Unilever is consolidating its business position in Latin America with the acquisition of Quala’s personal care and home care brands.

Founded in 1980, Quala now has a strong presence in ten countries in Latin America: Colombia, Ecuador, Mexico, Dominican Republic, Haiti, Peru, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua and Guatemala. Its personal care and home care portfolio includes leading local brands Savital/Savilé (haircare and skin cleansing), eGo (male haircare and styling), Bio-Expert (haircare), Fortident (oral care) and Aromatel (fabric conditioners); with a combined turnover of over USD 400M in 2016.

Quala wants to focus efforts and resources on accelerating growth on their core business in conditioned food products.

Quala has done an outstanding job of building strong and competitive local brands. The inclusion of these brands in our stable will consolidate our leading position in Haircare globally, and contribute to our oral care and male grooming businesses, complementing very well our existing offering,” said Paul Polman, CEO Unilever.

Quala’s Savital/Savilé is the number one brand in haircare by volume in Colombia, and has a good presence in the rest of the North Latin America region. eGo is the number one male hair grooming brand in Colombia and Mexico, and has presence across eight markets, with 85% of its turnover coming from styling. Bio-Expert is a Haircare brand with a strong, on-trend natural positioning. Fortident is the number two oral care brand in Colombia and Ecuador, showing steady market share growth.

Quala’s brands will give us an even sounder footing in Latin America, broadening our offering in Mexico, Colombia and Ecuador. We look forward to continuing to grow these great brands,” added Miguel Kozuszok, Executive Vice President, Latin America, Unilever.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed. The acquisition is subject to regulatory approvals and customary closing conditions.