Elder Pharma wants JV with Japan's Kose Corporation to be on steam by June

Elder Pharmaceuticals is looking at getting its JV project with Japan's Kose Corporation on stream in the next three months by making use of its in existing plant in Himachal Pradesh.

Aiming to tap the changing world of women's fashion and taste in cosmetics, Elder Pharma has forged the joint venture with Kose Corporation to manufacture and sell cosmetics in India through a JV company that is provisionally named Kose Elder (India) Private Limited.

"We are not setting up a new plant. We already have an existing plant in Paonta Sahib in Himachal Pradesh, which is making pharmaceutical products. We are looking at getting this project on stream in the next three months," Elder Pharmaceuticals Joint Managing Director Alok Saxena said in a statement here.

The Himachal Pradesh plant will be used for making cosmetic products because we will be following the same manufacturing norms as we do for pharmaceutical products, he said.

Elder, which followed the strategy of in-licencing products from foreign companies, departed from the convention to form a joint venture due to huge opportunity in the domestic market, Saxena said.

"India's facial skincare segment is roughly estimated at around Rs 5,500 crore. Therefore, the target will be in skincare market. Our incremental revenues could run between Rs 30-40 crore in the first year. The company is looking at

both the mass segment and the prestige segments. All the products are intended to be 'Made in India' products", the Saxena said.

He added the company has not chalked out any business plan yet and would support its Japanese partner for manufacture and distribution in Indian market. "Cosmetics manufacturing is a completely different area for us. The initial investments could run into couple of million dollars. We have not finalised the business plan as yet, but we are looking at giving them complete support of manufacture and distribution in Indian market", he said.

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