buys Turkish hair care firm Canan

The move comes a day after L'Oreal announced it was raising €1.5bn through the sale of 1.8 per cent of the pharmaceutical giant Sanofi-Aventis with the aim of freeing up financial resources. The world's largest cosmetics company is now looking to tap into a growing market with the acquisition of the hair care specialist Canan. The Istanbul-based company had a turnover of €26m in 2006, which it achieved largely through its Ipek brand, the fourth largest in the country's hair care market. "The Turkish cosmetics market is expanding strongly and has a very large growth potential,"​ said Patrick Rabain, L'Oreal's consumer products president. "The acquisition of Canan will bolster our positions in hair care products, the largest segment in the market." ​ Rabain added: "With its commercial dynamism and its extensive presence in retailing channels, Canan will also accelerate the development of the division's other brands." ​ L'Oreal expects the acquisition of Canan, which includes Canan Kozmetik, Canan Pazarlama and Seda Palstik, to begin to add to the company's sales figures in 2009. L'Oreal's acquisition of Canan follows Beiersdorf's purchase of an 85 per cent stake in C-Bons Hair Care for €269.45 last month. Both the global cosmetics companies are looking to pursue high growth in hair care and emerging markets.