Winter disappointment for cosmetics business

The long and hard winter has upset the forecasts of companies in the cosmetics industry, whose representatives are now voicing disappointment. They say the beginning of the year, the first quarter to be precise, was unexpectedly slow for business. “The main trend on the cosmetics market in the first three months of 2003 was a rather sharp decline in sales,” said Constantin Tudorache, general manager of cosmetics importer Romsar Cosmetics. “This caused us to post Q1 results which were only a little higher than in the year-ago period, instead of the ambitious growth we had planned,” Tudorache said. Romsar logged 4.2 million euro sales in Q1, 2003, compared to the 4.1 million euros in Q1, 2002. The company, held by the Greek group Sarantis, distributes several brands such as Johnson & Johnson, Neutro Roberts and L’Oreal on the Romanian market. What caused this disappointment? “The higher sales throughout November and December, the impact of the increase in upkeep costs this winter, and the banks loosening the reigns on lending for homes and home appliances practically redirected consumption,” Romsar’s manager said. ZF