P&G Ahead Of Schedule On Gillette Integration

WENDY TOTH

CINCINNATI — The giant is on the loose and moving faster than expected. Ahead of schedule, Procter & Gamble here is bringing the Gillette businesses closer to the fold.

The Gillette blade and razor, and Braun small electrical appliance businesses will become part of P&G Beauty and Health, and the Duracell battery business will become part of P&G Household Care, effective July 1, P&G reported this month.

The Gillette businesses, acquired in 2005, had been operating as the Gillette Global Business Unit, a separate division of P&G, since the acquisition.

Upon acquisition, the two companies had planned to complete this integration in two to three years, Michael Norton, spokesman for Procter & Gamble told SN. The two-year mark will be in October 2007. “Since the integration has gone well, it has allowed the acceleration of this step.”

Bringing the Gillette and P&G brands together will effectively give the company faster sharing of technology, as well as the reapplication of commercial and marketing innovations, Norton said. The result for retailers and consumers will be more creative product entries, he said.

“Gillette was never a stranger to product innovation, based on the constant evolution and improvements to razor technology” said Jim Hertel, managing partner of consultant Willard Bishop, Barrington, Ill.