LVMH acquires US skin care brand Ole Henriksen

08-Feb-2011 - Last updated on 03-Mar-2011 at 18:37 GMT

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LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton has acquired botanical skin care company Ole Henriksen, in a move that will se the further development of the brand worldwide.

Ole Henriksen launched his self-named skin care line in 1985, developing it using natural botanical ingredients and initially supplying the products from his established Spa business in Los Angeles.

The success of the brand means that it is now sold in 22 countries, and one of the most important retail outlets is Sephora – the fragrance and cosmetics retail branch that is owned by LVMH.

Expansion of the brand worldwide

LVMH group managing director Antonio Belloni believes that the already established retail channel that has been developed with the Ole Henriksen skin care line will provide a strong building block for the further development of the line worldwide.

“In particular, Ole Henriksen will benefit from working closely with Sephora – our fast-growing global prestige retailer – to accelerate the brand’s worldwide expansion,” Belloni said.

Although terms of the transaction were not revealed, LVMH did confirm that Henriksen will remain the brand’s creative director, while a new CEO is expected to be appointed in early 2001, reporting to David Suliteanu, CEO of Sephora Americas.

The move forms part of LVMH’s strategy to continue to acquire luxury skin care, cosmetic and fragrance brands as part of plans to build up their brands by tapping into the company’s highly developed marketing capabilities and distribution channels.

Building on acquisitions strategy

In the past few years similar acquisitions have included brands such as Benefit, Make-up For Ever and Fresh, which have all been positioned for further growth by tapping into LVMH’s resources.

Last week LVMH reported recird sales of €20.3bn for the full year 2010, the first time it has exceeded the 20 billion euro mark, according to the company, and 19 per cent up on last years figures.

Profit from recurring operations came in at €4.3bn, 29 per cent up on 2009’s figures.

Annual sales for perfumes and cosmetics, which do not including Sephora, accounted for approximately 15 per cent of the company’s sales, grew 9 per cent to reach €3.1bn and profit from recurring operations in the business group was up 14 per cent to reach €332m.

Sephora was also highlighted as a top performer as it continued to gain market share during the year, according to the company.