Home, Personal Care and Baby
Baby (HPCB)
SALIENT FEATURES
STRONG PERFORMANCE FROM HOME CARE BUSINESS – OPERATING INCOME UP 48%GOOD CONTRIBUTION FROM INNOVATION, FUELLING MARGIN GROWTH OF 160BPS
Home, Personal Care and Baby (HPCB) – Purity, Ingram’s Camphor Cream, Doom, Elizabeth Anne’s, Jeyes, Perfect Touch, Dolly Varden, Status, Lemon Lite, Kair, Protein Feed, Airoma, Peaceful Sleep, Bio Classic
Sustained demand and well-received innovation in pest category contributed to strong Home Care performance.
Performance
Divisional performance was boosted by a strong contribution from the Home Care category, with overall revenue increasing 9% to R2,7 billion. The strong focus on cost containment saw operating income rise 17% to R623 million.
Although volumes in the Personal Care category were affected by price increases and constrained consumer spending, revenue was unchanged at R683 million. Operating income increased by 3% to R139 million, benefiting from the strong focus on costs. Innovation, driven mainly by Ingram's triple glycerine, tissue oil and petroleum jelly, contributed 19% to revenue.
Revenue in Baby Care was up 3% to R888 million, reflecting growth in the pouches, medicinal and toiletries categories, but a decline in jarred baby foods. Operating income was down 2% due to an unfavourable product mix and lower production volumes.
The Home Care category recorded revenue growth of 23% and a 48% improvement in operating income due to sustained demand in the pest category, effective in-store execution and optimal pricing. Innovation contributed 7% to revenue, driven by Doom automatic dispensers and the Peaceful Sleep family range.