Swisse Wellness withdraws from US to focus on global brand building, but vows, ‘we’ll be back bigger and better!’
Swisse Wellness is the fastest growing OTC company in the world in the last five years. After gaining dominance of Australia’s buoyant supplements market it entered the US last year. Shortly after this the company announced a ‘game-changing’ and historic deal with PGT Healthcare to begin expanding its range of more than 100 vitamins, minerals and supplements globally over the next few years. PGT Healthcare LLP is the international joint venture between P&G and Teva Pharmaceutical Industries.
Speaking exclusively with NutraIngredients-USA from Australia, Radek Sali, CEO of Swisse Wellness, said that the bigger game is the global position, and investment would be focused on ensuring the company delivers on the PGT deal. This led the company to the difficult decision of withdrawing from the US market.
The absence will only be temporary, however. “We’ll be back in the US in two to three years,” said Sali, “with the benefit of being a global power brand.”
Sali has previously said that the natural health category needs a power brand on a global scale to help further the spread of integrative medicine and health and wellness, and by focusing resources on the global expansion Swisse can achieve that goal.
By supporting the global expansion with PGT, the company will fuel international growth and job creation, and also boost employment, investment, manufacturing, science and research in Australia, he said.
The global expansion will be supported by new offices in Europe and Asia, said Sali, and these will open in the coming months. The first Swisse products will be on shelf in new markets as early as next year.
