Sanofi To Close Dijon Facility

Sanofi is to close the Sterling-Midy-Industrie drug research center near Dijon, France, sometime in 1995. The closure is the result of the purchase by Sanofi of Sterling's pharmaceutical business. Many of the staff are likely to be transferred to one of Sanofi's two research centers at Montpelier and Toulouse. Meantime, Sanofi is continuing its divestment policy with an agreement to sell its Perry Ellis line of fragrances to the US company Parlux Fragrances. The Perry Ellis brand has sales of around $19 million per year.