The Dial Corp. agreed Monday to purchase a number of popular deodorant brands from Gillette for $420 million.
The brands include Right Guard, Soft & Dri and Dry Idea, which Gillette’s parent P&G was required to divest as part of the Federal Trade Commission consent decree related to P&G’s $57 million acquisition of Gillette last year.
The deal, which requires anti-trust approval, is expected to close before the end of the first quarter.
“These leading brands are a perfect fit to our core business body care and will further increase growth and profitability of this business,” said Hans Van Bylen, executive VP of Henkel Cosmetics/Toiletries, in a statement. “We are excited to become the No. 3 in the attractive U.S. deodorants market through this acquisition, thus complementing the strong Dial portfolio.”
Sales of the brands last year amounted to about $275 million, according to news reports. Eighty percent of the sales come from North America, with the rest mainly from the United Kingdom, the companies said.
Dial is a company of German-based Henkel Group, a Fortune Global 500 company, operating in three business areas— care, personal care and adhesives, sealants and surface treatment.
Last October, P&G struck a deal with Johnson & Johnson’s Personal Products Co. for J&J to purchase the Rembrandt oral care brand from the Gillette. J&J got Rembrandt’s consumer products, as well as those distributed through dental offices, including whitening systems, toothpaste, strips and mouth rinses. The brand complements J&J’s Reach toothbrushes, floss and its Act mouth rinse brands.
That divesture was also a requirement of the FTC as a condition of approving the P&G/Gillette merger.
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