Despite its size, Ethiopia still has an underdeveloped cosmetics industry. Basic cosmetic and toiletry products such as shampoos, tooth paste and decorative cosmetics are not produced locally and are often supplied through illegal imports. Some of the smuggled products are product rejects and have not been tested as to their safety for human use.

Berchaco, an Ethiopian cosmetics manufacturer of the East African Group, is seeing a growing demand for new and existing products. To cope with this market demand, Berchaco has established a joint venture with the Dutch company De Streep Finance B.V. and the Indonesian company PT Cosmar with a project cost of 839,980 Euro. Cosmar is a private label and contract manufacturer of quality cosmetics in Indonesia, under the umbrella of De Streep Finance B.V. in the Netherlands. The mission of the joint venture company, Cosmar East Africa, is to introduce quality decorative and skin care cosmetics to the Ethiopian market at affordable prices, either through its own brands or by manufacturing for third parties, including international brands. It will do so by establishing an internationally GMP and ISO certified manufacturing plant in Addis Ababa.

The new company will employ 50 people during the PSOM phase, increasing to 75 skilled workers two years later. In addition, the project will have a positive impact in Ethiopia in terms of import substitution and availability of health-related products as toothpaste, body creams and shampoos of certified quality for the low-income part of the population.