Solevo Group
Solevo Group is a Geneva-headquartered, DPI-owned specialty chemicals distribution platform operating across 11 African countries, serving agriculture, food, personal care, water, mining, and industrial customers through 23+ distribution sites and a proprietary three-app digital ecosystem.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1918
- HeadquartersGenève, Switzerland
- Headcount251–500
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Solevo Group does
Solevo Group is a Geneva-headquartered, Netherlands-domiciled specialty chemicals distribution platform serving eight vertical segments across 11 African countries: Agriculture, Food & Nutrition, Personal Care & Hygiene, Potable Water, Process Water Treatment, CASE & Construction, Mining & Energy, and Packaging. The company distributes specialty raw materials and ingredients to industrial customers while supplying agricultural inputs to a long-tail base of more than one million smallholder farmers, supported by 23+ distribution sites and a workforce of 475+ employees of which roughly one-third are field-based sales, technical, and application experts.
The business operates an integrated proprietary digital ecosystem comprising three mobile applications: My Solevo for distributor business management, Solevo Retail for agro-retailer support, and Solevo Farm for farmer engagement. Solevo Farm includes an in-house computer vision model trained by Solevo's agronomists that detects crop diseases and pests at over 92% accuracy and links diagnoses to specific products and local stock availability. The platform has tracked over €670 million in transactions since November 2023 and engages 1,000+ farmers daily.
Solevo earns revenue primarily through distribution markups on specialty chemicals (transaction fees) with supplementary technical services, formulation support, and application lab work bundled into sales. The go-to-market combines direct field sales to enterprise customers, authorized distribution partnerships with global principals including IFF, Tate & Lyle, Bayer, Ashland, Evonik, Sensient Beauty, Nalco Water, Phosphea, MG2MIX, and Carbonitalia, and product-led growth through the three-app digital ecosystem. The company is privately held by Development Partners International (DPI) following its April 2023 acquisition from Helios Investment Partners, and has expanded through the acquisitions of Rolfes Group (South Africa, October 2024) and XtremeBlue (Egypt, November 2025).
Solevo Group firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Solevo Group
- Legal name
- Solevo Holding BV
- Website
- https://solevogroup.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1918
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 251–500 employees
- Short description
- Solevo Group is a Geneva-headquartered, DPI-owned specialty chemicals distribution platform operating across 11 African countries, serving agriculture, food, personal care, water, mining, and industrial customers through 23+ distribution sites and a proprietary three-app digital ecosystem.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Solevo Group industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Specialty Chemicals Distribution
- NAICS
- Chemical and Allied Products Merchant Wholesalers (4246), Drugs and Druggists' Sundries Merchant Wholesalers (42421), General Line Grocery Merchant Wholesalers (424410)
- SIC
- Wholesale-Drugs, Proprietaries & Druggists' Sundries (5122), Wholesale-Groceries, General Line (5141)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Organic & Biological Input Retail (Biostimulants, Biopesticides, OMRI) (AFABAJAK)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Compounding Ingredient & API Distributors (Pharma Supply) (HLAIAJAO), Janitorial & Sanitation (JanSan) Supplies Wholesale (CRAOAGAA)
Keywords
Where Solevo Group is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Genève
- HQ country
- Switzerland
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices8 records
Markets served
Solevo Group business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Specialty Chemicals Distribution: Distribution of specialty chemicals and raw materials to industrial and agricultural customers across Africa, generating revenue through product markup and volume-based pricing
- Technical Services and Formulation Support: Application lab services, technical expertise, and formulation support bundled with product sales
- Digital Platform Services: Digital tools including My Solevo, Solevo Retail, and Solevo Farm providing business management and market access
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels4 records
Solevo Group product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Solevo Group is a pan-African specialty chemicals distribution platform that supplies raw materials, ingredients, and agricultural inputs to industrial, food, water treatment, and personal care customers across 11 African countries. The company distributes products on behalf of global principals through a capillary network of 23+ distribution sites and supports customers with technical expertise, application lab services, and formulation support. It complements distribution with a proprietary digital ecosystem of three mobile applications — My Solevo, Solevo Retail, and Solevo Farm — that connect distributors, agro-retailers, and smallholder farmers.
Product overview
Solevo Group is a leading pan-African specialty chemicals distribution platform serving critical GDP-contributing sectors across Africa. The company operates two interconnected divisions: Life Sciences (Agriculture, Food & Nutrition, Personal Care & Hygiene, Potable Water) and Industrial Applications (Process Water Treatment, CASE & Construction, Mining & Energy, Packaging). The product portfolio is supported by a proprietary digital ecosystem comprising three interconnected mobile applications—My Solevo (for distributors), Solevo Retail (for agro-retailers), and Solevo Farm (for farmers)—that together connect over 1,000 farmers daily and have tracked more than €670 million in transactions since November 2023. The company operates across eleven countries including Ivory Coast, Cameroon, Senegal, Mali, Burkina Faso, Ghana, Angola, Madagascar, Nigeria, Egypt, and South Africa, with recent expansion through the acquisition of XtremeBlue in Egypt.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- My Solevo: Digital platform for distributors providing 360-degree business management, credit management, invoice tracking, and sales support
- Solevo Retail
- Solevo Farm
- RolfesGroup
- Multichem
- Bragan Ingredients
- XtremeBlue
Products and services
- My Solevo Mobile app providing Solevo's distributors with 360-degree business management capabilities, including remote credit management, invoice tracking, product availability checks, and sales and marketing tools.
- Solevo Retail
Quantifiable outcome
- 92%+ accuracy in AI-powered disease detection
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Solevo Group
Customer profileNamed customers6 records
Segments7 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Solevo Group technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
AI capability7 records
Feature4 records
Solevo Group partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
14 partnerships are on record, tiered core and key.
- IFF (International Flavors & Fragrances)coreSolevo appointed as authorized distribution partner for IFF flavors in West and Central Africa, making selected IFF flavor solutions more accessible to food and beverage manufacturers across the region through Solevo's distribution platform with operations in Ivory Coast, Senegal, and Cameroon
- MG2MIXcoreCollaboration to support farmers, cooperatives, feed producers and mills across Côte d'Ivoire with reliable, practical and cost-effective nutritional solutions, focusing on high-quality premix solutions adapted to locally available raw materials
- XtremeBluecoreAcquisition of XtremeBlue establishing Solevo's entry into the strategic Egyptian market and gateway into the Middle East, serving personal care, pharmaceuticals, food & beverage, and water treatment sectors
- CarbonitaliacoreExclusive partnership for activated carbon distribution in Africa, enabling broader product portfolio for industrial and environmental applications
- Rolfes GroupcoreAcquisition of Rolfes Group expanding Solevo's presence in South Africa, adding Rolfes Chemicals, Rolfes Water, Rolfes Agri, and Rolfes Leather product lines
- EvonikkeyExpanded partnership to enhance coating additives offering in key African markets, building on personal care and home care alliance
- BayerkeyStrategic distribution agreement for DEKALB Hybrid Corn Seeds, supporting agricultural productivity across African markets
- AshlandkeyExclusive partnership for distribution of specialty ingredients in Africa, expanding product offerings in personal care and industrial applications
- PhospheakeyStrategic partnership to advance animal nutrition solutions, combining expertise in feed formulation and local market presence
- EvonikkeyStrategic alliance to transform personal care and home care solutions in Africa, with expansion into coating additives in key African markets
- AECI WaterkeyRenewed strategic partnership for third consecutive year, providing water treatment solutions and specialty chemicals
- Nalco WaterkeyPartnership to enhance mining sector operations in Côte d'Ivoire and Ghana through specialized water treatment chemicals and technical support
- Sensient BeautykeyStrategic partnership for cosmetic manufacturing advancement in Côte d'Ivoire, combining Sensient Beauty's expertise with Solevo's local presence and distribution capabilities
- Tate & LylekeyExclusive distribution partnership for Tate & Lyle ingredients in West Africa including Ivory Coast, Senegal and Cameroon, covering low calorie sweeteners, health and wellness ingredients, texturants, stabilisers, and acidulants
Scale indicators8 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Solevo Group competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- IMCD: Amsterdam-headquartered specialty chemicals and ingredients distributor with strong emerging-markets focus. Closest business-model peer to Solevo: distributes specialty ingredients to personal care, food, pharma, and industrial customers via local technical sales.
- Barentz International: Specialty ingredients distributor serving food, nutrition, personal care, and animal nutrition markets globally. Highly comparable to Solevo's life sciences segments and exclusive-principal business model.
- Caldic (now owned by Advent International): Global specialty ingredients and chemicals solutions distributor with focus on life sciences and industrial markets. Comparable business model to Solevo's specialty distribution with embedded technical expertise.
- Azelis: Belgian specialty chemicals and food ingredients distributor with global footprint and vertical-specific sales teams. Highly comparable to Solevo in life sciences and industrial applications distribution model and principal-agency economics.
- TER Chemicals (formerly Helm AG): German-headquartered specialty chemicals distributor with broad product portfolio. Comparable in distribution-led model across industrial and life-science chemicals, though with limited African presence.
Others
- Louis Dreyfus Company: Solevo's former parent before the 2017 carveout of its African Inputs business. Globally diversified agri-commodities merchant with continuing African presence; relevant as the originating platform and ongoing relationship counterparty.
Broad incumbents
- Univar Solutions: North American-focused chemicals and ingredients distributor with growing international presence. Comparable in distribution model across life sciences and industrial verticals, though with limited Africa footprint.
- Brenntag: World's largest chemical distributor with operations across emerging markets including Africa. Comparable to Solevo as a B2B specialty and industrial chemicals distributor serving multiple end markets, though at vastly larger global scale.
Regional players
- Export Trading Group (ETG): Pan-African agribusiness conglomerate with deep distribution networks across Sub-Saharan Africa. Comparable to Solevo on the agriculture inputs side, though ETG is broader (also trading, processing) and overlaps mainly in African geographies.
- Wienco (Ghana) Limited: Ghanaian agricultural input distributor working with global principals to supply smallholder farmers. Comparable to Solevo on the West Africa agriculture inputs side, though narrower in product scope and geography.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Solevo Group social profiles
Digital presenceSolevo Group compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance4 records
Solevo Group financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Solevo Group leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles4 records
Solevo Group subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries8 records
Solevo Group funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Solevo Group M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Solevo Group
What does Solevo Group do?
Solevo Group is a pan-African specialty chemicals distribution platform that supplies raw materials, ingredients, and agricultural inputs to industrial, food, water treatment, and personal care customers across 11 African countries. The company distributes products on behalf of global principals through a capillary network of 23+ distribution sites and supports customers with technical expertise, application lab services, and formulation support. It complements distribution with a proprietary digital ecosystem of three mobile applications — My Solevo, Solevo Retail, and Solevo Farm — that connect distributors, agro-retailers, and smallholder farmers.
Is Solevo Group a public or private company?
Solevo Group is a private company. It is classified as private equity controlled and is currently operating.
When was Solevo Group founded?
Solevo Group was founded in 1918. It employs 251 to 500 people.
Where is Solevo Group based?
Solevo Group is headquartered in Genève, Switzerland, in the Europe region.
How does Solevo Group make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Specialty Chemicals Distribution is the primary driver. The others are technical Services and Formulation Support and digital Platform Services.
Who are Solevo Group's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are IMCD, Barentz International, Caldic (now owned by Advent International), Azelis and TER Chemicals (formerly Helm AG). Louis Dreyfus Company is listed as an others. Broad incumbents are Univar Solutions and Brenntag. Regional players are Export Trading Group (ETG) and Wienco (Ghana) Limited.
Does Solevo Group have an API?
No public API is recorded for Solevo Group.
What industry is Solevo Group in?
Solevo Group's product category is Specialty Chemicals Distribution. Its primary akta.pro industry code is AFABAJAK, Organic & Biological Input Retail (Biostimulants, Biopesticides, OMRI), with a secondary code of HLAIAJAO, Compounding Ingredient & API Distributors (Pharma Supply). Its NAICS code is 4246 and its SIC code is 5122.