ZURICH, March 6 (Reuters) -
Swiss skincare company Galderma will talk to major
American retailers about trade tariffs imposed by the U.S.
government in order to manage their impact, CEO Flemming Ornskov
said on Thursday.
U.S. President Donald Trump this week slapped tariffs of
25% on Canada and Mexico, though his administration later said
it would temporarily exempt automakers and consider other
products.
"We will be talking to Walmart ( WMT ), Target ( TGT ), Amazon ( AMZN ), and
others to figure out how we're going to react to this, also
price-wise," Ornskov told Reuters after Galderma posted a 9.3%
sales increase for 2024 and net income of $231 million.
He described tariffs as "a bit of a moving target,"
noting that their scope could still be altered.
Ornskov said his company had already taken "precautions
on stock and other things" in the U.S. to mitigate the impact on
Galderma, which has major production operations in Canada.
"Another way of compensating this would be just to drive
more volume with your product," he said.
Galderma's net U.S. sales were flat in 2024 on the year
and fell in the final quarter. Ornskov said there were specific
factors behind that and was confident U.S. sales would grow in
2025.
Trump has also threatened to impose tariffs on Europe.
As most aesthetic companies produce in Europe, they and
Galderma would be affected, Ornskov said.
Galderma's results come almost a year after it listed on
the Swiss stock exchange. Its share price has since doubled from
its initial launch price, though the stock fell by as much as 9%
on Thursday before paring losses.