Reckitt Benckiser revitalises with roster

Reckitt Benckiser, the global household cleaning and personal care conglomerate, confirms it has put in place a new international roster of design consultancies to drive its product innovation.

It is understood that an initial global pitch list of around 24 consultancies has been reduced to three or four groups, from as far afield as Italy and India, which make up the final roster. Reckitt Benckiser strategy and development director Anish Gupta confirms that a roster has been compiled ‘very recently’, but declines to reveal any further details.

A number of UK packaging innovation consultancies were approached to take part in the pitch. In the UK, the company has previously worked with Blue Marlin Brand Design on the Lemsip and Finish brands, Landor Associates on Airwick and PI3 on Windolene.

Innovation projects at Reckitt Benckiser are typically segmented by product category, although it is thought that the new roster will operate at a more overarching level. A source close to the selection process says the company is adopting branding strategies to work alongside product innovation because technical developments can be copied by competitors, while the brand identity and ‘product story’ are able to create difference in the marketplace.

Reckitt Benckiser acquired Boots Healthcare International from Boots for £1.9bn last month, bringing brands including Nurofen, Strepsils and Clearasil into its portfolio.