When Procter & Gamble Co. paid $57 billion for Gillette back in 2005, little question company executives thought it was a certainty. In any case, P&G was the highest consumer products giant within the realm of girls’s products, Gillette the leader in men’s. It was a wedding made in mass-market heaven.
Then got here the recession, followed by the digital revolution, and an entire latest rise of competitor was born: The Disruptor.
Gillette still commands a reported 60 percent of the retail market. But that market is contracting, replaced by digital-first brands like DollarShaveClub.com, which has been capable of grab near 16 percent of the $3 billion blades market. And though Gillette filed suit against Dollar Shave Club in December alleging patent violation,...
Continue reading
