Colgate Company Story
William
Colgate used to sell starch soap and candles in New York in 1806. In 1873 the
company started selling toothpaste. Colgate really introduced the world to
toothpaste. In 1928, the Palmolive Company bought Kolot. He did marketing in
such a wonderful way that today people call toothpaste as Colgate, not
toothpaste. Today Colgate is sold in over 200 countries. Colgate Palmolive's
profit is 2.5 billion per annum.
Colgate is an American brand principally used for oral hygiene products such as toothpastes, toothbrushes, mouthwashes and dental floss. Manufactured by Colgate-Palmolive, Colgate oral hygiene products were first
sold by the company in 1873, sixteen years after the death of the
founder, William Colgate. The
company originally sold soap.
Colgate toothpaste was sold in glass jars since 1873. Tubes, as
pioneered by Kalodont, Johnson & Johnson (Zonweiss) and Sheffield, were
introduced in 1896.
Colgate became popular in the 1950s, with the slogan "It Cleans
Your Breath While It Cleans Your Teeth", written by copywriter Alicia
Tobin.
In 2007, the Advertising Standards Authority in the UK told Colgate that
it could no longer make the claim that 4 out of 5 dentists recommended Colgate.
Investigation had showed that the study had telephone surveyed dentists to list
toothpastes they recommended, and their competitors were recommended at similar
rates. The claim was deemed deceptive.
As of 2015, oral care products (principally produced under the Colgate
brand) were the Colgate-Palmolive company's largest source of income, making up
around US$7.5 billion, or 47% of net sales globally (with personal care
products such as shampoos making up 20%, home care products such as laundry
detergents 19% and pet nutrition making up the remaining 14%). It also
commanded approximately 70% of the oral care market in Brazil.
In 2018, Colgate licensed Kolibree technology from Paris-based Baracoda
Daily Healthtech,[1] launching the Colgate Smart Electric toothbrush.[2] They currently offer connected toothbrushes for
children and adults under the Hum brand
umbrella.[3]
Consumer holding Colgate with hemp seed oil, 2020 Colgate registered the
label for toothpaste containing hemp seed oil with the U.S. government around
January 2020.
In February 2020, Colgate's parent company announced an agreement to
purchase Hello Products, a New Jersey company that had earlier in the month
introduced toothpastes, mouthwashes and lip balms containing cannabidiol (CBD).
The Colgate family fled from England and settled in America during the
Civil war. Robert Colgate, William’s father, was a farmer. William was
interested in soap making and at the age of 19 he started his own enterprise
with his aunt’s financial help. He produced soap under his own name but
unfortunately the business was a failure.
Though William had to close down his initial business, he was determined
to make a success of soap making. Encouragement came through the Bible and
through a friend. In Genesis 28: 20-21 he read about Jacob who made a commitment to God as he left his home.
“Then Jacob made a vow to the LORD :If you will be with me and protect
me in the journey I am making and give me food and clothing, and if I return
safely to my father’s home, then you will be my God… and I will give you a
tenth of everything you give me.”
William prayed the same prayer. His Christian friend had advised him,
“Start right and you will go well. Be a good man. Give your heart to Christ: give God all that
belongs to him. Make an honest soap and god will prosper you.” William decided
to honour God and give him first place in all his endeavours. He also decided
that he would give one tenth of his earnings to God.
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