MOSCOW (MRC) -- Brenntag has announced an initial cooperation with CheMondis (Cologne, Germany), a B2B online marketplace for chemicals in Europe, said Chemweek.
Brenntag and CheMondis plan jointly to accelerate digital sales and marketing for the chemical industry. “Both companies recognize the increasing importance of online sales channels for the chemical industry and agreed to collaborate in this field,” Brenntag says.
The collaboration will start with making Brenntag’s portfolio for paints and coatings, and adhesives and sealants gradually available for online purchase on CheMondis in the German market.
"Over the last two years Brenntag has steadily built our Brenntag Connect e-commerce platform. The platform is now live in most of our mature markets. We see a strong upward trend in online business and with this complementary cooperation we extend our digital channels further,” says Maarten Stramrood, chief digital officer at Brenntag. “Our collaboration with CheMondis will provide our current and potential customers an even broader choice."
The collaboration “is a strong sign that online sales are becoming an increasingly important strategic component in the chemical industry,” says Sebastian Brenner, managing director of CheMondis. “Customers in our industry are demanding an online buying experience and CheMondis provides for that need."
CheMondis, founded in 2018 out of Lanxess as an independent start-up, says it has established “the leading open B2B marketplace for chemicals in Europe with more than 3,200 active companies and about 50,000 products listed.” Buyers have used CheMondis for several thousand digital transactions already, the company says.
As MRC informed earlier, Brenntag, the market leader in chemical and ingredients distribution, has reported a resilient third-quarter performance and says the impact from the COVID-19 pandemic on its business is “still limited". Net profit was down in the third quarter to EUR120.6 million (USD141.1 million) from a prior-year figure of EUR128.4 million on sales of EUR2.88 billion, down 7.7% year on year (YOY) on a constant currency basis. The company achieved YOY growth in operating EBITDA, up 4.9% to EUR264.4 million. The EMEA, APAC, and Latin America regions “showed a particularly good development,” but conditions in North America were tougher, Brenntag says. Group operating gross profit slipped 0.2% YOY to EUR690.6 million.
As MRC informed earlier, Brenntag Essentials and Brenntag Specialties. Each division will have a focus on customer- and supplier needs. The new operating model forms part of the company’s previously announced transformation program, Project Brenntag. Brenntag says that with the two new divisions it will better leverage on its strengths and sharpen its profile toward relevant industry segments.
In August 2020, Brenntag acquired the operating assets of Suffolk Solutions’ (Suffolk, Virginia) caustic soda distribution business. Financial terms of the deal have not been disclose.
We remind, Russia's September production of sodium hydroxide (caustic soda) were 108,000 tonnes (100% of the basic substance) versus 99,200 tonnes a month earlier. Overall output of caustic soda totalled 945,600 tonnes in the first nine months of 2020, down by 1.6% year on year.
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