Sustainable hygiene solutions Ontex Group

sustainablE hygiEnE solutions

The Ontex Group is the world’s leading global provider of personal hygiene solutions, with unrivalled expertise in baby-care, feminine care and adult care products. The company continues to extend its global reach and enhance its product portfolio. Philip Yorke reports on a company that not only sets the standards in innovative personal care, but also in sustainable manufacturing processes.

The Ontex group was founded in Aalst, Belgium over 30 years ago and has grown to become the world’s leading supplier of personal hygiene products and solutions. The company manufactures, markets and distributes its products to over 110 countries worldwide through its sales to leading brand owners and its own branded product ranges.

Today Ontex designs, develops and distributes a broad range of personal hygiene products that include disposable diapers and pants, pads, tampons and panty-liners. With 19 manufacturing bases spread strategically throughout the world, it employs more than 11,000 people and in 2016 recorded sales of almost 2 billion euros.

The Ontex Group’s in-house R&D departments and international development teams draw on extensive consumer insights that create the flexibility to help its retail and health customers stay ahead of the competition as well as the world’s rapidly changing markets and in the process, meet the diverse needs of different populations.

Ontex also combines traditional values such as integrity and customer care, with the latest design and sustainable manufacturing processes and technology. This makes the company the smart choice for retailers, health institutions and consumers alike.

ontex brands driving growth

Recently the Ontex Group announced its intention to acquire one of South America’s largest personal hygiene businesses, Hypermarcus of Brazil. The acquisition of HM personal hygiene supports the Ontex strategy by extending its market position in the America’s to Brazil. This is in addition to increasing sales from Ontex-owned brands, and its new access to a fast growing market for adult incontinence, thus cementing its brand-leading status.

Over the past 12 months, HM Personal hygiene has generated revenues of around €350 million in the growing baby-care and adult incontinence categories. This has been helped by a growing number

of strong local brands, such as baby-care products: PomPom, Cremer and Sapeka, a regional leader in the value segment.

Ontex CEO Charles Bouaziz commented, “We are very excited to welcome HM personal hygiene into the Ontex Community. This business has achieved leading market positions in the baby-care and adult incontinence Categories, and is built on attractive brands which respond to consumer needs and strong execution.”

expanding international footprint

The Ontex Group’s acquisition of Mexican-based Grupo Mabe, a leading personal hygiene company in 2016, has significantly strengthened Ontex International’s presence as well as enhancing its own portfolio of leading brands. The company’s key priorities for 2017 are to implement further its ambitious sustainability programme and to develop its own branded and retailer branded businesses.

The acquisition of the leading Mexican personal healthcare company Grupo Mabe, has expanded the company’s geographic footprint in North and Latin America, thus increasing its growth opportunities. The successful integration of Grupo Mabe into the Ontex family has helped it to reach a 40 per cent market share of the baby diapers category in the Mexican retail sector.

Traditionally, Ontex has a strong portfolio and expertise in producing and marketing a wide range of strong retail brands. At the same time, the company has a growing share of own-brand products, spanning baby-care, feminine care and adult care, which are distributed worldwide. In 2016, Group revenues from Ontex brands was

44 per cent up from 37 per cent in 2014 and following recent acquisitions in Latin America, the proportion of revenues generated from Ontex brands will now exceed 50 per cent for the very first time.

Driving sustainability forward

Over the last few years, Ontex has grown rapidly from a manufacturing company to an international consumer goods company. Ontex ownbrand product lines will gain further significance in the future. However,

its manufacturing strategy remains the same, developments and innovations in both categories of own-brand and retail brands are tailored to suit local markets and are driven by extensive consumer research.

In 2016 Ontex created a new management structure in order to embed sustainability into all Ontex operations and Divisions. As a result of an extensive review, the company’s approach to sustainability was grouped into four distinct areas: sustainable growth, the people at the heart of the company, human rights and business ethics, and responsible production. Ambitious targets have been set in each one of these areas. In the responsible production sector for example, the company plans to reduce CO2 emissions of transported goods in 29017 by 20 per cent compared to 2012 and that by 2020, all electricity consumed will be generated by renewable sources.

Annick De Poorter Group R&D, Quality & Sustainability director at Ontex said, “As one of the world’s leading hygiene solutions providers, we are constantly aware of the need to reduce the environmental impact of our products and are committed to the well-being of our people. The new structure and the ambitious targets set bring sustainability to the core of our production.”

For further details of the Ontex Group’s latest innovative, personal hygiene products visit: www.ontexglobal.com n