The company has invested €18m in the new facility, which will produce Nivea body care products for China and other Asian countries.
Capacity of new factory
Initial annual output at the new factory will be 15,000 tons but this can be scaled up to 25,000 tons per year as demand grows in the region.
The new manufacturing plant, near Shanghai’s domestic airport in the Quingpu Industrial Zone (QIZ), replaces Beiersdorf’s old production facility, which is around 30 kilometers away.
“China is a key growth market for us and we see the new factory as an important step in the further development of our Nivea business in China and forms the basis for achieving our growth targets in the region,” said Peter Kleinschmidt, member of Beiersdorf’s Executive Board, at the opening ceremony in Shanghai.
“This new, powerful location allows us to systematically expand our market positions in the important Chinese market and in Asia as a whole.”
Executive appointment in Asia
As part of the focus on Asian markets, Beiersdorf has also appointed an additional Executive Board member for Asia.
James C. Wei, 51, who was previously responsible for the Asia Pacific region at Avon Cosmetics, will take on the new role as of June 1.
In Beiersdorf’s first quarter results, published at the beginning of May, sales in the Africa/Asia/Australia region increased to €254 million – a rise in organic terms of 5.5 per cent. Double-digit increases in sales were recorded in Thailand (13.9 per cent) and China (12.2 per cent).