Givaudan has completed the acquisition of Expressions Parfumées, a French fragrance creation house, from its current shareholders, Orfite and Expressions Parfumées' management. Founded in Grasse in 1982, Expressions Parfumées is a pioneer of natural fragrance compounds and offers its Natco range of perfumes designed to adapt to any production labelled 'organic'. Givaudan had entered in exclusive negotiations to acquire Expressions Parfumées in December 2017. Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but Expressions Parfumées had sales of approximately $73 million last year. Givaudan funded the transaction from existing resources.


"It is a very exciting day for Givaudan as we welcome Expressions Parfumées into the Givaudan family," said Givaudan CEO Gilles Andrier. "Their know-how, talent, and capabilities will greatly contribute to our 2020 strategy. This acquisition also marks our return to where it all started 250 years ago, in Grasse, a region that has always been close to our heart and history."


According to Jacques Lions, CEO of Expression Parfumées, joining Givaudan is a unique opportunity for Expressions Parfumées to take the business to new heights.


"We have a true complementarity, and both companies will benefit from each other to achieve our common ambition which is to create the winning fragrances of tomorrow," said Lions. "This opens a new era for our company after having experienced a long-term solid and highly valuable shareholding partnership between Orfite and Expressions Parfumées."


According to Maurizio Volpi, president of Givaudan's Fragrance Division, this acquisition is aligned with the company's ambition to expand itsreach to local and regional customers.


"We are confident that our customers will greatly benefit from our combined companies: Expressions Parfumées will be managed as an independent entity within the Fragrance Division, maintaining the brand whilst benefiting from Givaudan's unique ingredients and sourcing network," he added.