CLOROX acquisition history

Clorox announced a definitive agreement to purchase Colgate-Palmolive's bleach businesses across Canada, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Uruguay and Venezuela for an aggregate price of $126 million plus inventory. The deal brought over the Javex bleach brand in Canada, the Nevex brand in Venezuela and the Agua Jane brand in Uruguay, along with a transition license to the Ajax trademark for bleach in Colombia, the Dominican Republic and Ecuador. Clorox also acquired two manufacturing facilities, one in Alberta, Canada, and one in Venezuela, and transferred those employees. The acquired brands were expected to generate about $77 million in sales for calendar 2006 and were the branded category leaders in most of these markets.

Roughly 25 years before a March 2024 company retrospective (i.e., around 1999), Clorox was transformed when it acquired First Brands Inc., a deal that doubled the company's size and combined the brands, people and culture of the two companies. The First Brands portfolio included the Glad trash and food-protection line, Scoop Away and Jonny Cat cat litter, and STP auto-care products. Jonny Cat and STP were later divested, while Glad and Scoop Away remained core parts of Clorox's business. After the purchase, Clorox transitioned the Glad business into a joint venture pairing its operational expertise with Procter & Gamble's technologies, yielding innovations such as ForceFlex, Press 'N' Seal and OdorShield.

Clorox acquired the Liquid-Plumr drain-opener brand, one of the first purchases it made after being spun off from Procter & Gamble as an independent company. The addition moved Clorox beyond its founding liquid-bleach business and into the broader household-cleaning aisle.

Clorox purchased the Formula 409 spray-cleaner brand, a multi-surface degreaser and household cleaner, extending its early move into branded cleaning products beyond bleach.

Clorox acquired the Kitchen Bouquet browning-and-seasoning sauce, adding a food-specialty brand to its growing portfolio as it pushed into grocery categories beyond cleaning products.

Clorox bought Hidden Valley Ranch, at the time a small mail-order salad-dressing business built around a buttermilk-based ranch recipe. Clorox went on to develop the brand into dry seasoning mixes and bottled dressings, turning it into one of its largest food franchises.

Clorox acquired the Kingsford Company, a leading manufacturer of charcoal briquettes. The deal added an outdoor-grilling franchise to Clorox's portfolio and, together with its earlier food and cleaning purchases, helped shift the company from a single-product bleach maker to a multi-brand consumer-goods company.

Clorox acquired the KC Masterpiece barbecue-sauce brand, a premium Kansas City-style sauce, folding it into its Kingsford grilling franchise and food portfolio.

Clorox acquired the Ayudín bleach and cleaning brands, one of its early moves into Latin American consumer products. Ayudín became a category-leading household brand for Clorox across parts of the region.

Clorox added the Pine-Sol cleaner and Combat insecticide brands, previously part of American Cyanamid's consumer household lines. The purchase expanded Clorox's presence in hard-surface cleaning and moved it into the home pest-control category.

Clorox acquired the S.O.S line of steel-wool soap pads and related cleaning products, adding a heritage scouring brand to its household-cleaning portfolio.

Clorox acquired the Poett product line in Argentina, a range of household cleaning and home-care products. The purchase deepened Clorox's footprint in the Latin American cleaning market alongside its Ayudín brand.

Clorox acquired the Lestoil heavy-duty multi-purpose cleaner, a concentrated household cleaning brand, adding it to the company's hard-surface cleaning lineup.

GOJO Industries, founded in 1946 by Goldie and Jerry Lippman, is the maker of Purell, the No. 1 share brand in hand sanitizer across both B2B and retail channels. GOJO has grown to nearly $800 million in annual sales with a three-year revenue CAGR of about 5%. More than 80% of its revenue comes through a broad, stable network of B2B distributors, underpinned by roughly 20 million soap and sanitizer dispensers that drive recurring demand. $2.25 billion (including anticipated tax benefits of approximately $330 million; net purchase price approximately $1.92 billion).

GOJO's deep commitment to innovation and delivering superior value in skin hygiene has built Purell into one of the most trusted names in homes, healthcare facilities, schools and businesses around the world - a name that is virtually synonymous with skin hygiene. This strong foundation, coupled with a large installed base and deep relationships in the fast-growing B2B channel has driven decades of consistent performance.Linda Rendle — Chair and Chief Executive Officer, The Clorox Company

Nutranext is a health and wellness company based in Sunrise, Florida that manufactures and markets leading dietary supplement brands across retail, e-commerce and direct-to-consumer channels. Brands include Rainbow Light multivitamins (No. 2 vitamin brand in the natural channel), Natural Vitality specialty minerals (No. 1 anti-stress and sleep brand in the natural channel), NeoCell hair/skin/nails supplements, and the direct-to-consumer Stop Aging Now brand. About 90 percent of Nutranext sales are in the U.S. In calendar year 2017 Nutranext generated sales of about $200 million. $700 million (about 3.5x calendar year 2017 sales).

Adding Nutranext to our portfolio is consistent with our strategy to accelerate growth through acquisitions of leading brands in fast-growing categories with attractive gross margins and a focus on health and wellness. We're looking forward to leveraging our proven capabilities in brand building, including innovation and digital marketing, as well as strong partnerships in retail and e-commerce to accelerate growth of Nutranext brands.Benno Dorer — Chairman and CEO, The Clorox Company

I am excited Nutranext is joining the Clorox family, a company distinguished by its innovation and like-minded mission of developing products that enhance the lives of consumers every day. I am confident that with Clorox, Nutranext brands are well positioned for the next phase of growth.Jose Minski — Founder and CEO, Nutranext

Renew Life is a leading brand in dietary health with an emphasis on digestive health and is the No. 1 brand of probiotics in the natural channel, with a growing share in the food, drug and mass channels. In calendar year 2015 Renew Life generated sales of about $115 million with gross margins generally in line with the Clorox Company average. Clorox acquired the business from Swander Pace Capital and other shareholders. approximately $290 million in cash (subject to post-closing adjustments; about 2.5x sales).

For more than 100 years, the Clorox portfolio has been firmly rooted in health and wellness, first through the disinfecting properties of bleach, and later extending into Brita and Burt's Bees to meet the needs of health conscious consumers. The Renew Life acquisition is consistent with our strategy to accelerate growth through bolt-on acquisitions of leading brands into fast-growing categories with attractive margins.Benno Dorer — Chief Executive Officer, The Clorox Company

Aplicare, Inc. and HealthLink are leading providers of infection control products. Clorox acquired the businesses during fiscal year 2012 to increase its exposure to faster-growing categories and expand the breadth and depth of its health care portfolio, alongside the Clorox Healthcare and Dispatch professional product lines.

The Company also acquired HealthLink and Aplicare, Inc., leading providers of infection control products that increase the Company's exposure to faster-growing categories and expand the breadth and depth of the Company's health care portfolio, as well as Soy Vay Enterprises, Inc., which makes Asian marinades and dressings.The Clorox Company FY2012 10-K — Item 7 Management's Discussion and Analysis

Soy Vay Enterprises, Inc. makes Asian marinades and dressings. Clorox acquired the brand during fiscal year 2012 as a bolt-on to its food products portfolio (alongside Hidden Valley and KC Masterpiece).

The Company also acquired HealthLink and Aplicare, Inc., leading providers of infection control products... as well as Soy Vay Enterprises, Inc., which makes Asian marinades and dressings.The Clorox Company FY2012 10-K — Item 7 Management's Discussion and Analysis

Founded in 1984, Burt's Bees is the leading natural personal care brand in the U.S. and is regarded among many consumers of natural personal care products as the 'most natural' personal care brand. The acquisition gave Clorox entry into the highly fragmented U.S. natural personal care market, which at the time represented about $6.4 billion in sales and was growing at about 9 percent annually. approximately $925 million (net of an additional $25 million payment for anticipated tax benefits).

This acquisition allows us to enter a growing market that's consistent with consumer megatrends. With this transaction, we're entering into a new strategic phase for our company, enabling us to expand further into the natural/sustainable business platform. The Burt's Bees brand is well-anchored in sustainability and health and wellness, and we believe it will benefit from natural and 'green' tailwinds.Donald R. Knauss — Chairman and CEO, The Clorox Company

Burt's Bees is a compelling strategic fit for us, and we believe we can expand on its strong trends over time to build even greater value.Beth Springer — Executive Vice President - Strategy & Growth, The Clorox Company