GPA Global bolsters luxury beauty packaging capacities with Cosfibel Group acquisition
11 Jan 2023 --- Design engineering specialist GPA Global has acquired luxury promotional packaging outfit Cosfibel to advance and grow its nearshore and onshore manufacturing capabilities in the beauty and personal care segment.
The acquisition gives GPA a strong foothold in Europe via Cosfibel’s manufacturing facilities in Spain, Portugal and Belgium. In addition, the growth furthers GPA’s strategy to shorten supply chains and increase its speed-to-market.
“Our global supply chain and manufacturing capabilities will enable us to better support Cosfibel’s customers and increase our prominence in the beauty sector,” says Adam Melton, CEO at GPA.
Expanding material supply capacity
The move allows GPA to de-risk the supply of materials and reduce carbon emissions. Cosfibel has a strong portfolio of premium and high-luxury brands that include L’Oréal, Chanel, LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, Rémy Martin, La Durée and Damman with 70 brands in its portfolio.
The France-based company has global service centers in 16 locations and works across the categories of beauty & personal care, wine & spirits and fine foods.
“GPA and Cosfibel’s complementary capabilities will enable us to grow even quicker, accelerate our diversification and foster the transformation of the pack and gift industry,” says Marie Sermadiras, CEO at Cosfibel.
The acquisition of Cosfibel strengthens GPA’s foothold in Europe.
“This alliance is a clear recognition of the work our teams have put in to grow and transform our business in a successful and sustainable way despite the challenges posed by a global pandemic.”
Meanwhile, the balance between premium shelf appeal and increased environmental sustainability was a key theme at London Packaging Week in 2022. During the event, we spoke to leading packaging suppliers for the cosmetics and personal care industries to understand how they are creating solutions that strike this balance.
Deepening shareholder presence
The acquisition of Cosfibel is the second major acquisition by GPA, with the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Board as a shareholder, building on the recent acquisition of US-based Jenco Productions, which established a presence for GPA in Mexico.
“The combination with GPA will further develop Cosfibel’s well-established European customer network as part of GPA’s strong global platform. Ontario Teachers’ is excited to see GPA continue to execute its growth strategy by acquiring high-quality assets and partnering with strong management teams,” says Raju Ruparelia, senior managing director, private capital, Asia-Pacific at Ontario Teachers.’
In other industry developments, renewable chemistry technology business Avantium struck a conditional offtake agreement with the LVMH Group to produce petroleum-free cosmetic packaging.
Fasten introduced the Recharge Luxury Refill system: a line of environmentally sustainable, refillable cosmetic packaging for makeup and skincare products to support the circular economy. The range is available in 30 ml and 100 ml containers constructed from PP and PET.
Edited by Inga de Jong
