At P&G, 'Product Experience' Drives Performance†

Adweek, November 5, 2007 — This September, Procter & Gamble announced that its Gain detergent had joined the sales ranks of the company's billion-dollar brands. Playing an integral part in that growth: the February 2006 launch of Gain Joyful Expressions, a line extension that has distinctly curvy shapes and an assortment of bright colors (in addition to long-lingering scents like Apple Mango Tango, Mandarin Lime Fusion and Gardenia Delight).

Wrigley bets on the box for new brand

Crain's Chicago Business, July 29, 2007 — Wm. Wrigley Jr. Co. wants young chewers to judge its newest product by the cover.

5, which began hitting checkout aisles this month, is the first new gum line Wrigley has introduced since 2001. The company hopes it can help hold off Cadbury Adams USA LLC, which has made inroads into Wrigley's historical dominance of the U.S. gum business.

The sugarless gum is also the first U.S. brand to emerge from the company's Goose Island innovation center.

P&G's Global Target: Shelves of Tiny Stores†

It Woos Poor Women Buying Single Portions; Mexico's 'Hot Zones'

Wall Street Journal, July 16, 2007 — Every day, Martina Pérez Díaz spends about five hours sewing 70 pairs of black loafers by hand for a wage of 120 pesos, or about $11. When she wants to wash her hair, she walks to her local tiendita, or "small store," to buy a 0.34 ounce, single-use packet of Procter & Gamble Co.'s Head & Shoulders shampoo. The price: two pesos, or about 19 cents. "That I usually can afford," she says.

Shoppers like Ms. Díaz factor heavily into P&G's plan to conquer more of the globe. The consumer-products giant has a goal of increasing total sales by 5% to 7% annually over the next three years.