HeiQ Viroblock Contract Win and Expansion into New Market

HeiQ (LSE:HEIQ), an established global brand in materials and textile innovation which operates in high-growth markets, is pleased to announce that it has signed a four year partnership with Girbau, a world leader in comprehensive professional laundry solutions for the industrial, commercial and vended sectors. The contract is valued at a minimum of US$1.5 million, with the potential to increase substantially.

Pursuant to this contract, Girbau will offer its customers HeiQ’s Viroblock NPJ03 product as an antiviral and antimicrobial post-treatment for its industrial laundry services. Girbau has clients across the healthcare, hospitality and food manufacturing sectors, where hygiene and safety are paramount, and this contract provides significant additional revenue opportunities for HeiQ. HeiQ and Girbau also plan to offer solutions to public launderettes, bringing branded HeiQ Viroblock dispensers to consumers. While the HeiQ Viroblock technology platform consists of multiple different applications and is active in various sectors, this is the first time that HeiQ Viroblock has been utilised within the laundry sector. This means that HeiQ Viroblock has the potential to become a household detergent product as a post-treatment for laundered goods, opening up a large and growing new market to HeiQ. The laundry detergent market is estimated at US$132 billion per year and grows at 4.5% CAGR (statista.com).

Under this contract, HeiQ will initially focus on a B2B offering, with a particular focus on bringing enhanced antimicrobial and antiviral protection to garments and textiles used in the healthcare and hospitality sector. The detergent market is dominated by players like Ecolab, Unilever, Reckit Benkiser, Henkel and Procter & Gamble, which typically do not focus on functional detergents conferring long lasting properties to textiles. Therefore, HeiQ is the first textile technology company to convert an industrial antiviral treatment into a functional detergent.

HeiQ co-founder and CEO Carlo Centonze said:

“This deal demonstrates the breadth of new market opportunities available to HeiQ Viroblock and means that a significant number of people around the world will be protected by our Swiss Technology Award-winning antimicrobial technology. The four-year nature of this agreement demonstrates the industry belief that antimicrobial functionality is here to stay. We are delighted to open up this significant new market which we believe has the potential to deliver substantial value to shareholders. At a minimum, this contract will deliver US$1.5m of additional revenue for the business over four years but has the potential to go much further. We will first focus on servicing B2B customers, but the B2C aspect of this agreement means that we will enhance recognition of the HeiQ brand in line with our strategy to increase our B2B, B2C and B2B2C sales and brand profile. We have a very healthy innovation pipeline, both in respect to HeiQ Viroblock and our other core technologies, 200 of which are active on the market and 40 more in the pipeline. We look forward to providing additional updates in due course.”

Girbau President Serge Joris said:

“I am thrilled with the partnership between HeiQ and Girbau, as it represents an important milestone in our journey to create textile treatment solutions that have a positive impact on people. Especially given the current circumstances, which have caused people to be anxious, businesses have a responsibility to offer solutions which protect their communities. This partnership is another positive leap in terms of differentiating Girbau’s offering in the textile industry. The partnership demonstrates once again how two innovative companies can contribute to a better world by joining forces.”

About Girbau

Founded in 1960, Girbau is a world leader in comprehensive professional laundry solutions for the industrial, commercial and vended sectors, recognised for its high degree of innovation, quality and sustainability.

Headquartered in Barcelona, Girbau has 6 production sites, 1,000 people and a sales network in over 100 countries. It delivered €182.5 million of revenue in 2019. The company’s firm commitment to innovation beyond the laundry sector makes Girbau a benchmark in its sector, with initiatives like Girbau Lab and cutting-edge solutions like Mobile Laundry and Girbau Sapphire, for remote laundry management.

Proximity, care for the environment and a focus on innovation make Girbau, its customers and their employees the perfect team, committed to providing the best solutions now and in the future for the world of laundry.