Givaudan reported like-for-like sales growth of 8.6% in the third quarter, nearly double the 4.7% analysts had expected, as strong demand for luxury perfumes drove the fragrance and flavour maker's results.
In the first nine months, the Fragrance & Beauty division generated CHF 3.15 billion (US$3.78 billion), up 8.8% on a like-for-like basis and ahead of the 8% growth recorded in the same period a year earlier. The division accounted for about 53% of group sales over the nine months. In the third quarter, Fragrance & Beauty sales reached CHF 1.14 billion (US$1.37 billion), with like-for-like growth of 13.5%, up from 6.8% in the third quarter of 2025. Group sales for the first three quarters totalled CHF 5.89 billion (US$7.08 billion).
Fine fragrance and consumer products drive growth
Fine Fragrance remained the main engine, with sales up 15.3% like-for-like against a competitive prior-year comparable of 18.7%. The report points to sustained back-to-back double-digit growth and continued demand across the premium perfume market.
Consumer Products sales rose 9.3% like-for-like, compared with 5.9% growth a year earlier, a result the company says shows fragrance demand extending beyond fine perfumery into personal, oral, home and fabric care.
By contrast, Fragrance Ingredients and Active Beauty recorded a combined decline of 2.5%, against 1.5% like-for-like growth in the first nine months of 2025.
Asia Pacific leads regional performance
At group level, Asia Pacific was Givaudan's fastest-growing region, with sales up 10.6% like-for-like in the first nine months of 2026, compared with 4.6% a year earlier. Within Taste & Wellbeing, the region rose 7.1% like-for-like, against a 0.5% decline in the same period of 2025.
South Asia, Africa and the Middle East grew 4.1% like-for-like, compared with 8.8% a year earlier. Europe rose 1.5% like-for-like versus 3.8%, and Latin America increased 1.1% against 3.1%. Overall, high-growth markets advanced 7.9%, compared with 2.7% in mature markets.
North America proved the most challenging region. Taste & Wellbeing sales there fell 3.3% like-for-like, compared with a 3.9% decline in the first nine months of 2025, although the region as a whole grew 1.1%. Givaudan attributed the drop primarily to continued weakness in its Health and Functional business unit and to US tariff refunds made to the company's customers during the third quarter of 2026.
Currency, acquisitions and market reaction
Givaudan's like-for-like figures exclude acquisitions. On a reported basis, acquisitions contributed 2.8% to Fragrance & Beauty growth over the nine months, while currency translation had a negative impact of 3.8%. At group level, acquisitions contributed 1.4%. The company highlighted two transactions: the acquisitions of Belle Aire Creations for CHF 62 million (US$74.48 million) and Vollmens Fragrances for CHF 20 million (US$24 million).
The results lifted Givaudan's shares by nearly 7%, reaching a 15-month high. Vontobel analyst Arben Hasanaj said the acceleration should reinforce confidence in the company's growth profile and resilience, Reuters reported. Analysts at Vontobel and Jefferies estimated that Fine Fragrance sales grew around 31% organically in the third quarter alone, Reuters added.
The update had a positive ripple effect on peers, with shares of dsm-firmenich, Novonesis and Symrise rising between 1.6% and 3.1% in early trading, according to Reuters.
Givaudan said its growth remained consistent despite geopolitical and macroeconomic volatility, describing the performance as evidence of market resilience. The figures point to a persistent appetite for fragrance among both consumers and brands, with further potential in fine fragrances, fragrance ingredient differentiation and premiumisation.