In the past year, Symrise has kept its focus on what its customers are looking for: scents with functional ingredients that cater to health and wellness benefits. As consumers seek personalized experiences from their products, their experts predict a rise in functional, mood-boosting ingredients in fragrance applications in the years to come. Chief executive officer Dr. Jean-Yves Parisot shares his key highlights from the company's performance and what he sees as the next areas of impact for his business.
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In the past year, Symrise has kept its focus on what its customers are looking for: scents with functional ingredients that cater to health and wellness benefits. As consumers seek personalized experiences from their products, their experts predict a rise in functional, mood-boosting ingredients in fragrance applications in the years to come. Chief executive officer Dr. Jean-Yves Parisot shares his key highlights from the company's performance and what he sees as the next areas of impact for his business.
Symrise
Holzminden, Germany
2024 Sales: €5 billion
Can you give a brief overview of some key highlights of milestones the company reached over the last 12 months?
In fiscal year 2024, Symrise significantly increased its sales and earnings, once again in challenging economic conditions. Last year, we aimed for
Dr. Jean-Yves Parisot, chief executive officer, SymriseCourtesy of Symrise
We saw good growth generated by a high dynamic in both segments. Our Scent & Care segment performed exceptionally well. Its sales rose to more than €1.9 billion and generated double-digit organic growth of 10.2%. The Taste, Nutrition & Health segment generated sales of more than €3 billion with a strong organic growth of 7.8%.
This growth came mainly from high volume increases, and an improved product mix. Fragrance and cosmetic ingredients applications continued to perform well. Sales with aroma molecules rose sharply, particularly with double-digit growth in Europe, Africa, the Middle East (EAME) and North America. The Scent & Care segment is increasingly profiting from their expanded competencies and innovative solutions that extend well beyond fragrances.
On a Capital Market Day in November in Holzminden, we presented our redefined ONE Symrise strategy. It aims at harnessing and amplifying the potential of our company. We will continue to focus intensely on our three strategic pillars: growth, efficiency and portfolio. In our work, we looked closely at market trends, customer needs and our understanding of customer expectations. Based on these findings, we redefined our ONE Symrise strategy. With this, we aim to unleash the full beauty of ONE Symrise. To underpin our growth, we will reinforce a strong ONE innovation ecosystem that will enable us to develop new types of solutions and services. We will also further diversify our portfolio to respond to market trends in rapidly growing areas like health and wellness under the umbrella of ONE CARE.
Also in 2024, Symrise successfully launched captives, such as Ambronova, Frostwood and Salyssia, enhancing our portfolio of floral, woody and musky fragrance ingredients. The company also expanded its range of natural raw materials to include pomelo oil, Madagascar patchouli, yellow boletus re-extract, tea drenches absolute and saffron oleoresin.
Symrise is now deploying its expertise in fragrances in direct customer projects, with a focus on innovations like Symcap BG® biodegradable capsules for fabric softeners and vegan capsules based on pea protein. The Neofresh® platform researches malodor in damp laundry, aiming to reduce bacteria in washing machines and on laundry. Additionally, the oral care business unit developed Fuji, a new cooling agent, in 2024.
Symrise has opened a creative center for the fine fragrance segment “The Penthouse” in New York City, offering a creative interaction with customers and partners. Symrise also opened a new Scent & Care hub in Barcelona, Spain, serving as a creative atmosphere for ideation and collaboration.
How is your company leveraging new technologies to enhance fragrance creation and experiences? What excites you the most?
Symrise is actively leveraging new technologies to enhance fragrance creation and experiences, as well as shortening R&D cycles. The Scent & Care segment focuses its R&D strategy on raw materials and technologies in captives and ingredients, delivery systems, multifunctional fragrances and malodor.
Symrise is also leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) to innovate in fragrance creation. By integrating these advanced technologies and innovative practices, Symrise can shorten R&D cycles, bring new products to market more quickly, and enhance the overall fragrance creation experience. It continues using artificial intelligence to optimize the use of valuable resources also linked to operations to employ the principles of green chemistry.
From your perspective, which key markets are facing the most challenges in terms of sourcing/production? How is this being addressed?
Ongoing geopolitical conflicts in Ukraine and in the Middle East are causing uncertainty and potential risks for globalized supply chains. Rising inflation rates affected our cost base at Symrise, and we experienced a high level of volatility in many of our core markets. At the same time, we showed how we can grow very profitably with our unique and diversified competencies. In the process, we further sharpened our portfolio and extensively improved our cost base.
Symrise has also implemented sustainable sourcing practices and backward integration. We focus on improving sustainability aspects, such as minimizing our environmental impact and maximizing the standards of living within the communities we source from.
With a major focus on functional scents, what type of research is your company conducting/investing in to meet these consumer demands? Can you share any insight into recent innovations?
As consumer demand grows for products that deliver both sensorial and tangible benefits, Scent & Care dedicates substantial R&D resources to functional fragrances. These scents promise specific well-being or protective effects, complementing their primary olfactive appeal.
For instance, Symrise has developed Actimood®, a fragrance ingredient to enhance mood and provide neurocosmetic benefits. Actimood® technology leverages plant extracts to stimulate positive emotions such as relaxation, well-being, protection, joy and freshness. Our Flowerconcentrole® range, a collection of high-quality, easy-to-formulate olfactive flower extracts, is one of our key innovations using Actimood® technology. It comes from sustainable sources from Madagascar, France and Bulgaria, with full traceability to the field using best ethical and environmental practices and 100% based on natural and upcycled ingredients.
Are there any segments that are trending in terms of innovative technology debuts? Or segments that consumers are growing more curious about?
Health and wellness are playing a growing role in people’s lives today. To address this, we will leverage our expertise throughout the company to develop holistic solutions. We plan to use our ONE CARE platform to differentiate ourselves from the competition, assure our uniqueness and accelerate our growth. Within this approach, we intend to bundle the strengths from both our business sides. Our Scent & Care segment is developing active cosmetic ingredients and this forms one of our core competences within the segment. Our Taste, Nutrition & Health segment on the other hand offers a broad range of active health solutions for healthy diets. On top, we are working on fully integrating Probi, a leading Swedish provider of probiotics and health solutions, into our company – as an important platform that we will use to fuel innovation.
Can you share any specific examples of how AI is helping in formulation, market analysis, or consumer insights?
Symrise is leveraging AI in various areas to enhance its operations and meet consumer demands. We use AI to create perfumes based on digital fragrance models. This approach allows us to analyze thousands of fragrance formulas and historical data to identify patterns and predict novel combinations, based on consumer needs and customer expectations related to dedicated markets.
How do you envision the fragrance industry evolving over the next 5-10 years?
Symrise predicts that the fragrance industry will increasingly rely on big data and AI to create innovative and personalized fragrances. We see a growing demand for functional scents that enhance well-being and positively lift emotions. The company is investing in research and development to create fragrances that smell good and also provide neurocosmetic benefits and improve the quality of life by enhanced wellbeing and care. Symrise envisions a future where AI, sustainability, and functional scents play a significant role in the evolution of the fragrance industry.
What are the emerging consumer trends that will shape the future of the fragrance market?
Symrise has identified several emerging consumer trends that are shaping the fragrance industry. We have observed a strong emergence of indie brands with a focus on natural, organic, and functional fragrances. Consumers are increasingly seeking fragrances that offer benefits beyond scent, such as emotional well-being and relaxation. We have conducted primary consumer research to understand the lifestyles and fragrance preferences of young consumers, particularly Millennials and Generation Z. Symrise's #GENYZ initiative explores the preferences of these young consumers across various categories. Symrise has also identified a growing trend of consumers seeking fragrances that are appropriate for sensitive skin and hypoallergenic. Natural fragrances are gaining popularity, and there is a continued momentum for fruitier notes from the tropics, such as mango and pineapple.
How is your company positioning itself to stay ahead in this rapidly changing landscape?
With the ONE Symrise strategy, the Scent & Care segment is strategically positioned to stay ahead in the fragrance industry through several key initiatives and approaches. Symrise leverages its unique business portfolio and backward integration of key raw materials to open up future-oriented solutions.
Constantly evaluating consumer behavior, Scent & Care uses research teams and digital analytics to adapt quickly to market shifts. This feedback loop helps shape everything from new molecule synthesis to fragrance compositions. Scent & Care’s integration of sourcing, advanced research, and digital capabilities positions the segment to shape the future of modern perfumery and cosmetic ingredients. This forward momentum, grounded in a genuine commitment to ethical business practices, ensures that the organization can keep addressing changing consumer desires for cleaner, more functional, and more emotionally resonant scents.
