The Top 50

Household & Personal Products Industry, July, 2001 by Tom Branna

Successful new entries Colgate Fresh Confidence and Colgate Herbal toothpastes and the Colgate Navigator toothbrush drove widespread market share growth in Asia. In China, for example, Colgate's national toothpaste market share as measured by A.C. Nielsen rose to more than 26%. Colgate-China sold over 200 million toothbrushes in the first quarter, including production from its new majority-owned joint venture, Sanxiao.

Among the standout performers in other core categories were Palmolive Naturals conditioner, Axion Spring Fresh dishwashing liquid and the Colgate Actibrush.

THREE

SC Johnson
1525 Howe Street
Racine, WI 53403
Tel: (262) 260-2000
Website: www.scjohnson.com
Sales: $4.5 billion

SALES: $4.5 billion (estimated) for the year ended June 30, 2000, but that total includes sales of food management products such as Ziploc storage bags.

MAJOR OFFICERS: H. Fisk Johnson, Ph.D., chairman; William D. Perez, president and chief executive officer; David L. May, president, North America.

CHIEF SCIENTIFIC OFFICER: Darcy Massey, senior vice president, research, development and engineering.

MAJOR PRODUCTS: Pledge furniture polish, Glade air fresheners and candles, Raid and Off! insecticides, Windex glass cleaner.

NEW PRODUCTS: Pledge Grab-It, Glade Duet, Off! Mosquito Lamps, Edge Active Care and Skintimate Skin Soothing shaving gel.

COMMENTS: Sales rose 7% last year.

Earlier this year, SC Johnson joined ideas.com to tap into the ideas of the public. The company is willing to pay $5,000 to the person with the best idea to make home environments cleaner and healthier, in addition to the individual who has the best idea for making home cleaning easier at www.ideas.com. More specifically, SC Johnson is looking for a safe and nontraditional approach to reduce, prevent or eliminate germs in the home without the use of quats, phenolics, alcohols or bleach. Also, the company is seeking ways to prevent dirt from attaching to hard or soft surfaces in an aqueous base without fluorine chemicals or organic solvents.

FOUR

The Estee Lauder Companies, Inc.
767 Fifth Avenue
New York, NY 10153
Tel: (212) 572-4200
Website: www.elcompanies.com
Sales: $4.36 billion

SALES: $4.36 billion. Net income: $314 million for the year ended June 30, 2000.

KEY PERSONNEL: Leonard Lauder, chairman; Fred Langhammer, president and chief executive officer; Dan Brestle, worldwide group president, Bobbi Brown, Aveda, Bumble and Bumble, Jane, Stila, Prescriptives, Jo Malone, La Mer and Kate Spade; Patrick Bousquet-Chavanne, worldwide group president, Estee Lauder, MAC and the fragrance division; William P. Lauder, worldwide group president, Clinique, Origins and Gloss.com; Philip Shearer, group president, international; Jeanette Wagner, vice chairman.

MAJOR PRODUCTS: Cosmetics, fragrances, skin care and hair care products marketed under brands such as Estee Lauder, Aramis, Clinique, Prescriptives, Origins, MAC, La Mer, Bobbi Brown Essentials, Tommy Hilfiger, Jane, Donna Karan, Aveda, Stila, Jo Malone, Bumble and Bumble.