Henkel Lebanon expands Levant operations

Limited growth opportunities are driving Henkel-Lebanon, a manufacturer of cleaning products and detergents, to expand its operations in Syria and Iraq.

Carol Milan, General Manager of Henkel Levant, said: “Because we are market leaders in a number of categories, and the market is mature, and in light of demographic changes that have impacted consumer behavior, we have decided to expand.” A shift in consumers, from tourists to refugees, has affected its local operations. “We are planning new innovations and line extensions, but they will not add incremental gains to our turnover,” she said.

Henkel is joint venturing with Obegi Group in these two countries. “We have been dealing with Iraq on an export basis, but we have plans to develop a manufacturing plant,” she said.

In Syria, Henkel had signed with contract manufacturers to start producing its items. The company’s products existed there before, but the 2011 war had taken its toll on exports.

Until the new plants are ready, Henkel’s plant in Lebanon will manufacture products for these two countries. “Our plant was underutilized. We do not plan to expand it in the near future,” Milan said. The value of the expansion is over $5 million. Henkel is leading the venture in terms of supply chain, distribution, production, marketing, and sales.

The manufacturer also entered the toilet care category in the local market. “We have been doing extremely well since we’ve started manufacturing,” she said.