Ahava
 | |
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Cosmetics |
| Founded | 1988 |
| Headquarters | Holon, Israel |
| Products | Skin care |
| Revenue | $150 million |
Number of employees | 200 |
| Website | http://www.ahava.com/ |
Ahava (Hebrew: אהבה, Love) is an Israeli cosmetics company that manufactures skin care products made of mud and mineral-based compounds from the Dead Sea. The company's administrative headquarters are located in Holon but the main manufacturing plant and showroom are in Mitzpe Shalem[a 1], an Israeli settlement located on the Dead Sea in the West Bank of the Palestinian Territories.[1] The company has flagship stores in Israel, Germany, England, Hungary, the Philippines and Singapore.[2]
History
Ziva Gilad, a spa technician, came up with the idea of marketing Dead Sea mud after watching women tourists scooping up the mud to take home.[3]
Ahava's shareholders include Hamashbir Holdings, Gaon Holdings, Kibbutz Ein Gedi, Kibbutz Mitzpe Shalem and Kibbutz Kalya. Kibbutz Mitzpe Shalem and Kibbutz Kalya are located north of the Green Line, in the West Bank.[4]
In 2009 Ahava took on new shareholder Shamrock Holdings, the Walt Disney Family's investment arm, which purchased 20% of Ahava Dead Sea Laboratories from its existing shareholders.[5][6][7] The company has 200 employees, 180 of them in Israel.[8]
In 2009, the company reported sales of nearly $150 million a year. In the United States, the largest overseas market for Ahava products, the company signed distribution deals with Lord & Taylor, Nordstrom and the beauty-supply chain Ulta.[9]
Ahava is the only cosmetics company licensed by the Israeli government to mine raw materials at the Dead Sea[10] but approximately fifty Jordanian companies produce similar products for the cosmetics market. Israel has imported raw materials for its Dead Sea mud cosmetics from Jordan since 1994.[11]
In 2011, Elana Drell Szyfer, former Senior Vice President of Global Marketing for Estee Lauder, was appointed general manager of Ahava North America.[12]
Products
Ahava sells eight different ranges of skin care products for different skin types.[13] Ahava products are based on the belief that minerals act as "intercellular messengers, transmitting information to skin cells and impacting positively on their health and vital functions."[14] However no independent scientific evidence has been adduced in support of this belief.
Ahava product lines include a basic product for all skin types; other products for dry, sensitive skin and for men’s skin; and anti-aging products for face and body.[15] Product lines include hand cream, foot cream, facial cleanser, body milk, facial nourishing cream, facial moisturizer, moisturizing shower cream and body cream.[16] Some products claim to use citrus and citrus products as a source of vitamins and minerals.[17]
Dead Sea mud, alone or in combination with other ingredients, is believed to have benefits for deep cleansing and stimulation of the skin. Minerals extracted from Dead Sea water such as calcium, magnesium and potassium, are said to improve the metabolism, stimulate circulation and aid in the natural repair of cells.[18]
Therapy with mud packs for conditions such as osteoarthritis is relatively expensive and requires the assistance of a therapist and a treatment room. In the wake of these limitations, Ahava developed mud compresses used in the home which are heated in a microwave oven or a pot of hot water and placed over painful joints.[19]
Scientific research
Ahava is one of several Israeli cosmetics companies researching nanotechnology applications. The company has established an R&D program.[18]
Controversy
International law prohibits the establishment of settlements in occupied territory and the exploitation of the resources of occupied territory. [20] The United Nations Human Rights Council and the human rights organization B'Tselem have criticized the presence of Israeli commercial ventures in the West Bank, citing international law prohibiting the establishment of settlements in occupied territory and the exploitation of the resources of occupied territory.[21][22]
Boycott campaigns have been organized by organizations such as Code Pink, which says "[Ahava's] products actually come from stolen Palestinian natural resources in the occupied territory of the Palestinian West Bank, and are produced in Mitzpe Shalem".[23] In response, the company stated that: the Mitzpe Shalem kibbutz where the products are produced is not an "illegal settlement" and that: "the mud and materials used in Ahava cosmetics products...are mined in the Israeli part of the Dead Sea".[24]
As part of an economic agreement between Israel and the European Union, Israel must label products made in the West Bank, which are subject to higher tariffs.[25] European officials have been investigating whether Ahava products are incorrectly labeled as "Made in Israel" to benefit from preferential tariffs under the agreement.[26]
Due to ongoing protests, which have led to complaints by adjacent businesses, landlords of the London store have not renewed the lease of Ahava's Covent Garden store in London.[27] Activists who locked themselves to a cement-filled barrel inside the entrance to this shop were arrested and convicted on charges of aggravated trespassing.[28][29]
South African activists have submitted an affidavit to the South African Police Service accusing retailer, Wellness Warehouse, and local Ahava importer, SDV Pharmaceuticals, of violating South African trade law for selling Ahava products carrying false labels of origin.[30][31]
See also
Notes
References
- ^ "Concern over Israel settlement exports". BBC News. 2008-11-05. Retrieved 2011-05-09.
- ^ Mineral Magic
- ^ Ahava turns Dead Sea Mud into Money
- ^ "Mitzepe Shalem – Google Maps". Google Maps. 2011-08-07. Retrieved 2011-05-01.
- ^ "PrivCo Private Company Research Report: Ahava". PrivCo.com. Retrieved 2011-02-19.
- ^ Neuman, Efrat. "Will the British buy love from the Dead Sea?". Haaretz. Retrieved 2011-02-19.
- ^ From Israel with Ahava, Haaretz
- ^ From Israel with Ahava, Haaretz
- ^ Ahava turns Dead Sea Mud into Money
- ^ Ahava turns Dead Sea Mud into Money
- ^ "Jordan eyeing big share of Dead Sea cosmetics market". The Taipei Times. 2010-03-21. Retrieved 2011-05-01.
- ^ 12th Annual Wharton Women in Business Conference
- ^ Restore and maintain skin health and beauty with Ahava’s Dead Sea mineral face and body care products
- ^ Ahava website
- ^ AHAVA skincare products mine the Dead Sea for efficacy, product review
- ^ Greer Fay Cashman (January 3, 2008). "MarketWise". The Jerusalem Post.
- ^ AHAVA skincare products mine the Dead Sea for efficacy, product review
- ^ a b "Israel - Mineral Magic". HPCi Media Limited. 2010-03-01. Retrieved 2011-05-01.
- ^ Therapy With Mud Compresses for Knee Osteoarthritis: Comparison of Natural Mud Preparations With Mineral-Depleted Mud, Ben Gurion University of the Negev
- ^ "International Humanitarian Law - Treaties & Documents". International Committee of the Red Cross. 2005.
- ^ "A/HRC/RES/16/31 of 13 April 2011". UNISPAL. 13 April 2011.
- ^ "Dispossession and Exploitation: Israel's Policy in the Jordan Valley & Northern Dead Sea" (PDF). B'Tselem. May, 2011.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ "Code Pink protest calls for Ahava boycott". Ynet News. July 30, 2009. Retrieved 2011-02-19.
- ^ "Pro-Israel shoppers defy Ahava products boycott call". The Jerusalem Post. July 25, 2010.
- ^ EU: Goods made at Jewish settlements are not Israeli (BBC, Feb. 26, 2010)
- ^ Ahava Products Turn Dutch Officials Red (Israel National News, Dec. 15, 2009)
- ^ Palestine diplomatic mission
- ^ Pro-Palestinian activists blockade Ahava store in London
- ^ http://www.thejc.com/news/uk-news/48166/ahava-four-convicted-trespass
- ^ Lobbyists challenge ‘made in Israel’ moniker
- ^ Charges laid against SDV Pharmaceuticals and Wellness Warehouse
