Energizer Holdings (NYSE: ENR) is an American manufacturer of batteries and personal care products, headquartered in Town and Country, Missouri.[2][3][4][5] Its most well known brands are Energizer and Eveready batteries, Schick, Wilkinson Sword and Edge shaving products, Playtex feminine hygiene and baby products, and Hawaiian Tropic and Banana Boat sunscreen products. The company sells in over 165 countries.
Energizer Holdings, Inc. (Energizer), incorporated in 1999, is a manufacturer and marketer of primary batteries, portable lighting and personal care products in the wet shave, skin care, feminine care and infant care categories. The Company’s brand names Energizer and Eveready are marketed and sold in more than 165 countries. Energizer operates in two segments: Household Products and Personal Care. Its subsidiaries operate a number of manufacturing and packaging facilities in 14 countries on five continents. On November 23, 2010, the Company completed the acquisition of American Safety Razor, LLC.
Household Products
Energizer’s Household Products division manufactures and markets batteries, specialty batteries and portable lighting products. It offers batteries using carbon zinc, alkaline, rechargeable and lithium technologies. It distributes its portfolio of household and specialty batteries and portable lighting products through a global distribution network, which also provides a platform for the distribution of it personal care products.
Personal Care
The Personal Care division includes wet shave products sold under the Schick and Wilkinson Sword, Edge and Skintimate brand names; skin care products sold under the Banana Boat, Hawaiian Tropic, Wet Ones and Playtex brand names, and Feminine Care and Infant Care products sold under the Playtex and Diaper Genie brand names. It manufactures and distributes Schick and Wilkinson Sword razor systems, consisting of razor handles and refillable blades, and disposable shave products for men and women. It markets its wet shave products in more than 140 countries worldwide. In 2010, SWS introduced Schick Hydro, a new men’s shaving system, which incorporates new technologies, including skin protectors that act to smooth skin between blade tips and an advanced hydrating gel reservoir that lubricates throughout the shaving process. Schick Hydro is available in three and five blade models. In addition, the Company launched a new line of Schick Hydro shave gels, which coupled with the Schick Hydro razor, delivers a complete skin comfort system that goes beyond hair removal to care for men’s skin.
In skin care, the Company markets sun care products under the Banana Boat and Hawaiian Tropic brands. The sun care category in the United States is segmented by product type, such as general protection, tanning and babies, as well as by method of application, such as lotions and sprays.
The Company competes with Duracell International, Inc., Spectrum Brands, Inc., Panasonic, Bic Group, Procter & Gamble Company, Kimberly-Clark Corp. Schering-Plough, and Johnson & Johnson.
As a unit of a food and pet food conglomerate, Eveready's marketing had not been that different from the way other grocery items were presented. Eveready came up with brand extensions, such as the Eveready Classic and the Eveready Super Heavy-Duty. New packaging to coordinate with wrapping paper came out as GiftMate Energizers around Christmas, and a brand aimed at audio equipment users came out, the Conductor. This strategy was tried and true for many food items, but it was not working for batteries. In 1989 Eveready finally decided to try an advertising campaign that went head-to-head with its rival Duracell. Duracell had developed ads showing hordes of wind-up bunnies running on its batteries. Eveready's advertising agency, Chiat/Day, came up with a spoof on those bunnies, with a giant Energizer bunny breaking in on the Duracell gang, rudely banging a drum. The Energizer bunny campaign went on from there, with a unique series of fake advertisements that would be interrupted by the banging rabbit. The commercials began as what looked like straightforward ads for coffee or nasal spray, and suddenly the rabbit burst onto the screen, with the slogan 'Still going. ...' The campaign was extremely innovative, though it did not immediately affect Eveready's sales. It engendered its own spoofs, too. In 1991 the Adolph Coors Company aired an ad with a well-known comedic actor dressed in a bunny suit banging a drum with the words 'Coors Light' on it. Eveready filed suit against Coors, claiming it had spent more than $55 million over two years developing its bunny ads, and it did not enjoy the parody. The Energizer ads continued to be popular throughout the 1990s, and the company attributed its seven percent rise in revenues in 1992 to the success of its bunny campaign.
Other Developments in the 1990s
Eveready increased its worldwide presence in the late 1980s and 1990s. In 1989 it acquired Cofinea, a French battery company, to bolster its position in Europe. Eveready also made acquisitions in the United Kingdom and Spain, and it beefed up its manufacturing and marketing in Turkey, China, and Czechoslovakia. The domestic battery market continued to grow, adding another billion dollars every five years or so. The proliferation of pagers and cellular phones spurred growth in the mid-1990s, and total battery sales were close to $4 billion by 1995. Alkaline batteries made up over 90 percent of the total consumer battery market. A small but growing segment, however, was rechargeable batteries. Rayovac's rechargeable brand held almost 60 percent of the category. Eveready made a strategic acquisition in 1993, buying rechargeable battery maker Gates Energy Products, Inc., in order to give itself a place in the rechargeable field. Eveready renamed the company Energizer Power Systems in 1994, and changed Gates's brand name from Millennium to Energizer. Another new product for Eveready in the mid-1990s was the lithium battery, which was both lightweight and long-lasting. Lithium batteries were used primarily in cameras. Eveready made three different styles of them and claimed to have very high sales volume by 1995.
In 1996 Eveready introduced batteries with testers on them. Consumers could press a test strip on the battery to see how much power it had. Duracell also introduced a virtually identical product. Both companies were said to have spent millions developing the testing systems, and they were still jockeying for market share. Figures for 1996 put Duracell in the number one spot, with 48 percent of the domestic battery market, and Eveready followed with 35 percent. Battery sales continued to increase, growing at six percent in 1996, a typical rate. An article in Supermarket News from February 10, 1997 noted that both leading brands were vying to add value to their products to gain a competitive edge. The testing strip was supposed to do just that. But the overall increase in sales seemed to have nothing to do with the manufacturers' efforts to provide better products. Analysts interviewed in Supermarket News noted that sales were going up for the same reason they always had--people had more gadgets to put batteries in.
Independent Company in 2000
Ultimately, the battery business seemed to have frustrated Eveready's parent, Ralston Purina. Despite innovative marketing, strategic acquisitions, and millions spent on developing new and better products, Eveready's brands could not catch up with market leader Duracell. Perhaps signifying the company's desperation, the Energizer bunny ads for 1999 showed the rabbit crushing, torching, and pummeling competitors' batteries. These ads were stopped by a judge's order. Eveready had sales of $2.07 billion in 1998, but it was adversely affected by the economic crisis in Asia that year, and its domestic marketing was not going well. Ralston decided that batteries were not a good fit with its core business, and in 1999 the parent company announced that it would spin off the subsidiary. Eveready Battery Company changed its name to Energizer Holdings Inc. and was to become a public company listed on the New York Stock Exchange in April 2000.
Principal Competitors: Rayovac Corporation; Duracell, Inc.
OVERALL
Beta: 1.39
Market Cap (Mil.): $5,219.92
Shares Outstanding (Mil.): 69.68
Annual Dividend: --
Yield (%): --
FINANCIALS
ENR Industry Sector
P/E (TTM): 15.70 10.99 16.70
EPS (TTM): 1.59 -- --
ROI: 6.54 4.79 3.22
ROE: 16.25 5.97 5.81
Statistics:
Public Company
Incorporated: 1986 as Eveready Battery Company, Inc.
Employees: 17,400
Sales: $2.07 billion (1998)
Stock Exchanges: New York
Ticker Symbol: (pending)
NAIC: 335912 Primary Battery Manufacturing
Key Dates:
1913: American Ever Ready is acquired by National Carbon.
1959: Union Carbide forms Consumer Products Division to market batteries.
1980: Union Carbide launches Energizer alkaline battery.
1986: Union Carbide sells its battery division to Ralston Purina.
2000: Ralston spins off Eveready subsidiary.
Name Age Since Current Position
Mulcahy, J. Patrick 67 2007 Chairman of the Board
Klein, Ward 55 2005 Chief Executive Officer, Director
Sescleifer, Daniel 48 2000 Chief Financial Officer, Executive Vice President
McClanathan, Joseph 58 2007 President, Chief Executive Officer - Energizer Household Products
Hatfield, David 50 2007 President, Chief Executive Officer - Energizer Personal Care
Stratmann, Gayle 54 2003 Vice President, General Counsel
Conrad, Peter 50 2000 Vice President - Human Resources
Hoover, R. David 65 Independent Director
McGinnis, W. Patrick 63 Independent Director
Nicholson, Pamela 51 Independent Director
Roberts, John 69 Independent Director
Klein, John 65 Independent Director
Armstrong, Bill 62 Independent Director
Hunter, John 63 Independent Director
Address:
800 Chouteau Avenue
St. Louis, Missouri 63164
U.S.A.
Energizer Holdings, Inc. (Energizer), incorporated in 1999, is a manufacturer and marketer of primary batteries, portable lighting and personal care products in the wet shave, skin care, feminine care and infant care categories. The Company’s brand names Energizer and Eveready are marketed and sold in more than 165 countries. Energizer operates in two segments: Household Products and Personal Care. Its subsidiaries operate a number of manufacturing and packaging facilities in 14 countries on five continents. On November 23, 2010, the Company completed the acquisition of American Safety Razor, LLC.
Household Products
Energizer’s Household Products division manufactures and markets batteries, specialty batteries and portable lighting products. It offers batteries using carbon zinc, alkaline, rechargeable and lithium technologies. It distributes its portfolio of household and specialty batteries and portable lighting products through a global distribution network, which also provides a platform for the distribution of it personal care products.
Personal Care
The Personal Care division includes wet shave products sold under the Schick and Wilkinson Sword, Edge and Skintimate brand names; skin care products sold under the Banana Boat, Hawaiian Tropic, Wet Ones and Playtex brand names, and Feminine Care and Infant Care products sold under the Playtex and Diaper Genie brand names. It manufactures and distributes Schick and Wilkinson Sword razor systems, consisting of razor handles and refillable blades, and disposable shave products for men and women. It markets its wet shave products in more than 140 countries worldwide. In 2010, SWS introduced Schick Hydro, a new men’s shaving system, which incorporates new technologies, including skin protectors that act to smooth skin between blade tips and an advanced hydrating gel reservoir that lubricates throughout the shaving process. Schick Hydro is available in three and five blade models. In addition, the Company launched a new line of Schick Hydro shave gels, which coupled with the Schick Hydro razor, delivers a complete skin comfort system that goes beyond hair removal to care for men’s skin.
In skin care, the Company markets sun care products under the Banana Boat and Hawaiian Tropic brands. The sun care category in the United States is segmented by product type, such as general protection, tanning and babies, as well as by method of application, such as lotions and sprays.
The Company competes with Duracell International, Inc., Spectrum Brands, Inc., Panasonic, Bic Group, Procter & Gamble Company, Kimberly-Clark Corp. Schering-Plough, and Johnson & Johnson.
As a unit of a food and pet food conglomerate, Eveready's marketing had not been that different from the way other grocery items were presented. Eveready came up with brand extensions, such as the Eveready Classic and the Eveready Super Heavy-Duty. New packaging to coordinate with wrapping paper came out as GiftMate Energizers around Christmas, and a brand aimed at audio equipment users came out, the Conductor. This strategy was tried and true for many food items, but it was not working for batteries. In 1989 Eveready finally decided to try an advertising campaign that went head-to-head with its rival Duracell. Duracell had developed ads showing hordes of wind-up bunnies running on its batteries. Eveready's advertising agency, Chiat/Day, came up with a spoof on those bunnies, with a giant Energizer bunny breaking in on the Duracell gang, rudely banging a drum. The Energizer bunny campaign went on from there, with a unique series of fake advertisements that would be interrupted by the banging rabbit. The commercials began as what looked like straightforward ads for coffee or nasal spray, and suddenly the rabbit burst onto the screen, with the slogan 'Still going. ...' The campaign was extremely innovative, though it did not immediately affect Eveready's sales. It engendered its own spoofs, too. In 1991 the Adolph Coors Company aired an ad with a well-known comedic actor dressed in a bunny suit banging a drum with the words 'Coors Light' on it. Eveready filed suit against Coors, claiming it had spent more than $55 million over two years developing its bunny ads, and it did not enjoy the parody. The Energizer ads continued to be popular throughout the 1990s, and the company attributed its seven percent rise in revenues in 1992 to the success of its bunny campaign.
Other Developments in the 1990s
Eveready increased its worldwide presence in the late 1980s and 1990s. In 1989 it acquired Cofinea, a French battery company, to bolster its position in Europe. Eveready also made acquisitions in the United Kingdom and Spain, and it beefed up its manufacturing and marketing in Turkey, China, and Czechoslovakia. The domestic battery market continued to grow, adding another billion dollars every five years or so. The proliferation of pagers and cellular phones spurred growth in the mid-1990s, and total battery sales were close to $4 billion by 1995. Alkaline batteries made up over 90 percent of the total consumer battery market. A small but growing segment, however, was rechargeable batteries. Rayovac's rechargeable brand held almost 60 percent of the category. Eveready made a strategic acquisition in 1993, buying rechargeable battery maker Gates Energy Products, Inc., in order to give itself a place in the rechargeable field. Eveready renamed the company Energizer Power Systems in 1994, and changed Gates's brand name from Millennium to Energizer. Another new product for Eveready in the mid-1990s was the lithium battery, which was both lightweight and long-lasting. Lithium batteries were used primarily in cameras. Eveready made three different styles of them and claimed to have very high sales volume by 1995.
In 1996 Eveready introduced batteries with testers on them. Consumers could press a test strip on the battery to see how much power it had. Duracell also introduced a virtually identical product. Both companies were said to have spent millions developing the testing systems, and they were still jockeying for market share. Figures for 1996 put Duracell in the number one spot, with 48 percent of the domestic battery market, and Eveready followed with 35 percent. Battery sales continued to increase, growing at six percent in 1996, a typical rate. An article in Supermarket News from February 10, 1997 noted that both leading brands were vying to add value to their products to gain a competitive edge. The testing strip was supposed to do just that. But the overall increase in sales seemed to have nothing to do with the manufacturers' efforts to provide better products. Analysts interviewed in Supermarket News noted that sales were going up for the same reason they always had--people had more gadgets to put batteries in.
Independent Company in 2000
Ultimately, the battery business seemed to have frustrated Eveready's parent, Ralston Purina. Despite innovative marketing, strategic acquisitions, and millions spent on developing new and better products, Eveready's brands could not catch up with market leader Duracell. Perhaps signifying the company's desperation, the Energizer bunny ads for 1999 showed the rabbit crushing, torching, and pummeling competitors' batteries. These ads were stopped by a judge's order. Eveready had sales of $2.07 billion in 1998, but it was adversely affected by the economic crisis in Asia that year, and its domestic marketing was not going well. Ralston decided that batteries were not a good fit with its core business, and in 1999 the parent company announced that it would spin off the subsidiary. Eveready Battery Company changed its name to Energizer Holdings Inc. and was to become a public company listed on the New York Stock Exchange in April 2000.
Principal Competitors: Rayovac Corporation; Duracell, Inc.
OVERALL
Beta: 1.39
Market Cap (Mil.): $5,219.92
Shares Outstanding (Mil.): 69.68
Annual Dividend: --
Yield (%): --
FINANCIALS
ENR Industry Sector
P/E (TTM): 15.70 10.99 16.70
EPS (TTM): 1.59 -- --
ROI: 6.54 4.79 3.22
ROE: 16.25 5.97 5.81
Statistics:
Public Company
Incorporated: 1986 as Eveready Battery Company, Inc.
Employees: 17,400
Sales: $2.07 billion (1998)
Stock Exchanges: New York
Ticker Symbol: (pending)
NAIC: 335912 Primary Battery Manufacturing
Key Dates:
1913: American Ever Ready is acquired by National Carbon.
1959: Union Carbide forms Consumer Products Division to market batteries.
1980: Union Carbide launches Energizer alkaline battery.
1986: Union Carbide sells its battery division to Ralston Purina.
2000: Ralston spins off Eveready subsidiary.
Name Age Since Current Position
Mulcahy, J. Patrick 67 2007 Chairman of the Board
Klein, Ward 55 2005 Chief Executive Officer, Director
Sescleifer, Daniel 48 2000 Chief Financial Officer, Executive Vice President
McClanathan, Joseph 58 2007 President, Chief Executive Officer - Energizer Household Products
Hatfield, David 50 2007 President, Chief Executive Officer - Energizer Personal Care
Stratmann, Gayle 54 2003 Vice President, General Counsel
Conrad, Peter 50 2000 Vice President - Human Resources
Hoover, R. David 65 Independent Director
McGinnis, W. Patrick 63 Independent Director
Nicholson, Pamela 51 Independent Director
Roberts, John 69 Independent Director
Klein, John 65 Independent Director
Armstrong, Bill 62 Independent Director
Hunter, John 63 Independent Director
Address:
800 Chouteau Avenue
St. Louis, Missouri 63164
U.S.A.