Sarantis Romania, the company formerly known as Romsar Cosmetics, has seen its sales on the Romanian market grow by 15% over the first four months of the year.
"The first-quarter figures are in line with the targets we set for this year. The higher sales were largely due to the fact that our products have become more accessible thanks to the stronger purchasing power of the population," said Constantin Tudorache, Sarantis Romania"s CEO.
Sarantis is hoping to achieve turnover of 27.5m euros in 2005, 14% higher than in 2004.
The company, a member of the Greek group, Sarantis, which specialises in manufacturing and distribution of personal care products (cosmetics) and home care products, changed its name this year in order to align itself with the corporate identity of the Greek group.
The Romanian branch of the company is responsible for an average of 10% of the group"s annual sales. "We are third in the group, after Greece and Poland, though in terms of profitability we are second," said Tudorache.
The company"s best selling products (around 25% of sales) are its range of perfumes for both men (STR8 and DARE) and women (BU, C-Thru and X-Pose). In terms of cosmetic products, the company also sells luxury brands (Juvena, La Prairie and Pupa), besides mass market labels.
Company estimates show their Johnson"s Baby range of children"s products to have reached a 50% market share. "Sales of these products in Romania are quite special.
The higher level of sales, especially for shampoos and massage oils aimed at babies, were in fact the result of their also being used by adults," explained Tudorache. He went on to explain that research had shown that these products sell well on both children"s and adults" shelves.
In a bid to improve its range of products, the company is trying to develop in three distinct directions: new product launches (expanding the current portfolio), brand re-launching (one of the tasks of its research and development departments is to improve existing brands), and identifying new opportunities and insufficiently exploited niche markets.
"Our greatest challenge is the distribution of car accessories and cosmetics, an area where we plan to become an important player soon," added Tudorache. After being launched at the end of last year, car accessories and cosmetics need to reach a market share of 20-25% in their first two years if they are to meet the targets set by the company. dana.ciriperu@zf.ro
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