GSK exited Kenya in 2023 as part of its restructuring and now supplies its medicines and vaccines through a third-party distributor.
Haleon is gradually phasing out the GSK logo from its
product packaging.
Pharmaceutical company GlaxoSmithKline Limited (GSK) in Kenya has
officially changed its legal entity name to Haleon Kenya Limited, effective
March 14, 2025.
The new companyis a subsidiary of
Haleon plc,
which was created in July 2022 when GSK separated
its consumer healthcare business from the GSK Group, establishing it as an
independent company in which GSK initially held a stake.
However, GSK hassince
sold all its shares in Haleon.
GSK exited Kenya in 2023 as part of its restructuring and now supplies
its medicines and vaccines through a third-party distributor.
Its former manufacturing facility on Likoni Road, in Nairobi’s
Industrial Area, was taken over by Haleon, which has since expanded its
operations.
Haleon manufactures consumer health brands including Sensodyne, Panadol,
Eno, and Scott’s Emulsion. The Nairobi factory also serves as a regional hub, exporting products to
seven East African markets and South Africa.
“This transition is more than a name change; it’s a reaffirmation of our
commitment to delivering high-quality, science-led health solutions tailored
for Kenyan consumers,” said Mark Pfister, Haleon’s general manager for
Sub-Saharan Africa, in a statement.
“We are also expanding our local manufacturing capabilities, ensuring
greater accessibility to essential health products while maintaining the
highest quality standards for the betterment of Kenya.”
Haleon is gradually phasing out the GSK logo from its product packaging.
Consumers may notice different branding during this transition, as some
products will have no logo initially before adopting the Haleon branding.
“As we transition from GSK to Haleon, the packaging artwork on products
will gradually evolve—from featuring the GSK logo to no logo, and eventually to
the Haleon logo,” Pfister explained. “Consumers may notice branding differences
across various assets or even among different packages of the same product on
shelves.”
When GSK announced its consumer demerger in June
2022 to create Haleon, the drugs manufacturer described it as its most
significant corporate change in the last 20 years.
GSK says it would now focus purely on
pharmaceuticals, prioritising investment for innovative and speciality
medicines.
In 2023 GSK further announced it would no
longer market medicines to healthcare professionals in 29 sub-Saharan African
markets, including Kenya, and instead adopt a distributor-led model.
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