FUTURE PROOFING - OvelleReasonably priced quality products that clearly state what they are 'free from' has proved a winning formula at home and abroad for Dundalk-based Ovelle, writes JUDITH CROSBIE

BEING THE head of a company set up by your grandfather in 1934 keeps Joanna Gardiner focused. Ovelle may have seen various recessions, economic crises and even a world war over the years, but that doesn’t stop her worrying.

“There is a huge responsibility, especially when you are going through a recession. Am I going to be the generation to see it all come crashing down?”

She need not entertain such thoughts. Ovelle, which has been making staple skincare products such as calamine lotion, surgical spirits and Silcock’s base for decades, saw its growth rise by 7 per cent last year while Elave, a new brand of skincare products the company launched in 1999, saw growth of 12 per cent.

Elave is a top-selling brand in Ireland when listed against huge names like E45 by Reckitt Benckiser, Aveeno by Johnson Johnson and Oilatum by GlaxoSmithKline.

Elave’s success has seen it break into the market in the UK where it sells its products to major supermarket chains Tesco, Sainbury’s and Morrisons, with Waitrose just recently added to the list.

Since last year, the company has successfully tried its Elave products out on the US market with 41 outlets of Duane Reade, a Boots-type pharmacy chain, now stocking its range.

The idea for the Elave brand came about when Gardiner moved back to work at the family business, based in Dundalk, which was being run by her father, Seán, and uncle, Gerry.

Armed with a business degree from Trinity College Dublin and two years experience as a marketing manager in an advertising firm in Dublin, she felt the company needed to take on a new challenge.

“I wanted a brand we could invest in,” she says.

Elave targets the market for sensitive skin, producing products from shampoos to washes to creams with no harmful chemicals and which can combat skin ailments such as eczema. The brand has now moved into the facial care range with products aimed at anti-ageing.

“The foundation of Elave is all about being on the ‘free from’ list and we have the most comprehensive ‘free from’ list on the market,” says Gardiner.

She finds it “shocking” what some products, including those aimed at babies, contain. “I couldn’t launch a range I didn’t believe in.”

The products are reasonably priced, ranging from €7.95 to €28.95 and are doing well despite the downturn.

“The overall brand has excelled in the recession. I think people are looking for things that are authentic, not showy, and that do what it says on the tin,” Gardiner adds.

It took a while though to get to this point. A dip in sales hit the company in 2008 and resulted in eight staff out of 48 being let go. The company had to adjust to a new way of doing business, which involved cancelling costly advertising and stepping up in-store marketing such as discounts and buy-one-get-one- free promotions.

Competing with multinational companies meant there was little time to take in the changes.

“You suddenly have to adapt but we did it really well,” she says. “We were lucky that we are Irish since the recession brought about a bit of change in buying behaviour with people wanting to buy Irish.”

Another element that helped them through the recession was the diverse aspects to their business.

The company employs a full RD team in Dundalk where it develops products for other companies, including Mylan, a major generics pharmaceutical maker, and smaller start-ups.

“This is a steady business that doesn’t require marketing. We can do the clinical trials and the companies then take all the risk when it comes to actually selling the product,” says Gardiner.

Despite the different strings to its bow and the fact that the company has been around for so long, Gardiner refuses to be complacent. “I’d never say anything for sure. This profession is like a beast and there is a huge amount of work involved.”

She wants to see the US business do well and the Irish end to continue to grow – she forecasts the company to double in size in five years. Last year, turnover was €4 million and it is expected to increase this year.

“I’m ambitious for the company, I want it to go well,” she says. “It’s been a tough three years but we’ve come out the other side.”