Hervé Lesieur

Spanish-based group Puig, owner of Carolina Herrera, Nina Ricci and Paco Rabanne perfume brands, as well of several licenses (Prada, Comme des Garcons and Valentino), and which bought a majority stake last May in the French fashion house Jean Paul Gaultier, just acquired the Laboratoires Dermatologiques d’Uriage, a French laboratory of dermo-cosmetics.

To do this, Corporacion Exea Empreserial the holding of the Puig family, has teamed up with Invest M3, a company owned by Herve Lesieur, president of Payot Laboratories, which are also part of the Puig group. According to the statement released by the two partners, this acquisition is part of the mission entrusted to Hervé Lesieur, to develop a cosmetic business unit within the group. The amount of the transaction was not disclosed.

Over the past 18 years, Les Laboratoires Dermatologiques d’Uriage, experienced uninterrupted growth, with net sales exceeding 70 million euros in 2010 (around 100 million US dollars).

Enjoying a good notoriety, both in France and abroad, the Uriage brand draws part of its legitimacy in the thermal water that forms the basis of all its products. This water is rich in trace elements and minerals, "whose active properties are demonstrated, recognized and used in spa treatments," the company claims.

For the Puig group, whose world’s turnover reached 1.2 billion euros in 2010, in thanks to its perfume and fashion brands and licenses, the acquisition of the Laboratoires Dermatologiques d’Uriage is an important step in the strengthening of its activities in the premium skin care market.