Genomma Lab, the Mexican marketer of OTC medicines and other consumer products that has established a substantial presence in most of Latin America, is expanding its product offerings to the U.S. Hispanic market. Ruben Leo Sarmiento, Marketing Director, at Genomma Lab, and a speaker in Portada’s upcoming Latin American Advertising and Media Summit on June 3-4 in Miami (#Portadalat), says that the plan is to strengthen the U.S. Hispanic market “portfolio equally in both OTC and personal care areas as we can effectively leverage on our scale of identified ‘success routes’”.
Ruben Leo Sarmiento, Marketing Director at Genomma Lab, tells Portada that over the last 2 years Genomma Labs, has been rapidly gaining presence in the U.S. Hispanic market. This includes “categories such as Cough & cold, face creams and body lotions, pain & sleep, shampoo, foot needs.” Sarmiento adds that “The brands that we already launched have a strong heritage across Latin America already, furthermore, plans consider to strengthen our portfolio equally in both OTC and personal care areas as we can effectively leverage on our scale of identified ‘success routes’ to satisfy these consumers in the U.S., where right now the U.S. Hispanic population represents ~8-10% of total US GDP, a pretty attractive opportunity.”
Genomma Lab already markets several of its brands, in the OTC and Beauty businesses in the U.S., including Tukol, Next, Cicatricure, Asepxia, Shot B, Goicoechea, X-ray, Vanart and Silka.
According to Sarmiento, Genomma Lab developed a unique model of aggressive creative mass advertising through a TV-centric model to quickly create awareness of its portfolio offering. “We know that digital is everyone’s future not only at work but in our daily lives, yet, in developing markets TV is still among the top 3 mass media vehicles and TV will continue to be part of our core model, both open and Pay-TV,” says Sarmiento.
“Generally speaking, most of the expansions followed a pre-identified “success route” that has been proven in Mexico, to expand into other Latin American countries and the Hispanic market in the U.S.”, Sarmiento notes. (Read the entire interview with Sarmiento )
Joint Venture with Televisa Consumer Products
In the U.S. Genomma Lab already has a distribution deal in place with Wal-Mart Stores Inc. as well as a similar arrangement with Walgreens Co. drug stores, targeting Hispanic consumers. Genomma Lab has pointed out that it expects its U.S. distribution strategy to be one of its main drivers of international growth in the coming years. The Walgreen deal was done through Televisa Consumer Products a company that is a a joint venture 51% – 49% between Grupo Televisa and Genomma Lab, to distribute Genomma Lab products in the US market. In the U.S. Televisa Consumer Products partners with Univision Consumer Products. The Walgreen initiative is an attempt to engage Hispanic customers and gain additional insight into the Hispanic community through the introduction of TCP’s health and wellness products.
In 2012 Genomma Lab unsuccessfully tried to acquire U.S. consumer products maker Prestige Brands Holdings Inc..
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