SOFTCARE Limited, hailed as Africa's "Diaper King," listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange yesterday. The stock opened at HK$34.98 per share, up 33.5%, and closed at HK$33, marking a 25.95% surge, with a market cap of HK$19.99 billion ($2 billion).
As Africa’s most densely localized hygiene products manufacturer, SOFTCARE held 20.3% and 15.6% market shares in baby diapers and sanitary pads respectively in 2024, leading both categories. Notably, the company avoided pre-IPO financing, securing $139 million from 15 cornerstone investors including Boyu Capital and BlackAnt Capital in its IPO.
**From Harbin to Africa: A $95M Net Profit in 2024** Founded by Harbin Engineering University graduates Shen Yanchang and Yang Yanjuan, SOFTCARE traces its roots to Shen’s 1997 Africa-focused procurement role. In 2004, Shen established Guangzhou Sendi Group, which ventured into hygiene products in 2009 by launching the Softcare diaper brand in Ghana.
By April 2025, SOFTCARE operated 18 sales branches across 12 countries, serving over 2,800 distributors and retailers. From 2022–2024, it sold 10.8 billion baby diapers, with annual sales climbing from 2.99 billion to 4.12 billion. Frost & Sullivan data confirms its dominance: Africa’s top-ranked diaper and sanitary pad producer by volume.
**Financials: Growth Amid Slowdown** Revenue grew from $320 million (2022) to $454 million (2024), with net profit soaring from $18 million to $95 million. However, 2024 saw deceleration: revenue growth dropped to 10.5% (from 28.6% in 2023), while net profit growth slid to 47% (from 251.7%). For Q1 2025, revenue rose 15.5% YoY to $160 million, with net profit up 12.5% to $31 million.
Diapers contributed 75.3% of 2024 revenue ($342 million), though the share has been declining (71.8% in early 2025). Sanitary pads, the second-largest category, expanded from 13.5% ($43.1 million) to 17% ($77.5 million) of revenue over three years, reaching 18.5% in early 2025. Geographically, Africa still drives 96% of sales, with Latin America and Central Asia under 4%.
**$139M Cornerstone Bet** The IPO’s 45% cornerstone tranche included Boyu’s Arcane Nexus, BlackAnt, Sequoia China, Morgan Stanley PE, CDH Investments, and top mutual funds like E Fund and GF Fund.
BlackAnt’s managing partner He Yu highlighted SOFTCARE’s replication of multinationals’ China playbook in Africa, leveraging demographic dividends (young, high-fertility population), rising incomes, and urbanization-driven consumption upgrades. Yet, Africa’s challenges—import-dependent pulp supply, weak infrastructure, and fragmented distribution—demand localized solutions.
“SOFTCARE’s edge lies in embedding advanced models into Africa’s fabric through deep localization—products, tech, and ethos—forging a resilient ecosystem,” noted He.