Risdon aim for the top after Asian acquisition

The group has announced that one of its connected companies has signed a definitive agreement to acquire PD Group-owned Decorpart Asia, a former wing of Decorpart, the UK-based packaging firm that went into administration last month. It was the failure of its Asian manufacturing plant to become fully operational and financially independent as early as hoped that forced Decorpart into administration and led the drug delivery firm, Bespak, to buy the UK arm of the company. Decorpart Asia was set up as part of a €37m partnership deal with Alcan packaging in 2006. The business unit, located in Suzhou near Shanghai, manufactures metal parts for cosmetics packaging and has full metal forming and finishing capabilities. Risdon's acquisition of Decorpart Asia fits neatly into its long term plans. In March Risdon opened an office in Shanghai with the express intention of using it as a base for expansion in China. "China is a central part of Risdon's plans to become the leading supplier of cosmetics packaging components worldwide. The Suzhou facility completes the first step in our growth strategy," said Steve Pearlman, president of Risdon. Connecticut-based Risdon is already a big player in the US market, providing packaging components for the likes of L'Oreal, Elizabeth Arden and Estee Lauder. Building an operations base in China will bring Risden closer to its Asian customers and allow the company to fulfill its desire to increase future sales in China. The move is also in line with an ambitious growth strategy as the Chinese economy and retail market are showing consistent and rapid growth, with annual GDP continuing to rise in excess of 10 percent. The value of the Chinese skin care market is $720m and is growing so fast that it should exceed the size of the US market within the next few years, according to The Kline Group. Risdon's purchase of Decorpart Asia is also a logical step when considering its areas of expertise. The company's product range includes caps and closures as well as packaging for fragrances and color cosmetics, so acquiring a specialist in metal cosmetics packaging components will help the manufacturing firm to quickly become fully operational in China. "This investment is a perfect match as Risdon brings almost 100 years of experience in metal forming to a company with substantial manufacturing resources in this specific area," said Pearlman. The acquisition follows its receipt of rights to build a manufacturing plant in China last month, which the firm said would specialize in the production of metal packaging components for the cosmetics industry.