BAL has further to fall, page-43

Biostime heads to Australia to take on a2 Milk, Bellamy's

• Share via Email
• Share on Google Plus
• Post on facebook wall
• Share on twitter
• Post to Linkedin
• Share on Reddit

https://www.copyright link/content/dam/images/g/s/a/s/y/y/image.related.afrArticleLead.620x350.h182ez.png/1542605688620.jpg
The Chinese owner of Swisse vitamins is taking on the Australian infant formula players with the Biostime brand – and supermodel Miranda Kerr. AP
https://www.copyright link/content/dam/images/h/0/y/u/1/p/image.imgtype.afrWoodcutAuthorImage.120x120.png/1523853409458.jpg

• Share on twitter
• Share on Google Plus

by Simon Evans
The Chinese owner of the Swisse vitamins business will enter the fiercely competitive infant formula market in Australia with its Biostime brand, where it will take on rivals such as Bellamy's Australia and The a2 Milk Company.
It will use supermodel Miranda Kerr as its "ambassador" and has secured distribution deals with major pharmacy chains such as Chemist Warehouse, priceline and Discount Pharmacy ahead of a January launch.
Health & Happiness Group paid $1.7 billion for Melbourne-based Swisse in a two-stage buyout in late 2015 and 2016, to strengthen its operations, which at that stage consisted of the Biostime brand and other infant nutrition products in China. About half of Health & Happiness' global revenues come from infant formula and nutrition.
The move into Australia is designed to generate extra sales for Biostime, but also to deliver extra grunt for the brand in China. Retail experts say the major success of vitamins brands such as Swisse and Blackmores in building up strong sales in China stems in part from the robust positions they hold in their home market in Australia. That is because Chinese consumers began buying those brands several years ago on the strength of their "clean and green" image after several contamination scandals involving Chinese manufacturers.

Health & Happiness global marketing director Severine Brichard said Biostime would launch two products initially in Australia from January and was sourcing milk from the Normandy region in France. It came from the Isigny Sainte-Mere dairy co-operative.
"It's a really famous ecosystem," Ms Brichard said. The company aims to carve out significant market share in Australia.
Kerr's key role

Ms Brichard said Ms Kerr would play a substantial role in the global marketing strategy of Biostime. "There's a really strong alignment between us and what she represents," Ms Brichard said.
Swisse came unstuck a few months ago when one of its Swisse vitamins ambassadors, Chinese film and television star Fan Bingbing, found herself in serious strife with Chinese tax authorities.

Fan in early October resurfaced suddenly after China's tax authorities announced she had agreed to pay back almost 800 million yuan ($162 million) in fines and back taxes. While she avoided going to prison, Fan was forced to issue a grovelling apology to her millions of fans on social media, saying "I'm so ashamed of what I've done".
Fan, among China's most highly paid actors,had been missing since allegations she had avoided paying taxes triggered a government investigation three months ago.
Vitamins firm Blackmores in 2017 scrapped a joint venture with Bega Foods after unsuccessfully trying to break into the infant formula market.