Kosmetik: Nivea-Chef: Wollen nicht die nächste Autoindustrie werden

Vincent Warnery, the CEO of Nivea and Beiersdorf, has warned that the European cosmetics industry risks losing its leading edge in global competition. Speaking to Deutsche Presse-Agentur in Berlin, the DAX corporation chairman emphasized that the industry provides jobs and economic benefits. He appealed to the EU not to overload it with regulatory burdens, as competing nations have fewer restrictions.

Warnery expressed concern that European companies might lose competitiveness due to less regulation faced by their competitors from third countries. He noted that Europe must be cautious, especially when looking at the United States, China, and Korea, where many regulations do not apply. The Frenchman stressed that European skin care products already meet the strictest quality standards, but they are still being asked to remove certain ingredients from their formulations, even when those ingredients pose no risk during normal use. Warnery sees this as a significant challenge.

Another source of frustration for Warnery is the revision of the EU Municipal Waste Water Directive, which aims to hold manufacturers of cosmetics and pharmaceutical products financially accountable. He criticized the fact that companies like Beiersdorf would have to pay substantial sums, even though they are only responsible for a small portion of the pollution.

Warnery has been leading Beiersdorf since May 2021, after working for the global beauty industry leader L'Oréal France in the past. Other major European players in the cosmetics sector include Unilever (UK), LVMH (France), and Henkel (Germany).