Dabur India looks to Southeast Asia for new acquisitions

By

Isabelle Crossley

Published
Feb 14, 2023

Dabur is looking to acquire businesses both in India and in Southeast Asia. The personal care and fast moving consumer goods business plans to continue to expand its reach, especially in the herbal and Ayurvedic categories. 

“There are a lot of opportunities,” Dabur’s chief executive officer Mohit Malhotra told Bloomberg. “The valuations as relative to what they were in the past have become more reasonable now… Southeast Asia is where we are not present, our competitors are all present in Southeast Asia. The immediate environment is very volatile with currencies playing havoc, I think once this settles down, then we might look at some inorganic opportunity.”
 
In 2022, Dabur acquired spice producer Badshah Masala Private Limited for $71 million, ET Bureau reported. The business retails an array of personal care goods ranging from shampoo to toothpaste among others and Dabur is keen to continue to penetrate this market. 

In the third quarter of the 2023 financial year, Dabur’s income dropped by 5.4% year-on-year due to factors including increased costs and a reduced operating margin. To date, Dabur’s shares have dropped in value by 5.2% in 2023. Although the business expects the current financial quarter to present similar challenges, with inflation continuing, Dabur is confident that the 2024 financial year will show some improvements in performance.