Avon Philippines expands focus on health, unaffected by U.S. bankruptcy, suits

MANILA, Philippines — Avon Philippines and other markets outside of the USA are reportedly not affected by the Chapter 11 bankruptcy filed by Avon Products Inc. (API), the owner of the Avon brand in the United Kingdom, Europe and Latin America, last August reportedly due to 386 talc-related lawsuits that have resulted in over $1 billion (over P58 trillion) in debt.

In an exclusive interview with Philstar.com following the launch of the reformulated Anew anti-aging solutions in Makati City, Avon Philippines Communications Head Marion Limlengco said, “You know the bankruptcy issue, Chapter 11, we’ve heard about this, right? Avon Products Inc., it’s a holding company, they filed this Chapter 11. We’d like to make it clear that it really does not affect any of the operations of the Avon market outside US, and so of course, that includes the Philippines.”

In fact, according to her, Avon Philippines is eyeing “a new era of growth.”

“We’re really trying to accelerate growth,” she said, divulging that they have “exciting plans” for one of the categories where the brand claims to be “no. 1”: intimate apparel.

Apart from intimate apparel, the company’s local arm also claims to hold the top spot in cream deodorant and face color, which is why these are the company’s core focuses, said Avon Philippines General Manager Vanee Gosiengfiao, who officially joined the company last August 1.

At the same exclusive interview with Philstar.com, Gosiengfiao said the company is not yet no. 1 but is leading locally in face care, fragrances and lotions.

When it comes to talc-based products, she said, “All of our products are quality-tested, clinically proven. So you can be assured that the Avon brand name and everything on it is a safe, quality product.”

“Of course, other products would have talc, right? But the question is asbestos. That’s the harmful ingredient,” Limlengco said.

“So we’re really happy to guarantee that our products don’t contain those harmful asbestos. So, as Vanee said, since every product has the Avon name, we make sure that we undergo rigorous testing. As you know, we have R&D (research and development). We have all these scientists that are really backing our