Essity buys Kenvue Brazilian feminine care business in US$284M deal
Key takeaways
- Essity is buying Kenvue’s Brazilian feminine care business, including Carefree, Sempre Livre, and OB.
- The deal follows Essity’s February acquisition of Edgewell’s North American feminine care brands.
- Closing depends on Brazilian regulatory approval and completion of the Kimberly-Clark and Kenvue merger, expected in Q2 2027.
Essity has entered into an agreement to acquire Kenvue’s feminine care business in Brazil. The deal will include brands such as Carefree, Sempre Livre, and OB.
The purchase price amounts to US$284 million on a cash and debt-free basis. Essity says the acquisition strengthens its position as a market leader in feminine care in Latin America.
The health and hygiene company has structured the acquisition as an asset purchase from the Kenvue subsidiaries for sanitary pads, liners, and tampons, as well as related manufacturing equipment in Brazil.
According to Essity, Brazil is one of the world’s largest hygiene markets and the fourth-largest feminine care market. For the 12-month period ending June 30, 2026, Kenvue’s feminine care business had net sales of approximately BRL 800 million (US$ 154.48 million) with “good profitability.”
“Brazil represents a significant growth opportunity in hygiene and health, where we already hold a leading position in incontinence products,” says Ulrika Kolsrud, president and CEO of Essity. “With this acquisition, we establish a strong position in feminine care in Brazil, and it marks another step in our strategy to grow in our most value-creating categories.”
Building the portfolio
Essity touts to be a fast-growing global player in feminine care. The company offers a portfolio of sanitary pads, liners, tampons, intimate soaps, intimate wipes, and leakproof apparel. It has brands such as Libresse, Bodyform, Nana, Saba, Libra, and Nosotras.
According to Essity, it is currently a market leader in incontinence products in Brazil with its Tena brand, including a production facility in Jarinu. The company also says it has an established presence in the categories of Professional Hygiene and Medical Solutions.
Carefree and OB return to a single owner across the Americas.
In February 2026, the Swedish company acquired Edgewell Personal Care’s feminine care business. The brands included in the deal were Carefree, Stayfree, and OB in North America, and Playtex globally. The deal’s purchase price amounted to US$340 million on a cash and debt-free basis.
The two deals do not overlap. Johnson & Johnson (J&J) sold the North American rights to Carefree, Stayfree, and OB in 2013, keeping the brands in every other market. Those rights ended up with Edgewell, which sold them to Essity in a deal that closed in February. Everything outside North America stayed with J&J and now sits with Kenvue after it spun off from the American multinational company in 2023 — including the Brazilian business and local pad brand Sempre Livre that Essity is buying now.
In other business transactions, earlier this year, Kimberly-Clark announced it would buy Kenvue in a deal valued at US$48.7 billion.
The new Essity and Kenvue transaction is subject to regulatory approval in Brazil and other customary closing conditions, as well as the completion of the Kimberly-Clark and Kenvue transaction. The acquisition is expected to close during the second quarter of 2027.
