GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) has revealed that its Consumer Healthcare business will be called Haleon following its planned spinoff and stock market listing this summer.
The name, pronounced “Hay-Lee-On”, was inspired by the merging of the words ‘Hale’, which is an old English word that means ‘in good health’ and Leon, which is associated with the word ‘strength’.
The demerger of the Consumer Healthcare business is planned to take place by mid-2022, creating a standalone entity with sales of around £10bn from brands such as Sensodyne, Voltaren, Panadol and Centrum. Once separated from GSK’s pharmaceuticals and vaccines operations, the new company will be led by the unit’s current Chief Executive Brian McNamara and recently appointed Chairman Designate Sir Dave Lewis, the former boss of Tesco. Haleon will be headquartered at a new campus in Weybridge, which is expected to open at the end of 2024 and will include an R&D centre and a shopper science lab.
Commenting on the new name, McNamara said: “Introducing Haleon to the world marks another step in our journey to become a new, standalone company. Our name is grounded in our purpose to deliver better everyday health with humanity and to be a world-leader in consumer healthcare. We are on track to launch Haleon in mid-2022 and our business momentum is strong.”
Emma Walmsley, Chief Executive of GSK, added: “Haleon brings to life years of hard work by many outstanding people to build this new company purely dedicated to everyday health. Haleon has enormous potential to improve health and wellbeing across the world with strong prospects for growth, and through listing will unlock significant value for GSK shareholders.”
GSK is planning to unveil more details of Haleon’s future strategy at a Capital Markets Day for investors and analysts on 28 February. The company trumpeted the unit’s growth prospects when it rebuffed Unilever’s £50bn takeover offer last month. GSK said the bid undervalued the business and its potential, with organic sales growth predicted to be 4% to 6% in the medium term, higher than analysts’ forecasts.
NAM Implications:
- Combination of new name and ‘separate’ existence, ‘independent’ of group…
- …means more focus on consumer optimisation.
- Time for rivals to reassess relative competitive appeal…
