Piramal Enterprises buys four Pfizer brands for Rs110 crore

Mumbai: The consumer products division of pharma company Piramal Enterprises Ltd has acquired four brands from Pfizer Ltd for ₹ 110 crore, the company said in a statement on Friday. The brands are Ferradol, Neko, Sloan’s and Waterbury’s Compound. The collective market size of these brands is estimated at ₹ 7,000 crore, the company said.

“These brands hold a rich legacy and have a high consumer pull and are available in India for the past 30+ years,” the company said in a statement, adding that the trademark rights for Ferradol and Waterbury’s Compound in Bangladesh and Sri Lanka will also be transferred to Piramal as part of the deal.

The brands acquired are well-known in the Indian market. Ferradol, launched in 1982, is a leading nutritional supplement for children and adults, while Waterbury’s Compound, launched in 1970, is used for building cough and cold immunity. Neko is a medicated soap while Sloan is a muscular pain reliever.

The completion of the deal is subject to regulatory approval.

“Our aim is to be a significant player in every business under the healthcare vertical of Piramal Enterprises Ltd,” said Nandini Piramal, executive director, Piramal Enterprises, in a statement.

“The consumer products division of the company currently ranks 7th in India; but we aim to be a top 3 player in the OTC (over-the-counter) market by 2020. Acquisition is one of the important routes to help us achieve our goal and in the last six months we have done two acquisitions in the consumer products business,” she added.

In November, the company entered the babycare segment by acquiring a 100% stake in Little’s India, the country’s oldest baby care products brand, for an undisclosed amount. This acquisition added eight categories to Piramal Enterprises’ consumer product division, which sells Lacto Calamine lotion and headache drug Saridon.

The company entered the OTC market with the acquisition of Saridon from Roche Holding AG and Lacto Calamine from Duphar Interfran Ltd in the early 1990s.