Henkel looks to the Egyptian market to increase its presence in Africa
A new facility in the urban area of Cairo, ‘6th of October City’, will act as an export hub for the African markets, focusing on the production of home care products.
Henkel Egypt CEO, Ahmed Fahmy told the Daily News Egypt that the firm will invest €40m in the new facility while a further €10m will be injected into its’ factory in Port Said.
“The company aims to transform Egypt into an export centre for African markets,” Fahmy told the publication.
Egypt has an African free trade agreement in place between the top three African economic blocs, the COMESA, SADC and the East African Community.
Last year, the Schwarzkopf hair care maker spoke openly about its confidence in the strength and sustainability of the Egyptian economy.
Emerging markets are this personal care player’s strength
Henkel brought in a total sales figure of €18bn in 2015, an increase of 3 per cent from the year before and its’ aim is to be a leader in the production of detergents, home care and personal care products and.
According to company reps, the personal care player’s ongoing development in emerging markets continued with “Africa/Middle East region recording solid sales growth”.
Egypt - a popular destination for beauty brand investment
L’Oréal has also invested in a Cairo based factory in recent years to act as a production hub for the Middle East and North Africa region.
In 2014, the plant produced 50 million units and has the potential to double its production capacity by 2018.
It employs nearly 200 people and L’Oréal prides itself in sourcing more than 70 per cent of its packaging needs amongst regional suppliers and plans to use local materials and suppliers as much as possible.
