Power Battery Company Inc. history

In 1928, Charles B. Johnson began repairing lead-acid batteries in downtown Atlanta, Ga.

Charles B. Johnson reconditioning automotive batteries (1930)

1959: Union Carbide forms Consumer Products Division to market batteries.

However, in 1965 Johnson Battery sold its business to General Battery and Ceramic Corp., as the founder Charles B. Johnson elected to retire.

A December 5, 1966 article in Barron's laid out a host of possible new uses for dry cell batteries, where Eveready was the leading brand.

In 1973, Charles H. Johnson’s son, Howard T. Johnson, also went to work with General Battery Corp. and began to share his father’s dream of one day restarting the "family" business as they both continued to work in the industry.

However, it was not until 1980 that the company launched its first consumer-oriented alkaline battery.

In 1986 they decided it was time to re-establish the Johnson Battery name and Johnson Battery was once again open for business.

In 1989 Eveready finally decided to try an advertising campaign that went head-to-head with its rival Duracell.

Eveready made a strategic acquisition in 1993, buying rechargeable battery maker Gates Energy Products, Inc., in order to give itself a place in the rechargeable field.

In 1994 all departments were combined under the Exide name.

Figures for 1996 put Duracell in the number one spot, with 48 percent of the domestic battery market, and Eveready followed with 35 percent.

Eveready had sales of $2.07 billion in 1998, but it was adversely affected by the economic crisis in Asia that year, and its domestic marketing was not going well.

Eveready Battery Company changed its name to Energizer Holdings Inc. and was to become a public company listed on the New York Stock Exchange in April 2000.

In 2010 the Industrial Division (Motive and Network) changed name to GNB Industrial Power - A Division of Exide Technologies.GNB is an abbreviation of the name Gould National Batteries - a recognised company name under which Exide has sold batteries for many years in the USA and Asia.