Reckitt Benckiser to sell Scholl foot-care brand in new global deal

Reckitt Benckiser (RB) is to sell its Scholl footcare brand to US private equity group Yellow Wood Partners, owner of the Dr. Scholl’s brand, for an undisclosed sum.

The acquisition will reunite Scholl with the Dr Scholl's brand as one entity after more than 30 years of separate ownership, creating a global foot-care brand operating in more then 50 countries.

The Dr. Scholl's brand is a category leader at major bricks and mortar and e-commerce retailers in the US as is the Scholl brand in various regions outside of North America, including the UK, France, Italy and Germany.

The sale of Scholl, which RB acquired as part of its acquisition of SSL International in 2010, marked a “step forward” in RB’s plan to bring greater focus to its portfolio,”chief executive Laxman Narasimhan said.

“Under RB’s ownership, Scholl strengthened its position as the number one foot-care brand worldwide and established a new global category.

“Scholl is now ready for its next exciting phase of growth and, building on the strong foundations established over the last 10 years, we are confident it would reach even greater heights under Yellow Wood’s ownership, with the unique opportunity of reuniting Scholl with Dr. Scholl’s.”

Yellow Wood Partner Dana Schmaltz said: “We are excited to reunite the Scholl brand globally to continue the legacy and heritage of the century old Dr. Scholl’s brand.

"Scholl is a strong business which has been outperforming the market, gaining market share across its key regions.

"The company has an excellent product portfolio, a great customer base, and leading positions in the markets it serves.

“This is a significant investment in Scholl’s continued growth and as a combined global company we will be better positioned to take advantage of market opportunities and build the business in partnership with management and employees.”

Completion of the sale is expected to occur by Q3 2021.

News of the deal follows robust full year sales growth for RB, fuelled by pandemic-driven demand for its hygiene and cleaning products.

After a particularly strong final quarter for its Hygiene division, RB’s like-for-like sales rose 11.8% to £13.99bn during 2020.