Procter & Gamble: Delivering Innovation

STEP INTO JUST about anyone's home, and you're highly likely to happen upon Procter & Gamble products. Whether it's Tide laundry detergent, Dawn dish soap, Pampers diapers or Bounty paper towels–the brands that compose P&G's portfolio are ubiquitous in nearly every room of households across the globe.

Since its inception more than 180 years ago, P&G has grown its business exponentially. What began as a company founded in 1837 by two brothers-in-law making candles and soap, has today grown into a global company with a long history of quality products and innovation–that also boasts a thriving and exceptional trademark licensing program.

P&G's winning licensing program earned the company the No. 22 spot on License Global's 2019 Top 150 Global Licensors report, a coveted annual list that ranks and recognizes licensors who lead the pack in retail licensed product sales each year.

The company's corporate brand licensing journey began more than 30 years ago after a series of pivotal acquisitions.

"After acquiring the Vidal Sassoon brand in the mid-'80s, P&G partnered with Conair, a category leader in electrical styling tools, to extend the Vidal Sassoon brand, under license, into this close-to-core category," says John Trebbien, associate director, global business development, Procter & Gamble. "Conair remains P&G's longest running trademark licensing partner, and since the start, the P&G licensing program has grown from strength to strength."

P&G takes care to mindfully nurture its licensing partnerships from infancy stage all the way through to providing extensive market research that informs a thoroughly-considered, data-driven approach to sustained success.

"P&G has a powerful portfolio of trusted, quality brands recognized globally and used by about five billion people around the world," says Trebbien. "The company's superior brands and products delight consumers and improve everyday lives, and licensed products are equally developed to build on the strong emotional connections and equities of the core brand offer.

"P&G supports its licensees with its immense market knowledge and consumer research resources, while investing in brand marketing and research and development with licensees," adds Trebbien. "For P&G, trademark licensing has evolved into an integral part of its business strategy with corporate oversight from Global Business Development. It is the seamless extension of brand equity from core to licensed products that earns P&G the position as a gold-standard in corporate brand licensing and the No. 22 position on License Global's ranking of the Top 150 Global Licensors. Delivering innovation and the right to win in a category will always take precedence for P&G over royalties."

With more than 25 best-in-class licensees in tow, P&G has a firm grip across many business sectors...

Read the full special report in the latest issue of License Global Magazine.