Henkel Romania climbs 17%, to 50m euros

Henkel Romania, the local branch of Henkel Central Eastern Europe, reported 50.3 million euros (1,890 billion ROL) in turnover last year, up 17% from 2002, when it had logged 43 million euros.

Henkel Romania had posted net loss of some 27 billion ROL (860,000 euros) in 2002, but the company did not disclose last year’s financial results.

The operating result amounted to 124 billion ROL (3.3 million euros) in 2003.

The company holds the Henkel Bautechnik adhesive production plant, which was opened four years ago, following an investment of about five million euros. Company officials did not disclose the revenues of the adhesive production unit, but mentioned its strong growth on the Romanian market.

Henkel Romania currently employs a total of 330 people. The company ranked 23rd last year in the top of advertising investors, as its gross (rate-card) investments exceeded $14 million. The company operates on the market of detergents, with brands such as Persil, Rex, Pur, Silan, and on the cosmetics segment, with Palette, Fa, Taft and Schauma.

Henkel Romania’s main competitors are Unilever, Procter & Gamble and Colgate Palmolive, Beiersdorf and Johnson & Johnson.

On the textile detergents segment, Henkel Romania competes against brands such as Ariel, Tide, Bonux (Procter & Gamble) or Omo (Unilever). In the dish detergents department, Henkel Romania’s Pur brand is racing against Fairy (Procter & Gamble) and Axion (Colgate Palmolive).

Among the brands of adhesives, the most active were Ceresit, Loctite, Teroson, Moment and Pritt. Henkel Romania was established in 1994, as a branch of Henkel Austria, which then became Henkel Central Eastern Europe in 1998.  georgiana.stavarache@zf.ro