Companies
Symrise Launches New Application Labs Facility in Nigeria
Global flavours, fragrance, and cosmetic ingredients manufacturer, Symrise has launched its new application laboratories in Lagos with an exclusive tour of the facility on September 4, 2019.
Global flavours, fragrance, and cosmetic ingredients manufacturer, Symrise has launched its new application laboratories in Lagos with an exclusive tour of the facility on September 4, 2019. The lab exists to deepen the company’s presence in West Africa and to service Nigeria’s consumer demands by sourcing production inputs locally.
Rudy McLean, Managing Director Symrise Nigeria and Sofiane Berrahmoune, Sub Regional Flavour Director Africa and the Middle East MD Symrise ME Flavour Division
According to Rudy McLean, the Managing Director Symrise Nigeria, the principal challenge being tackled by the new Symrise facility is to help Nigerian manufacturers create affordable consumer brands like beverages, toothpaste, cereals, detergents, washing up liquid, beauty products, and personal hygiene products. Making such items affordable is central to the company’s strategy because of the unique economic situation in the Nigerian market.
Thomas Dressler, President EAME Fragrances and Oral care, Alexander Lichter, Vice President Flavour Sales EAME and Daniel Ibarra, Vice President EAME Cosmetic Ingredients Division cutting the ribbon during the official opening of Symrise Laboratories Facility in Lagos
Speaking on what informed the decision to do business and build application labs in Nigeria, Thomas Dressler, President EAME Fragrances and Oral care said,
“Nigeria has a very large economy and we service the everyday needs of people. Even though we have a large sales department here, the products for the Nigerian market were developed outside the country. To serve Nigerians better, we need to be close enough to the Nigerian people and products to understand them and give better-suited products to the Nigerian consumer. That informed our decision.”
Tour of Symrise Laboratories Facility
Alexander Lichter, Vice President Flavour Sales EAME, added that doing business in Nigeria comes with its own challenges, he said,
“Challenges are not exclusive to Nigeria. We see all the challenges in all other countries where we have a presence and we are used to it. However, the prevailing factor for us is that we recognize the opportunities in West Africa and Nigeria and we tap into it regardless.”
Thomas Dressler, President EAME Fragrances and Oral care, Alexander Lichter, Vice President Flavour Sales EAME and Daniel Ibarra, Vice President EAME Cosmetic Ingredients Division reveal the signage at the official opening of Symrise Application Laboratories Facility in Lagos
Symrise has a unique value proposition in the Nigerian market space because most of its clients in the country lack proper application labs to carry out ingredient analysis and testing. With this new facility, not only will clients be able to satisfy their customers at their price-dominated point of need, but they will also be able to develop higher quality products without breaking the bank.
[READ MORE: Job opportunities for Nigerians as Symrise prepares to open lab in Lagos]
Executives of Symrise during the press briefing
The new facility will provide labs for beverage, sweet and culinary applications, as well as labs for fragrance and cosmetic ingredients applications. It represents a key part of the company’s EAME expansion strategy.
Highlighting the next steps for Symrise after the launch of the Labs facility, Thomas Dressler, President EAME Fragrances and Oral care said,
“We will be providing a few job opportunities but our first step is to educate people in the art of perfumery. This is exciting because we offer young people a very special opportunity you can’t get in a public school or University. Symrise has a Perfumery school in Germany. We have people come from Brazil, Thailand, and China. We hope to have Nigerians come in and learn this art very soon. However, they need to have some basic knowledge and in the application Labs, young technicians will be exposed to the development of consumer products; one side cosmetic, the other side, food products.”
Tour of Symrise Labs in Lagos, Nigeria.
Notable guests present at the opening of the new facility included, Dr. Alexander Lichter – Vice President Flavour Sales EAME; Sofiane Berrahmoune, Sub-Regional Flavour Director Africa Middle East; Dr Eberhard Suessle – Vice President, Creation & Application Category Culinary EAME; Rudy McLean – Managing Director Symrise Nigeria; Pieter Gildenhuys – Head of HR & Finance Symrise South Africa; Thelumusa Mkhonza – Technical Manager Sub Saharan Africa; Amit Mudholkar – Sales Director Sub Saharan Africa Fragrances; Miguel Pereira – Sales Director Sub Saharan Africa Flavours; Dr, Rene Hemeier, Vice President AMET Fragrances; Thomas Dressler – President, EAME Fragrances & Oral Care, and Daniel Ibarra – Vice President EAME Cosmetic Ingredients, among others.
Symrise Lab Tour
Symrise is a global supplier of fragrances, flavourings, cosmetic active ingredients, and raw materials as well as functional ingredients. Its clients include manufacturers of perfumes, cosmetics, food and beverages, the pharmaceutical industry and producers of nutritional supplements.
Guests and Executives of Symrise at the opening of Symrise Labs in Lagos, Nigeria.
To find out more about Symrise, visit www.symrise.com
Companies
Deap Capital Management & Trust Plc reacts to ‘rumoured’ AMCON takeover
AMCON had dragged the company before a Court in a bid to recover the debt.
Deap Capital Management & Trust Plc has reacted to media reports about the supposed takeover of its assets by the Asset Management Company of Nigeria, AMCON.
In a statement that was signed by the Company Secretary, Yetunde Fashesin-Sousa, Deap Capital admitted that it is indebted to AMCON to the tune of N1.6 billion. It was also confirmed that AMCON owns a 20% equity stake in the fund management firm.
Note that the indebtedness arose after AMCON took over ownership of certain banks. Apparently, these are banks that Deap Capital originally owed. However, following the transfer of the unnamed banks’ assets to AMCON, the debts were also transferred alongside.
Meanwhile, AMCON had dragged the company before the Federal High Court in Lagos in a bid to recover the debt. A ruling on the case, which was delivered on January 28 by the Hon Justice John Terhemba Tsoho, was in AMCON’s favour.
Following the ruling, AMCON began the process of recovering the debt from Deap Capital Management & Trust Plc. The company said it has been cooperating in this regard by working towards repaying the debt.
The company also clarified that the assets that were taken over by AMCON belonged to its former directors whose names were not mentioned. Nairametrics could not verify if these directors are among those who were recently reinstated by the Securities and Exchange Commission, SEC. But we do know that AMCON had obtained a court order to attach the ‘former directors’ assets’ in its attempt to recover the N1.6 billion debt.
In the meantime, Deap Capital Management & Trust Plc said it is committed to resolving its operational challenges, including the recovery of its operational license and profitability issues. The company’s latest earnings report (for its Q1 period ended December 31st, 2019) showed a total income of N1 billion. There was also a N6.3 million loss for the period under review.
Deap Capital’s stock opened today’s trading session on the Nigerian Stock Exchange with a share price of N0.30. Year to date, the stock has declined by some -18%.
Companies
Lafarge Africa Plc. announces its board meeting and closed period for Q2 2020
The notification which was duly signed by General Counsel & Company Secretary.
Lafarge Africa Plc. notified the Nigerian Stock Exchange and the investing public that he closed period will commence on Wednesday, 8th July 2020 until the unaudited financial statement for the second quarter ended 30th June 2020, is released to the Nigerian Stock Exchange.
In a disclosure on the Nigerian Stock Exchange, it wrote: “We hereby notify the Nigerian Stock Exchange and the investing public that a meeting of the Board of Directors of Lafarge Africa Plc has been scheduled to hold on Thursday, 23rd July 2020 to consider the second quarter financial results of the Company for the quarter ended 30th June 2020.”
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The notification which was duly signed by General Counsel & Company Secretary, Mrs. Adewunmi Alode explained further stating that “Accordingly, no Director, employee, persons discharging managerial responsibility and Advisers of the Company and their connected persons may directly or indirectly deal in the shares of the Company in any manner during the closed period.”
Over the past few months, it made a few board changes with the retirement of two of its Non-Executive Directors, as well as the appointment of three new Directors. It had also spun off its South African subsidiary, Lafarge South Africa Holdings (LSAH), last year.
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Lafarge Africa’s Q1 2020 revenue was up 9.8% year-on-year to N63.7 billion, driven by higher Cement Sales (a figure up 11% year-on-year to N62.3 billion) which offset the weakness in Aggregate and Concrete (down 21% y/y to N1.4bn). Its EBITDA grew by 2.4% year-on-year to N19.3 billion as well. As at Tuesday the 7th of July, the share price of the company was N10.00.
Companies
AXA Mansard Insurance Plc gives notice of Annual General Meeting
The AGM will be live-streamed to enable shareholders and stakeholders participate.
Insurance firm, AXA Mansard Insurance Plc., has given notice of its board of its Annual General Meeting (AGM) scheduled for Wednesday, July 29, 2020, at 10:00 a.m.
The announcement which was disclosed by Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) in a corporate disclosure on July 7th, 2020 and signed by Company Secretary, Omowunmi Mabel Adewusi read, “Notice is hereby given that the twenty-eighth annual general meeting of AXA Mansard Insurance Plc. will hold at the Oriental Hotel, no. 3, Lekki Road, Victoria Island, Lagos on Wednesday, July 29, 2020, at 10:00 a.m.”
READ ALSO: AXA Mansard divests from its pension and real estate ventures
As noted, the purpose of the AGM is to transact the following business:
- To receive the Audited Financial Statements for the year ended December 31, 2019, and the Reports of the Directors, Auditors and Statutory Audit Committee thereon
- To authorise Directors to fix the remuneration of the Auditors
- To elect Directors and
- To elect members of the Statutory Audit Committee.
In order to ensure that all relevant stakeholders can be a part of the AGM, the company will also be streaming the AGM live. It noted that “This will enable shareholders and other stakeholders who will not be attending physically to follow the proceedings.”
The link for the live streaming of the Meeting will be made available on the Company’s website at www.axamansard.com.
READ MORE: Sterling Bank’s earnings to remain pressured but valuations still attractive
Recall that a few months ago, in March, the company’s Board of Directors announced the appointment of John Dickson as the company’s new Non-Executive Director. A month earlier, it also disclosed its plan to sell its pension management subsidiary (AXA Mansard Pensions Ltd) and some undisclosed real estate investments.
Its unaudited financials for the period Q1 2020 reveal a growth across revenue and profit lines. Gross written premium grew by 21% from N17.4 billion earned in Q1 2019 to N21 billion in Q1 2020. Profit for the year for the group grew by a commendable 120% from N890 million in Q1 2019 to N1.9 billion in Q1 2020.
As at Tuesday, the 7th of July when markets closed, the share price of the company was N1.59. The company’s EPS stood at 0.33 while its price to book ratio stood at 0.6082.
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