Sanex

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Sanex
Product type Personal care
Owner Colgate-Palmolive (2011–present)
Country United Kingdom
Introduced1984
Previous owners Sara Lee Corporation (until 2009)
Unilever (2009–2011)
TaglineKeep Skin Healthy
Website www.sanex.co.uk

Sanex is a brand of personal care products owned by Colgate-Palmolive. It is sold in European countries (including the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Belgium, France, Spain, Portugal, Denmark, Norway, Greece, Poland and Croatia) and South Africa.

Contents

History

The Sanex brand was introduced by Sara Lee Corporation in 1984 with the launch of Sanex Shower Gel, [1] a pioneer non-soap body cleanser. [2] It was first introduced in Spain and subsequently expanded into other European markets, becoming the company's best-selling household and body care brand. [3] [4]

Unilever acquired Sanex in 2009 as part of its purchase of the personal care division of Sara Lee Corporation. [5] The European Commission required the brand's divestment on anti-trust grounds, [6] [7] and in 2011 it was sold to Colgate-Palmolive for £580 million (approximately $940 million in US dollars). Its sales in 2010 were €187 million ($265 million). [8] [9]

Products

Product lines include deodorant, shower gel, liquid hand soap and body, face and hand moisturisers.

Controversy

On August 19, 2025, a TV advert for Sanex shower gel which showed cracked black skin and smooth white skin was banned in the United Kingdom by the Advertising Standards Authority for reinforcing a racial stereotype. [10]

References

  1. ↑ "Celebrating 40 Years of Sanex: A Legacy of Healthy Skin". Colgate-Palmolive. November 2024. Retrieved 9 December 2025.
  2. ↑ "Sanex: A Journey to the Heart of Skin Health". Startup Mag. South Africa. 18 March 2025.
  3. ↑ Masaaki (Mike) Kotabe; Kristiaan Helsen (1999). "Tilting Windmills: Sanex Tries to Conquer Europe". Global Marketing Management. New York: Wiley. pp. 625–33. ISBN   9780471353904.
  4. ↑ Oswald A. J. Mascarenhas (2011). Business Transformation Strategies: The Strategic Leader as Innovation Manager. New Delhi: SAGE/Response Business Books. p. 382. ISBN   9788132105015.
  5. ↑ Lily Vitorovich (28 September 2009). "Unilever, Sara Lee in Deal: Anglo-Dutch Giant to Buy Radox, Sanex and Other Brands". The Wall Street Journal.
  6. ↑ Irene van Staveren (2015). Economics After the Crisis: An Introduction to Economics from a Pluralist and Global Perspective. Abingdon / New York: Routledge. ISBN   9781315793962.
  7. ↑ Root Man (17 November 2010). "Sara Lee to Sell Body Care Business to Unilever". Consumer Goods Technology.
  8. ↑ "Colgate to Buy Unilever's Sanex Unit for About $940 Million". Bloomberg. 24 March 2011. Retrieved 15 June 2016.
  9. ↑ "Colgate buys Sanex from Unilever for $940 million". Reuters. 23 March 2011. Retrieved 15 April 2020.
  10. ↑ "Sanex shower gel ad banned over racial stereotype". BBC News. 20 August 2025.
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