Azelis expands eco-friendly home care and cleaning business through Sirius International acquisition
30 May 2023 --- Azelis, an innovation service provider in the specialty chemicals industry, has signed an agreement to acquire 100% of the shares of Sirius International, a distributor of specialty chemicals in the Benelux market.
This acquisition complements Azelis’ lateral value chain in the home care and industrial cleaning categories.
“This partnership will allow us to leverage Azelis’ global network and expertise in sustainable chemistry, as we work together toward our shared goal of making a positive impact on the environment and society,” comments Leo Verboeket, CEO at Sirius.
“We look forward to developing more innovative solutions for our customers and expanding the reach of our current offerings to customers worldwide.”
New product launches harnessing less harsh cleaning agents like probiotics point to the maturation of the nature-based home care segment (Image credit: Lively).Biodegradable and recyclable chemicals
The market segment of green cleaning solutions has been steadily maturing as launches of plant-based and eco-friendly products continue to feature prominently.
One example of nature-based functional solutions in action are household cleaning and pet care products that harness the natural cleaning power of probiotics to deep-clean without harsh chemicals.
Founded in 2004 by current CEO Leo Verboeket and based in Baarn, the Netherlands, Sirius operates as a distributor of environment-friendly chemicals for the detergent, personal care and water treatment markets in Europe. The supplier works with biodegradable and recyclable raw materials to create its green chemicals.
The company will complement Azelis’ sustainability program with its environmental solutions extended to customers in the Europe, Middle East and Africa regions and abroad.
This collaboration follows Azelis’ recent partnership with agricultural upcycling and circular economy specialist Alvinesa Natural Ingredients, which transforms agricultural byproducts – such as grape and olive pomace – into a range of natural products that can be used in cosmetics and personal care products.
The Alvinesa partnership focuses on the markets of Vietnam, India and South Korea, enhancing the segment of sustainable plant-based ingredients.
Azelis’ expansion developments
Among other business activities, Azelis recently inaugurated a personal care laboratory in Midrand, South Africa. Together with its laboratory in Cairo, Egypt, the new innovation lab is aimed at reinforcing the company’s presence in the Middle East and Africa personal care sector, enabling technical support and innovation to customers throughout the region.
In February, Azelis opened a personal care application laboratory in Barcelona, Spain. The laboratory is equipped to service various personal care sub-segments and will focus on skin and hair care – complementing Azelis’ network of personal care laboratories across EMEA.
Azelis has also been focused on scaling its Southeast Asian operations together with Unilever across the skin care, hair solutions and home cleaning product segments. The companies individually published updates on their investments in the Philippines, which is an attractive entry point to the broader Asia-Pacific region.
In other developments to expand its footprint, Azelis acquired 100% of the shares of Chemiplas Agencies, a specialty chemicals and ingredients distributor in Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific Islands.
By Benjamin Ferrer
