Kao: brands it owns and its ownership tree
Kao (TSE: 4452) is a publicly listed company headquartered in Tokyo, Japan that owns 7 consumer brands across 2 categories.[1]
Kao Corporation was founded in Tokyo in 1887 to make a domestic facial soap of a quality then only imported, and its name comes from the Japanese word for face. It spans household products, personal care, cosmetics and chemicals, and is one of the largest consumer goods companies in Asia.
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divestitures recorded
Company facts
- Legal name
- Kao Corporation
- Type
- publicly listed company · see all publicly listed company owners
- Headquarters
- 🇯🇵 Tokyo, Japan
- Founded
- 1887
- Tickers
- TSE: 4452
- Wikidata
- Q604330
- Website
- www.kao.com/global/
- Last verified
- · 1 sources
Kao in numbers
- Kao owns 7 consumer brands tracked here across 2 top-level categories; the largest is personal care & beauty with 6 brands.[1]
- 3 of its brands originated outside Japan.
Everything Kao owns
Controlling ownership as of . Brands grouped under the entity that owns them; large groups are collapsed.
Full-screen interactive tree → · Download as infographic
Brand portfolio by category
Latest news about Kao
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Frequently asked questions
What brands does Kao own?
Kao owns 7 consumer brands tracked here, including Jergens, Bioré, Curél, Attack, Merries and John Frieda.
Is Kao a Japanese company?
Yes. Kao is headquartered in Tokyo, Japan and was founded in 1887.
Who owns Kao?
Kao is a publicly listed company owned by its shareholders; it trades as 4452 on the TSE.
Sources (1) & corrections
Last verified . Every ownership fact above is backed by one of these primary documents. Numbers in brackets in the text refer to this list.
- [1] Kao Corporation Integrated Report 2025 — Kao Corporation, Annual report, published 31 March 2026; retrieved 6 September 2026.
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