Slough, England – March 10, 2014 – Reckitt Benckiser Group PLC (“RB”) (LSE: RB) today announces that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire from McNEIL-PPC, Inc, a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson, the global rights to the K-Y brand (“K-Y”), a leader in intimate lubricants. The transaction is subject to customary regulatory approvals and closing conditions and is expected to close in mid 2014. No employees or fixed assets are included in the purchase.
K-Y started as a prescription medical device in 1917 and switched to over-the-counter in 1980. The brand’s clinical and professional heritage is unique in the category and is the underpinning to its trusted and professionally endorsed position. It has been the historical innovator in the category and was the brand that built the female intimacy enhancement segment in lubricants.
K-Y, as a global leader in intimate lubricants with very high trust score amongst women, will sit alongside the RB Powerbrand Durex to create a unique portfolio of brands in the sexual wellbeing category. Its addition will immediately transform RB’s sexual well-being category in the USA and Brazil. K-Y will benefit from RB’s strong innovation, brand equity investment and go-to-market capabilities.
Net sales of K-Y in 2013 were greater than $100 million. It is sold in over 50 countries around the world, with the US, Canada and Brazil accounting for the majority of 2013 sales.
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For further information, please contact:
Reckitt Benckiser
Richard Joyce
Director, Investor Relations
+44 (0)1753 217800
Andraea Dawson-Shepherd
SVP, Global Corporate Communication & Affairs
+44 (0)1753 446447
Brunswick (Financial PR)
David Litterick
+44 (0)20 7404 5959