Oral Care in Venezuela

PROSPECTS

Government keeps meddling with the price of toothpaste

The oral care category mostly comprises toothpaste and manual toothbrushes, which make up the largest volume of units sold. The presence of dental floss and mouthwashes declined dramatically over the review period due to a limited allocation of foreign exchange for imports, which caused shortages of raw materials and inputs.

Due to shortages of inputs no new products are emerging

Faced with a hostile business environment, new product development is not part of companies’ key strategies. Companies have trouble not only producing but also bringing products from abroad and securing a steady presence, forcing them to a strategy of portfolio rationalisation.

Bleak forecast if government policies persist

As long as the government continues its erratic policy towards oral care products it is not reasonable to expect a reversal of the downward trend that started in 2014. The presence of premium brands is anticipated to remain negligible over the forecast period.

COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE

Colgate maintains leadership in spite of image change

Multinationals continue to lead oral care in Venezuela. Colgate-Palmolive and Alticor (GBO: Amway Corp) accounted for the majority of sales value in 2017.

Poor variety continues in 2017

Numerous brands have abandoned the category since 2013, amongst them Crest, Aquafresh, Pepsodent and Sensodyne in the toothpaste category and Oral-B in both toothpaste and toothbrushes. Meanwhile, local players like Corporación Degil, which manufactures Dentalex toothpaste and mouthwash for institutional sales to hotels, briefly entered the mass consumption segment during 2017, without much success.

Files are delivered directly into your account within a few minutes of purchase.