Arnest to buy Reckitt Benckiser's Russian household chemicals plant for up to 40B rubles
What's the deal? Britain's Reckitt BenckiserDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → has agreed to sell its Russian household chemicals business to Alexei Sagal's Arnest GroupDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →. The asset is a factory in Klin, near Moscow, that makes brands including Vanish, Calgon, Cilit Bang, Air Wick, and Tiret.
Reckitt did not disclose the price. Michael Burmistrov of Infoline-Analytika puts the fair value at 12–14 billion rubles, roughly 70% of which is cash on the company's balance sheet that cannot be moved out of Russia. Factoring in a 35% budget contribution on the asset's value, Arnest may pay 25–40 billion rubles, according to Denis Astafiev of SharesPro.
Why now? Reckitt announced its intention to exit Russia in April 2022. Russia accounted for 1% of the group's global turnover in 2025, and revenue there began falling in 2026 as EU sanctions restricted some supplies.
What's the endgame? Arnest, founded in 1993, has been buying up assets of departing companies, taking over facilities from Ball, HeinekenDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, and UnileverDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → since 2022. Senior vice president Vladimir Guryanov called Reckitt's production and technology base "high." The group previously produced Air Wick fresheners for Reckitt under contract at its Tula region facilities.
The numbers: Revenue at OOO Reckitt Benckiser, the entity Arnest plans to buy, fell 18.8% to 12.3 billion rubles in 2023, with net profit down 42% to 2.6 billion rubles. Reckitt expects to book a £175 million loss (about 18 billion rubles) on the deal in 2026.
What could go wrong? Arnest will need to replace the familiar global brands with local alternatives, since Reckitt is not transferring rights to names like Vanish and Calgon. In spring 2026, Reckitt registered new Russian brands — Resolve, Signum, Salgent, Xtormer, and Brillit Blast — that Arnest is expected to build its range around.
Astafiev expects the transition to cause a temporary drop in revenue and consumer loyalty, and promoting the new brands will require investment. The key question, says Alexander Zaitsev of Atomic Capital, is how fast the buyer can shift sales to new labels without losing market share.
The deal is under review by British regulators and could close by the end of 2026. Arnest says Russia's government commission has already approved it.
The signal: The sale extends the consolidation of former Western assets in Russian hands. Reckitt's refusal to hand over global brands may complicate parallel talks to sell its pharmaceutical business — which is excluded from the Arnest deal — to structures linked to Pharmstandard founder Viktor Kharitonin.
Read more: Kommersant
Image credit: Balmain & Glebe Heritage
