Playtex Products history

Tampons were invented in 1936 by Tambrands (long known as Tampax) as an alternative to sanitary napkins.

In 1954, International Playtex applied the latex technology it had developed in making its girdles to a new line of household latex gloves, the first of their kind.

To support the launch event, Playtex USA opts for an advertising campaign with the slogan ‘Lifts and Separates’. In 1955, it is the first brand to dare to mention lingerie on TV.

In 1969, Joel Smilow was named president of International Playtex, which was by then a subsidiary of Glen Alden Corporation, part of Rapid American Corporation.

In 1975, International Playtex was acquired from Rapid American by Esmark Inc.

The majority of victims were menstruating women who used tampons, and in 1980, the Centers for Disease Control reported 890 cases of TSS, the most ever recorded.

Then, in 1983, International Playtex bought Almay cosmetics, which had been $5 million in the red the year before on sales of $19 million.

However, after four months he left the company and, in February 1985, Walter Bregman was fired from his position as president of International Playtex.

Early in 1988, Johnson & Johnson was poised to acquire Playtex Family Products for $726 million, a deal that eventually fell through.

By 1991, lower-priced shampoos and conditioners with the same up-scale attraction had cut Jhirmack's share to 2.4 percent of the $1.4 billion market.

Schick and Wilkinson Sword merged in 1992 to create a global leader in shaving.

The Spill-Proof cup, introduced in October 1993, was the fastest-growing cup in the toddler market category, gaining almost a seven percent dollar market share in its first year.

Playtex then introduced Banana Boat, Diaper Genie, and Wet Ones in 1994.

Robert Haas, chairman of Haas Wheat, replaced him as company chair, while Michael R. Gallagher, formerly of Reckitt & Coleman, was named CEO. When Playtex president and chief operating officer Calvin Gauss resigned in September 1995, Gallagher assumed his duties as well.

And after ten years of innovative product launches, the two companies merged in 2007 to create a family of brands with a legacy of innovation and a mission of category reinvention.