Citing Long-term Opportunities, PZ Cussons Stops Plan to Sell Its Units in Nigeria, Others

• Says economic, currency trends now more favourable

•Discloses offers received did not reflect the inherent value of business

Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja

PZ Cussons Plc, the parent company of PZ Cussons Nigeria, yesterday said it will retain its businesses in Nigeria and other African countries, citing the need to take advantage of long-term opportunities on the continent.

The company further stressed in a statement tagged: “Conclusion of Strategic Review of Africa, Retaining Africa Business with Ambitious Growth Plans”, that it was pursuing an ambitious growth strategy built on a portfolio balanced between developed and emerging markets.

“PZ Cussons today announces that it is retaining its Africa business and sets out ambitious growth plans for the business, as part of a wider Group strategy built upon a portfolio balanced between developed and emerging markets.

“Furthermore, the Group has identified several guardrails in order to achieve this growth with reduced risk and volatility,” the global firm added.

In April 2024, PZ Cussons announced plans to conduct a strategic review of its Africa operations. As part of the review, the Group announced the sale of its 50 per cent equity interest in PZ Wilmar Limited, its non-core edible oils business in Nigeria, to Wilmar International Limited, its Joint Venture (JV) partner for a total consideration of $70 million.

However, the Group said it received significant levels of interest from a number of parties regarding the wider Africa portfolio, but revealed that its Board has concluded that the offers received did not reflect the inherent value of the business and that the greatest value for shareholders will be created by retaining the business.

This, it said, will be done by building a Group portfolio balanced between its developed markets of UK and its emerging markets of Indonesia and Nigeria, stressing that the Group is now setting out plans to build a winning portfolio of locally-loved brands, building on the improved momentum achieved in recent years.

The company stated that this will be done in three key ways, including: “Growing the core business in Nigeria, Kenya and Ghana through consistently delivering best-in-class fundamentals of brand-building, distribution expansion, revenue growth management, in-store execution and use of digital.”

These factors, including the fact that the Nigerian business has, since FY22, more than doubled the number of stores which it serves directly, it pointed out, have been major contributors to the business’ growth in recent years.

It also underscored the expansion into new category adjacencies, including a focus on Men’s Grooming and Beauty, with the existing brands of Venus, Imperial Leather and Premier as well as expansion in other African markets which will be served from its existing footprint in Nigeria and Kenya.

“The strategy is based on the significant long-term opportunity in Africa where population is forecast to grow by more than 900 million over the next 25 years, representing over half of total global population growth.

“Nigeria’s population alone is forecast to increase by over 100 million further benefitting from urbanisation and rapidly growing middle classes. Recent economic and currency trends have been more favourable, supporting strong, double-digit revenue growth in our Africa business in the first half of the financial year,” the company added.

The Board said it was confident that PZ Cussons is well placed to succeed through leveraging local insights and its brand heritage, stressing that the business will continue to benefit from its scale in manufacturing and route-to-market expertise, particularly against a competitive landscape which has seen a number of multi-nationals exit the market in recent years.

Besides, the company stated that nearly 80 per cent of Nigeria revenue is generated from brands holding number 1 or number 2 positions in their categories.

Given the historic volatility of the Nigerian business and the inherent risk associated with operating in the market, the Group noted that it  has put in place a set of operational and financial measures to reduce risk associated with any future currency volatility or business disruption.

These, according to the business organisation, largely relate to foreign exchange management and to the generation and use of cash, explaining that adherence to these guardrails will be reviewed by the Group’s Board at all of its regular meetings.

The Group has previously announced its intention to divest about £30 million of surplus assets across the Group, of which the majority are in Africa. As part of the strategic review, the Group has identified about£7 million of further non-core assets in Africa, proceeds from which are expected to be realised during the current financial year.

In addition, the Group said it sees scope for further opportunities for property optimisation over time.

“More broadly, the Group will continue to take steps to simplify its business as it looks to drive its winning portfolio of locally-loved brands, with a focus on its core categories of Hygiene, Baby and Beauty,” the statement noted.

PZ Cussons said it will host a Capital Markets Event on February 11, 2026, on the day of its FY26 interim results. The event, according to the firm, will provide more details on the growth plans for the Africa business and the corresponding guardrails, as well as the strategy to build a portfolio of winning, locally-loved brands.

Chief Executive Officer of PZ Cussons, Jonathan Myers, said: “Since embarking on the strategic review of Africa, we have identified or agreed the sale of non-core or surplus assets totalling over £70 million.

“This, combined with continued cash generation of the Group, has significantly strengthened our balance sheet. After a thorough review of the remainder of the Africa business and careful evaluation of the offers received, the Board believes it is in the best interest of our stakeholders to retain the business.

“Africa is a market of great opportunity. Given PZ Cussons’ deep heritage there, and given the strength of our brands and operational capabilities, we are well-placed to win over the longer term. Benefitting from a more stable economic environment in recent months and with positive fiscal reform, momentum in our Africa business is strong, with double-digit revenue growth in the first half of the financial year.

“ We will now look to build on this strong performance and extend our category leadership, with nearly 80 per cent of our revenue in Nigeria already coming from brands with number 1 or number 2 positions. With plans underpinned by appropriate guardrails – established to reduce risk and manage volatility – we are confident that we have a business that is set up for success.

“We expect Africa to be a significant contributor to overall Group revenue growth as we seek to build a winning portfolio of locally-loved brands, balanced between Developed and Emerging markets,” Myers said.

Founded in 1884, PZ Cussons is a listed consumer goods business headquartered in Manchester, UK. It employs just under 2,500 people, with operations in Europe, Africa, Asia-Pacific and North America.