Shiseido furthers expansion of American operations
The group’s Shiseido America division confirmed that it is increasing the size of its main manufacturing operation in East Windsor, New Jersey, in the heart of the nation’s cosmetic and personal care manufacturing belt.
Shiseido has proposed a 73,000 square feet expansion of the facility in two phases, increasing the size of its 211,000 square facility by approximately 35 percent.
Two phase expansion program
The first phase of the expansion will see the construction of a 54,500 square foot office space that will be added on to the existing warehouse facility, together with additional parking and an expanded loading area.
The second phase will see the construction of an 18,400 square foot manufacturing and warehouse addition that will be located behind the new office space.
While the groundbreaking has already taken place, both of the constructions are expected to be completed by the end of summer of this year.
Expansion aims to consolidate distribution and increase capacity
The expansion is part of aims to relocate and centralize more of the distribution from Shiseido’s Oakland facility to the newly expanded East Windsor facility, where the company handles the company’s Shiseido, Nar and Bare Escentuals brands.
Likewise, a ramp up in production is also expected to help the company to respond to increased demand for its cosmetic products in export markets, specifically to Asia and Europe.
Currently the facility employs 150 full-time staff and approximately 150 temporary staff, while the expansion is expected to bring an estimated additional ten full-time employees to the payroll.
Eyes further expansion
Shiseido America' President and Chief Operating Officer Edward Houlihan said. “We are hopeful that we will continue to deepen our productive relationship with the community and continue to expand our presence and business activities in East Windsor for years to come.”
The Shiseido group has been steadily increasing its footprint in markets outside of the domestic Japan market in recent years, after a prolonged stagnation due to economic hardships has led to heated competition and very limited opportunity for sales growth.
As well as developing its business footprint in major markets in the Americas and Europe, it has also taken the decision to expand into lesser known developing markets in recent years, including smaller countries in Eastern Europe and Central America.
