Beiersdorf sales rise with help from Nivea, Eucerin and Aquaphor brands

Beiersdorf, the owner of Nivea and Eucerin, has achieved a "strong" increase in sales and high profitability for the first half of 2023.

The group saw organic sales rise 12.3%% to £4.1 billion (€4.9 billion), compared to £3.8 billion (€4.5 billion) last year.

Sales in the consumer business segment increased 14.9% to £3.5 billion (€4.1 billion), whilst EBIT reached £602 million (€700 million).

All skincare categories posted double-digit growth, boosted by the Beiersdorf's protection and lip care business.

The Nivea brand reported sales growth across all regions and categories, up 18.4% to £2.3 billion (€2.7 billion).

Derma brands Eucerin and Aquaphor saw sales rise 26.1% to £570 million (€663 million), whilst the group further expanded its market share in the anti-aging, bodycare, and sun protection categories.

However, luxury brand La Prairie recorded a 9.9% drop in sales to £252 million (€294 million), primarily due to disruption in the Asian travel retail markets.

Looking ahead, Beiersdorf has slightly increased its sales forecast for 2023.

The group expects organic sales growth in the high single-digit to low double-digit range for its consumer business. It added that there is also an opportunity to achieve growth at the upper end of this range, if luxury market conditions improve.

Vincent Warnery, CEO of Beiersdorf. said: "We not only continued our growth path but also significantly increased our profitability in the first half of the year.

"Our Consumer Business outperformed the market in terms of growth. Both Nivea and the derma brands grew strongly in all regions and categories and more than offset the weaker performance of our luxury business.

"These positive results give us confidence for the next months, even though we still expect headwinds in some areas. We are therefore increasing our sales forecast for the consumer business segment and the group."