LONDON and ROTTERDAM, Netherlands, Sept. 25, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Unilever announced today that it has agreed to acquire Carver Korea, a leading skincare business in North Asia, for EURO2.27bn, from Bain Capital Private Equity and Goldman Sachs.
Founded in 1999, Carver has shown exponential growth over the last five years; delivering sales of EURO321m and EBITDA of EURO137m in 2016. Building on its origins as an aesthetics company supplying professional products to beauty salons, Carver has become the fastest-growing skincare business in South Korea, through sales of its brand, AHC. AHC's portfolio is focused on two high-demand consumer spaces: age management, and hydration and nourishment. The range includes the hero product: 'Eye Cream for Face', along with essences, toners, moisturisers, masks, and sun protection.
Alan Jope, Unilever President Personal Care, says: "We are delighted to be acquiring Carver Korea. It is an impressive business that is completely aligned to our Personal Care strategy. It will significantly strengthen our position in North Asia, the largest skincare market in the world; and will complement our existing portfolio, enabling us to offer luxury skincare products at attainable price points. AHC has been strongly gaining popularity thanks to its efficacious, innovative and premium products; and it therefore offers great opportunities for growth."
Ed Han, a Managing Director for Bain Capital Private Equity, says: "This has been a great opportunity for us to partner with a leading Korean company in an exciting segment of the cosmetics space and to help support its brand, operations and growth around the world. Unilever is a strong partner to help the company in its next phase of growth and development."
South Korea is the fourth largest skincare market in the world and is also a source of global beauty trends, with the term 'K-Beauty' becoming a globally-used shorthand for sophisticated skincare that is widely exported. Carver has a very strong position in this space, and it will therefore strengthen Unilever's expertise in the Asian beauty market, and its Personal Care category globally.
The transaction is subject to customary regulatory approvals.
About Unilever
Unilever is one of the world's leading suppliers of Food, Home Care, Personal Care and Refreshment products with sales in over 190 countries and reaching 2.5 billion consumers a day. It has 169,000 employees and generated sales of EURO52.7 billion in 2016. Over half (57%) of the company's footprint is in developing and emerging markets. Unilever has more than 400 brands found in homes all over the world, including Persil, Dove, Knorr, Domestos, Hellmann's, Lipton, Wall's, PG Tips, Ben & Jerry's, Magnum and Lynx.
Unilever's Sustainable Living Plan underpins the company's strategy and commits to:
The USLP creates value by driving growth and trust, eliminating costs and reducing risks. The company's sustainable living brands are growing 50% faster than the rest of the business and delivered more than 60% of the company's growth in 2016.
Unilever was ranked number one in its sector in the 2017 Dow Jones Sustainability Index. In the FTSE4Good Index, it achieved the highest environmental score of 5. It led the list of Global Corporate Sustainability Leaders in the 2017 GlobeScan/SustainAbility annual survey for the seventh year running. Unilever has pledged to become carbon positive in its operations by 2030.
For more information about Unilever and its brands, please visit www.unilever.com. For more information on the USLP: www.unilever.com/sustainable-living/
About Bain Capital Private Equity: Bain Capital Private Equity has partnered closely with management teams to provide the strategic resources that build great companies and help them thrive since our founding in 1984. Our team of more than 220 investment professionals creates value for our portfolio companies through our global platform and depth of expertise in key vertical industries including consumer/retail, financial and business services, healthcare, industrials, and technology, media and telecommunications. In addition to private equity, Bain Capital invests across asset classes including credit, public equity and venture capital, and leverages the firm's shared platform to capture opportunities in strategic areas of focus. For more information visit www.baincapitalprivateequity.com.
Safe Harbour
This announcement may contain forward-looking statements, including 'forward-looking statements' within the meaning of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including statements related to underlying sales growth and underlying operating margin. Words such as 'will', 'aim', 'expects', 'anticipates', 'intends', 'looks', 'believes', 'vision', or the negative of these terms and other similar expressions of future performance or results, and their negatives, are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are based upon current expectations and assumptions regarding anticipated developments and other factors affecting the Unilever Group (the "Group"). They are not historical facts, nor are they guarantees of future performance.
Because these forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties, there are important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. Among other risks and uncertainties, the material or principal factors which could cause actual results to differ materially are: Unilever's global brands not meeting consumer preferences; Unilever's ability to innovate and remain competitive; Unilever's investment choices in its portfolio management; inability to find sustainable solutions to support long-term growth; customer relationships; the recruitment and retention of talented employees; disruptions in our supply chain; the cost of raw materials and commodities; the production of safe and high quality products; secure and reliable IT infrastructure; successful execution of acquisitions, divestitures and business transformation projects; economic and political risks and natural disasters; the effect of climate change on Unilever's business; financial risks; failure to meet high and ethical standards; and managing regulatory, tax and legal matters. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this announcement. Except as required by any applicable law or regulation, the Group expressly disclaims any obligation or undertaking to release publicly any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statements contained herein to reflect any change in the Group's expectations with regard thereto or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statement is based. Further details of potential risks and uncertainties affecting the Group are described in the Group's filings with the London Stock Exchange, Euronext Amsterdam and the US Securities and Exchange Commission, including in the Annual Report on Form 20-F 2016 and the Unilever Annual Report and Accounts 2016.
