Univar Solutions was recently acquired by Apollo Funds. Could you elaborate on the benefits of the acquisition as well as Univar’s journey in the personal care space?
The acquisition by Apollo Funds marks a significant milestone for Univar Solutions. They recognized the potential in our distribution space, which is dynamic and ripe for growth. Our strategy includes expanding in established markets like North America and Europe, as well as in regions where we have a lesser presence. Under private ownership, we anticipate easier and more frequent acquisitions, enabling us to enhance our reach and capabilities in various markets.
Our journey in the personal care sector began over a decade ago when we transitioned from a full-line distributor to focusing on specialty chemicals. This shift led to the creation of dedicated teams with deep industry expertise, such as in beauty and personal care. In addition to our market focused approach, we enhanced our Personal Care product offerings with industry leading suppliers bringing us key ingredients including botanical extracts, surfactants, emollients, preservatives, vitamins, and active ingredients. We also established a new technical Solution Center in Versailles, a global hub for the beauty industry. Our approach revolves around providing specialized solutions and leveraging our teams' in-depth knowledge to support our customers and suppliers uniquely. Our solution centers are a global network of formulation labs creating specialty solutions. The needs of today – be it the transition to more sustainable and natural products or staying ahead of rapidly changing customer trends – demand solutions that push us and our partners into what's next.
Can you tell us more about your BeautyLAB and how it contributes to Univar's success in the personal care sector?
BeautyLAB is a technical program focused on providing educational content and solutions concerning formulations. In this inaugural edition we focused on sun care, however we’ll be speaking about hair, skin, and color cosmetics in the future. We use and test our world class suppliers’ ingredients to create formulations that meet the rigorous demands of our customers by anticipating industry trends and regulatory changes. Essentially, we are doing the formulation work, so our customers don’t have to! BeautyLAB is a key component of our marketing strategy. Our network of technical solution centers, which we've interconnected globally, worked together to bring this program to life. This network enables us to share formulations and solutions across regions, enhancing our ability to serve diverse markets. Our labs are state-of-the-art facilities, equipped to develop innovative solutions for the beauty care industry. We emphasize technical expertise and support, helping our clients with unique formulations and solving complex challenges.
How does your sustainable and natural product framework benefit both suppliers and customers, particularly in the small to medium customer segment?
Two years ago, we appointed a vice president of sustainable and natural products to address a critical need in our product portfolio. Our goal was to identify products that were genuinely sustainable and natural, backed by solid evidence.
We established a framework with six sustainability characteristics to ensure that our customers had transparency and clarity at the product level.
The characteristics include bio-based or natural, reduced carbon footprints, safer substitutes, circular ingredients and two types of accreditations—social impact and environmental. From a modest beginning with around 70 products, we've expanded to over 700 across multiple industries. Our website provides detailed information on our sustainable and natural products framework, a unique offering in the market that is poised for growth and innovation.
Our framework serves as a vital link between suppliers of sustainable and natural products and our small to medium-sized customers. Many of these customers require education and a single source to evaluate and purchase sustainable chemicals and ingredients. Our framework not only makes these products identifiable and accessible but also highlights their benefits through clear documentation. This approach is unique among our competitors and has been a key factor in our success, offering a clear advantage in the marketplace.
We work at the intersection of science and technology, helping customers bring forward sustainable solutions to achieve their ESG goals. That means we are more than a distributor: we are a technical innovator and supply chain connector, exploring new ways to take your products to the next level and solve challenges for a better tomorrow.
How do you anticipate and adapt to consumer trends, particularly in the beauty care space?
Understanding consumer trends is a multifaceted process. Our marketing teams work closely with our suppliers and agency partners to stay ahead of the curve. Our solution centers also play a role, giving key customer insights. Trends in the beauty and personal care space, for instance, often cycle globally. We leverage our presence in Asia to get early insights, which then help us tailor our resources in Europe and North America. Our strong relationships with major suppliers like Dow, Inolex, and DSM-Firmenich provide us access to their technical and marketing insights as well. By analyzing information from various suppliers, we can pinpoint likely trends. Additionally, our marketing team, aligned by industry, plays a crucial role in trend identification. We've also invested in digitizing our data, enabling us to mine information efficiently. This digital transformation extends to our formulation libraries, and we're exploring AI technology to predict future formulations and improve product stability more rapidly.
With the various challenges and changes in the market, what concerns you the most about the future?
The last few years have been tumultuous for the chemical and ingredient industry and the global economy. From the COVID-19 crisis to the recent geopolitical tensions, such as the Ukraine-Russia conflict, these events have led to fluctuations in market demand. My primary concern is navigating through these economic shifts. The challenge is to be prepared for the transition from a low-demand phase, induced by high inventory levels, to a potential growth phase, especially in sectors like beauty and personal care. I am optimistic about the future, as there are signs of recovery, but ensuring that we are ready to meet the demands of a revitalized market is what occupies my thoughts. Our goal is to maintain readiness to serve our customers effectively, seeing these challenges as opportunities for growth and adaptation.
