By region, our sales breakdown as follows: 71% in Europe, 17% in Latin America and 12% in Asia, Africa, Australasia. Europe thus remains our largest market with sales of EUR 331 million, an increase of 3.8% over 2009.
France: our largest market
France remains our top-selling country, posting sales of EUR 101 million, or 1.8% more than in 2009. The Bion® range again performed very well, securing its position as the second-leading brand in the French OTC market and as number one for nutritional supplements. Femibion® Maman Active for young mothers was launched in France in 2010.
Apaisyl® is a very well-known brand in France, which focuses on head lice, skin irritations and mycoses. New products for nail fungus, chapped hands and herpes were added to this product range. The Médiflor® range was also expanded to include a product for sore throats.
Consumer Health Care | Sales by region
Femibion®: the clear market leader in Germany
Germany has replaced the United Kingdom as our second most important market. In 2010, our German subsidiary Merck Selbstmedikation GmbH marked its 40th anniversary. Sales in Germany totaled EUR 57 million, representing growth of 1.7%. With a market share of more than 50%, Femibion®, which was launched in Germany 15 years ago, is the clear leader in its market segment, growing by 4.4% in 2010. In the Femibion® range, we launched Flor Intim, a probiotic product to protect and foster healthy vaginal flora. Very good sales were generated by Cape June®, our brand of diet products distributed directly through the QVC home shopping network.
A difficult environment in the United Kingdom
In the United Kingdom, a difficult market environment caused sales to drop by 0.7% to EUR 54 million. Femibion®, which was launched here in 2009, did not meet expectations. Our Lamberts Healthcare line showed a positive trend; this brand specializes in the direct sale of nutritional supplements and focuses heavily on e-commerce.
At EUR 27 million, sales in Belgium remained stable at a high level. Poland showed very positive growth of 18%, reaching EUR 29 million. Consumer Health Care also saw strong increases in Russia, Hungary, Austria and Turkey.
Currency effects in Latin America
In Latin America, total sales decreased by 9.6% to EUR 81 million. This was attributable to exchange rate losses in Venezuela, one of our most important markets in Latin America after Mexico. Although we achieved organic growth of 30%, sales in Venezuela dropped by 52%. In terms of total sales, the positive sales growth in Mexico (7.1%), Brazil (14%) and Chile (45%), for example, was unable to completely compensate for Venezuela. However, we achieved 11% organic growth in the region.
To expand our position in Latin America, we opened a new research and development center in Brazil. The center serves as an R&D hub for Brazil and neighboring countries. The center’s goal is to develop regional solutions for the successful strategic brands of Merck Consumer Health Care. This means that existing products and future developments from the worldwide portfolio are to be adapted to regional conditions and local regulatory requirements.
Growth in major Asian markets
In Asia, sales declined by 4.8% as a result of the aforementioned development in China. We achieved growth in all our major Asian markets, for example in Indonesia (42%), our main market, as well as in India (42%) and Malaysia (22%). In Indonesia, we celebrated the 35th anniversary of Sangobion®, our main product in this market. This is a supplement to prevent iron deficiency and anemia in children and adults. In the Philippines, sales grew by 47%, primarily driven by the successful launch of Sangobion® in direct sales.
After continuous growth in previous years, South Africa, by far the most important market in Africa, once more saw significant increases, rising by 29% to EUR 9.2 million. Our Slow-Mag® line of magnesium products is the clear market leader there, holding a 70% market share. We have expanded this product line to include SlowMag® Active+, a magnesium supplement containing vitamins, ginseng, guarana and zinc.
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