GILLETTE

INTRODUCED 119 YEARS AGO IN 1901, MERGED WITH P&G ON 2005

"The Best a Man Can Get" (1989–2019)

"The Best Men Can Be" (since 2019)
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Safety Razor – King Camp Gillette, came with an idea in 1895, patented in 1901, No stropping required,
blade can be thrown once used.

1st year – (51 razors, 168 blades), 2nd year (90,884 razors, 123, 648 blades)

World War I, 1917-1918, Military Regulations, 3.5 M razors, 32 M blades.

Great Depression & World War II, 1930, Kroman Blade, Quality Control Slip

1932, Blue Blade, Modest Sales

1932, Thin Blade, Cheaper,

After 1939, high advertising spending, sales surged, By the end of the war, servicemen had been issued 12.5
million razors and 1.5 billion blades.

Post war recovery, modern manufacturing plants,

1947, Super Speed Razor, more safety

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1960, Super Blue Blade, first coated blade, comfortable & close shave, 90% market share in double-edge
blade

1962, Wilkinson Sword, Stainless Steel, Threat

But Gillette already had the patent for the technology of coated stainless steel. WS was forced to pay royalty
to Gillette for each blade it sold. But market share dropped to 50% as other rivals also produced same.

After 2 years Gillette also introduced stainless steel blade.

Gillette announced the first twin-blade razor – now renamed to Trac II – in the fall of 1971.

Premium shaving, counter Wilkinson Sword's Bonded Blade system that utilized single-blade cartridges.

In 1974, the French Société Bic introduced the world's first disposable razor.

Gillette introduced this disposable as the Good News in 1976 with Trac II.
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Skepticisms & Decisions

“Our leadership was threatened.”

“I had nightmares thinking that someone at Procter 7 gamble would shave with a stainless blade and decide
to get in the business or buy out Wilkinson,”

“This is what happens to you if you are not up there keeping ahead of the
market.”

“You didn’t have to be a rocket scientist to figure out that consumers wanted disposables.”

“we’re giving up profitability, but we had to do that to maintain our customers.”

“If you want to be a leader on a global basis, you can’t just be a leader in your home market.”

At any given time, Gillette has up to 20 experimental razors in development.

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Q1. Lessons would be;

(for WS case)

Becoming First Mover is also important

Ignoring rivals could cost you rampant threats.

Choosing between the technology ( Stainless Steel vs Carbon Blade)

Stainless steel would perform 2 or 3 times as compared to Carbon

Patenting stainless steel technology was wise move & can be followed in the
future
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Q1. Lessons would be;

(for Bic case)

Undervaluing research, not trying out things

Skepticism for change (production / manufacturing / Supply chain / Operation

process)

Balance between profit & market expectations or maintaining customers.

Marketing myopia
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Q2.

Partly because Gillette management was not oaky exercising push strategy to
introduce experimental products into the market.

They also could have thought that the market for stainless steel blade doesn’t
hold large

Also because Gillette already had system & supply chain in place to produce
carbon blades. Producing stainless steel blades would require new sourcing,
suppliers, manufacturing equipment, processes, packaging & distribution lines.
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Q2.
Implications to supply chain investment

Increased Costs Throughout the Supply Chain(fuel price, transport price)

Supply Chain Complexity Due to Multiple Channels to Market(e-Commerce,

retailers, Drop-shipping)

Consumer Demands Drive Need for Improved Speed, Quality and Service

Risk in the Supply Chain Creates Pressure(time zones, customs, tracking)

The Impact of Supply Chain Volatility (demand, protectionism)

Others ( JIT, Prototyping, TQM)

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Q3. To give “Best shave possible”
It may cost more to produce razor & blade thereby increasing the price &
decreasing the demand

Such product may require complex supply chain & distribution channels which
company can’t jump to due to various obligations.

A good manufacturing could

Reduce cost of production (through material, equipment, labor & time)

Produce Quality products through TQM
Supply chain & manufacturing innovations such as JIT
Products that customers like
Product variations to target different segments & groups
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Q3.
Implications

The supply chain is responsible for outlining the activities at each level of the
supply in terms of time and capacity while the operations management is
responsible for the implementation of the decisions made by the supply chain.
The supply chain therefore determines the activities of the operations
management or in other words, the supply chain affects the activities of the
operations management.

We think the implications would be positive, as both personnel can comprehend

to each others requirement & upcoming expectations and adjust & shape their
future direction in mutual coordination.