Headquartered in Istanbul, Ekin Kimya employs more than 70 people serving almost all major drugmakers in Turkey as well as holding long-term partnerships with some world-leading pharma suppliers. Ekin brings its own pharmaceutical laboratory to add to Azelis’s existing three facilities in Turkey for personal care, homecare and food.

Describing the acquisition as “transformational,” Azelis said it has always regarded Turkey as an attractive geography, having more than doubled its turnover since it entered the market there in 2007 through the purchase of Tara Kimya.

Anna Bertona, CEO and president EMEA at Azelis, said local production and consumption of pharmaceutical products in Turkey have been growing steadily and the Turkish government has also been investing heavily in the sector as it wants the country to become a major pharmaceutical producer, exporter and R&D hub.

Commenting on the takeover, Ekin Kimya’s founders Murat Çitiroğlu and Gamze Çitiroğlu said: “We now need to ensure further specialization, guarantee new ingredient sourcing platforms, access to new industries and secure the growth of our export business. Joining a reputable global player such as Azelis will provide exactly that. It will also enable us to attract new principals as we combine our food and pharma customer bases and it will open up ample cross-selling opportunities.”

Earlier this year, Azelis added Orkila in Lebanon, Chemroy in Canada, MK in India and Euroconsultant in Poland to its stable. The distributor is owned by private equity investors EQT VIII and PSP Investments.