Spotless Group
Encyclopedia
Spotless Group SAS is a pan-European manufacturer of household cleansing and laundry products, based in Paris
, France
. Spotless Group has subsidiary operations in 8 European states, employing over 400 people in Ireland
, Sweden
, Hungary
, United Kingdom
, France
, Spain
, Italy
and the Netherlands
. The group is the no.1 independent company in the European consumer-goods market.
in 2005, upon AXA's acquisition of French homecare company Eau Ecarlate. The incumbent CEO of Eau Ecarlate, Pierre le Tanneur, assumed the presidency of Spotless.
In 2006, the second year of its existence, Spotless Group acquired Bologna
-based homecare company Guaber and Irish shoe-care manufacturer Punch Industries. The group made further acquisitions in 2007, of sewerage disposal company Eparcyl and the Unilever
brand Ballerina. In 2008, the company purchased Dylon International, the UK's leading dye producer, from the Mayborn Group. Spotless Group owns a total of 18 brands as of 2008.
In 2010, AXA Private Equity sold its 65.6% stake in Spotless Group to British private-equity company BC Partners
for a reported €600 million, according to Reuters
.
, which is the market leader in washing machine colour protection. Other prominent Spotless Group brands include:
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. Spotless Group has subsidiary operations in 8 European states, employing over 400 people in Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
, Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
, United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
and the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
. The group is the no.1 independent company in the European consumer-goods market.
Operations
Spotless Group was established by AXA Private EquityAXA Private Equity
AXA Private Equity is a diversified private equity firm with $ 25 billion of assets managed or advised and with an international reach across Europe, North America and Asia...
in 2005, upon AXA's acquisition of French homecare company Eau Ecarlate. The incumbent CEO of Eau Ecarlate, Pierre le Tanneur, assumed the presidency of Spotless.
In 2006, the second year of its existence, Spotless Group acquired Bologna
Bologna
Bologna is the capital city of Emilia-Romagna, in the Po Valley of Northern Italy. The city lies between the Po River and the Apennine Mountains, more specifically, between the Reno River and the Savena River. Bologna is a lively and cosmopolitan Italian college city, with spectacular history,...
-based homecare company Guaber and Irish shoe-care manufacturer Punch Industries. The group made further acquisitions in 2007, of sewerage disposal company Eparcyl and the Unilever
Unilever
Unilever is a British-Dutch multinational corporation that owns many of the world's consumer product brands in foods, beverages, cleaning agents and personal care products....
brand Ballerina. In 2008, the company purchased Dylon International, the UK's leading dye producer, from the Mayborn Group. Spotless Group owns a total of 18 brands as of 2008.
In 2010, AXA Private Equity sold its 65.6% stake in Spotless Group to British private-equity company BC Partners
BC Partners
BC Partners is a private equity firm specialising in buyouts and acquisitions financing in Europe and the United States. The firm invests across all industries...
for a reported €600 million, according to Reuters
Reuters
Reuters is a news agency headquartered in New York City. Until 2008 the Reuters news agency formed part of a British independent company, Reuters Group plc, which was also a provider of financial market data...
.
Subsidiaries
Spotless Group has subsidiaries in 8 European Countries:- Guaber, Italy
- Spotless Hungary, Hungary
- Punch Industries, Ireland
- Eau Ecarlate, France
- Spotless UK, United Kingdom
- Spotless Benelux, Netherlands
- Spotless Iberia, Spain
- Boston Scandinavia, Sweden
Products
Spotless Group owns the brand Colour CatcherColour Catcher
Colour Catcher is a brand name of colour run prevention products manufactured by Spotless Group. Colour Catcher is distributed by Spotless Punch in the United Kingdom, Punch Industries in Ireland, in Spain under Atrapa Color, Eau Ecarlate in France, under the name Décolor Stop, and Guaber in Italy,...
, which is the market leader in washing machine colour protection. Other prominent Spotless Group brands include:
- Punch
- VimVim (cleaning product)Vim is the name of a range of household cleaning products originally produced by Lever Brothers. The Vim brand is currently owned by European multi-national Spotless Group.-History:...
- Ballerina
- Eparcyl
- DylonDylonDylon International is a British brand of textile dyes and other household chemicals. It was founded in 1946 by the Mayborn Group. Mayborn Group sold Dylon International to European homecare company Spotless Group in 2008....
- Vigor
- Boston
- Punch
- Fito