Looking to the future, since 1980.
United by beauty
The Alfaparf Milano group combines research, production and distribution to deliver only the highest possible quality to beauty professionals and aficionados.
Our Origins
Our story begins in 1980, thanks to an idea of Roberto Franchina who, with the support of about a dozen people, began creating products for the hairdressing industry in northern Italy.
A couple of years later in 1989, the Semi di Lino line was launched, which was to be the group’s first great commercial success. The following year it was the turn of the permanent coloring range, Evolution of the Color.
In the 1990s, the group embarked on its foreign adventure, first exporting its products to Spain and Latin America and then opening commercial offices in Brazil, Mexico, Argentina and Venezuela. Production also began: the first factories were opened in Brazil, Mexico and Venezuela.
The Evolution
In the late 1990s, the Alfaparf Group embarked on a journey that would take it to the next level, becoming one of the leading groups in the global professional cosmetics industry.
In 2000 it moved its headquarters to new premises in Osio Sotto (covering a total of 25,000 square meters), where its production facilities, warehouses and offices are located today. The first years of the new century also saw the expansion of its two main factories (in Mexico and Brazil), both reaching their current size of around 30,000 square meters.
The Group’s international vocation went from strength to strength in these years, with the opening of several new branches in Latin America, the USA and Australia. In 2003 it also opened a branch in China, with production facilities to cater for local needs. Growth continued in the countries where the Alfaparf Group had operated for years and it soon became the first group with 100% Italian capital to become a global leader in its reference market. In 2009 it acquired GTS SpA, a company founded in the 1970s which produces and sells professional personal care products (face, make-up, body) and equipment for beauty salons and institutes. Alongside the Group’s brands, its private label business continues to flourish. Over the years Alfaparf has gained a solid reputation for its third-party production, especially of coloring products, thanks to its know-how, developing a client base that includes some of the leading, high-end companies in the industry.
Globalization
In recent years, the Alfaparf Group has resolutely pursued a process of globalization, exploring new markets, brands and distribution channels. Geographically speaking, exports to Eastern and Northern Europe (Russia, the Baltic states, Scandinaviaand the Balkans), Africa (Tunisia, Morocco, Egypt, Senegal and South Africa) and Asia (India, Indonesia, Malaysia and the Middle East) have grown, making the Group even more multinational and a presence in all four corners of the globe.
Globalization has also meant changes in its product portfolio. Traditionally focused on the professional cosmetics channel, over the past few years the AlfaparfGroup made its debut in the consumer channel with the Alta Moda è …brand. This new venture was launched in Brazil(involving both production and sales), targeting stores and retail chains specialized in hair products, as well as drug stores and perfumeries. Globalization has also introduced changes to working methods.
Today nearly all the Group’s branches are interconnected by the SAP operating system which speeds up processes and ensures the quality of controls and compliance to standards. On the same note, the Group has introduced regulations and measures in all the countries it operates in to bring its working practices, products and operation in foreign markets in line with standards of excellence, starting with its corporate management which is based in Italy.