The
Consumer Business Segment increased its sales organically by 5.7% in
the first three months of fiscal year 2013. Nominal sales increased by
3.2%, from €1,277 million to €1,318 million.
NIVEA
recorded sales growth of 5.7% as against the prior-year quarter. Eucerin
generated a 9.4% increase in sales as of the end of the period and La
Prairie an 8.2% increase.
EBIT excluding special factors
rose to €178 million compared to €164 million in the previous year. The
EBIT margin increased from 12.8% in Q1/2012 to 13.5% in Q1/2013. As in
previous years, we expect the EBIT margin to decline over the course of
this year due to the seasonality of our business.
Business performance in the individual regions was mixed.
Sales in Europe were
down 1.2% versus prior-year mainly due to consumers in Europe – and
particularly in Southern European countries – being generally reluctant
to spend.
In Western Europe, sales were down 0.7% on the previous year while in Germany, they were down 1.8%. Beiersdorf recorded a 1.5% decline in sales in Eastern Europe after a strong performance in the prior-year quarter.
The company saw significant growth in the Americas region, where sales climbed by 14.8%. Beiersdorf was particularly successful in Latin America,
increasing sales by 21.6%. The main driver here was the strong sales
growth recorded in Brazil. Sales in North America were up 5.4% on the
prior-year figure.
Beiersdorf’s sales in the Africa/Asia/Australia region rose by 16.0%. This was primarily attributable to the positive performance seen in China, India, and the Middle East.