S. C. Johnson & Son, Inc. (commonly referred to as S. C. Johnson) is an American multinational corporation, privately held manufacturer of household cleaning supplies and other consumer chemicals based in Racine, Wisconsin.[1] In 2017, S. C. Johnson employed approximately 13,000 people and had estimated sales of $10 billion.[2]
The company is owned by the Johnson family. H. Fisk Johnson, Chairman and CEO since 2004, is the fifth generation of the Johnson family to lead the company.[3]
History
The company is one of the oldest family-owned businesses in the U.S.,[4] beginning in 1886 when Samuel Curtis Johnson purchased the parquet flooring division from the Racine Hardware Manufacturing Company and named the new business S. C. Johnson. The company's principal product at that time was parquet flooring, later adding other floor care products such as Johnson's Prepared Wax, Johnson's Dance Wax, and Johnson's Wood Dye.[5]
Under Herbert Fisk Johnson Sr., the company expanded worldwide, establishing its first subsidiary in the United Kingdom in 1914.[6] Giving his employees credit for a successful year, Herbert gave them $35,000 in 1917.[7][8] In 1932, SC Johnson introduced Johnson's Glo-Coat.[9] The success of Glo-Coat bolstered the company during the Great Depression.[10] S. C. Johnson's line of wax-reliant products necessitated Herbert Fisk Johnson Jr.’s 1935 expedition to Fortaleza, Brazil, to find a direct sustainable source of wax.[11]
The launch of Raid House & Garden Bug Killer in 1955 marked the company's first major departure away from wax-based products.[18] Within the next few years, Sam Johnson, fourth generation leader, introduced some of the company's best known brands: Glade, OFF!, and Pledge.[19]
In April 2018, the company updated its tagline from "A Family Company", which began in 1998, to "A Family Company at Work for a Better World". According to the company, the updated tagline is "A reminder that SC Johnson holds itself to a higher standard."[20]
Racine Hardware Manufacturing Advertisement, "The Century Illustrated Monthly Magazine," November 1889
Acquisition milestones
In 1992, the company bought Drackett, manufacturer of Windex, Drāno, and other specialty cleaning products.[21]
In 1999, the commercial cleaning products and systems division separated from Johnson Wax and became a stand-alone company called Johnson Wax Professional, later known as Diversey, Inc.[23]
In 2003, the company acquired four Bayer household chemical brands including Baygon, Bay Fresh, Bayclin, and Autan.
In 2008, the company acquired Caldrea, Co., maker of household cleaning products including the Caldrea and Mrs. Meyers Clean Day brands.[24]
In 2011, the company acquired Kiwi shoe care brand from Sara Lee Corporation, thus also expanding its shoe care businesses after the deal.[25]
S. C. Johnson acquired Deb Group in 2015. A year later the company announced a new line of SC Johnson Professional products at the ISSA/INTERCLEAN conference in Chicago.[26]
In July 2016 the company signed an agreement to acquire Babyganics, a baby products company with skin care, oral care, sun care, insect repellent, diapers, and wipe products.[27]
In 2017 the company signed an agreement to acquire cleaning brands Method and Ecover.[28]
In December 2019, the company acquired the privately-held Stasher company and its brand of reusable silicone food storage bags.[29][30]
Ingredients
The company launched a website listing ingredients for their products sold in North America in 2009.[31] Fragrance ingredients were added to the list in 2012.[32] The company added the ingredients of its European products to the list in May 2016.[33] In May 2017, SC Johnson disclosed a list of 368 potential skin allergens in its products.[34]
Brand names
Among the brands owned by S. C. Johnson & Son are the following:
Rhuli Gel, a brand of anti-itch gel. Sold with Aveeno to Johnson & Johnson in 1999. It returned in 2017 and is now owned by Trifecta Pharmaceuticals USA.
Soft Sense, a brand of skin care products. Sold with Curel to Bausch & Lomb (then Kao Corporation) in 1993. As of 2020, the product is now discontinued.
Spray 'N Wash, a brand of stain removers. Sold with Glass Plus to Reckitt Benckiser in 1998.
Tahiti, a brand of shower gels. Sold with Pouss-Mousse to Colgate-Palmolive in 1993.
Vivid, a brand of bleach. Sold with Glass Plus and Spray 'N Wash to Reckitt Benckiser in 1998.
Yes, a brand of laundry detergent. Sold with Glass Plus, Spray 'N Wash, and Vivid to Reckitt Benckiser in 1998.
Discontinued brand names
Among the brands discontinued by S. C. Johnson & Son and no longer available in their lineup are the following:
Semerbak, a brand of bathroom freshener in Indonesia. Merged with Duck, while in Japan it still uses Shut for this product.
AllerCare, a brand of dust mite products. Pulled from the U.S. market by S. C. Johnson & Son in 2000 due to complaints of asthma attacks and other dangerous symptoms.
Astri, a brand of ironing aid in Indonesia and this product is local name from Stira E Ammira.
Axi, a floor cleaner brand from Indonesia and Thailand. Merged with Mr. Muscle.
Rain Barrel, a fabric softener brand from US. In Indonesia called Soft & Fresh.
Jubilee, a kitchen wax brand from US. (Subsequently licensed and manufactured by Malco Products, Inc.)
Fresh Soft Sense, a skincare brand from Indonesia. This product is domestic name for Soft Sense.
Klear, in some countries known as Sol Plus and Klir. Merged with Pledge.
Future, merged with Pledge while in Taiwan markets merged with Mr. Muscle.
Kleen N' Fresh, a floor cleaner brand from Taiwan. Merged with Mr. Muscle.
Glo, merged with Pledge.
Environmental record
S. C. Johnson & Son's Greenlist process is a classification system that evaluates the effects of raw materials on human health and the environment. The Greenlist logo represents an internal ratings system to help customers identify which products are environmentally safe. The Greenlist label is present in many S. C. Johnson & Son products. The Greenlist process has resulted in the elimination of 1.8 million pounds of volatile organic compounds from Windex, and four million pounds of polyvinylidene chloride from Saran Wrap.[37]
In 2011, S. C. Johnson & Son settled a lawsuit that alleged the company's Greenlist label misled consumers into believing the products were reviewed by a third party and given a seal of approval. The company agreed to an undisclosed sum and dropped the labeling of Greenlist on Windex.[38]
On December 18, 2012, S. C. Johnson & Son began operation of two wind turbines at their largest manufacturing facility in Mount Pleasant, Wisconsin. The turbines, in addition to the gas reclamation system in place at a nearby landfill, are estimated to produce enough electricity to completely power the facility.[40]
In 2017 S. C. Johnson purchased the ecological product Ecover and Method brands on undisclosed terms.[35]
Controversy
A RICO lawsuit by tax whistleblower Mike DeGuelle alleges that since 1997, S. C. Johnson & Son has taken advantage of audit errors and filed fraudulent tax returns, underpaying its taxes by millions of dollars.[41] H. Fisk Johnson ordered an inquiry into the allegations, and told Tax Analysts that he learned "other details of the decisions they (the tax department) made that I didn't like. I didn't like what I heard." On December 15, 2011, the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, in Case No. 10-2172, ruled that DeGuelle had alleged a valid claim that the company's discharge of him was part of the tax fraud scheme.[42] DeGuelle's claim was reviewed in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin with the Court ruling to dismiss the RICO lawsuit on the grounds of preclusion.[43] The Court did not rule on SC Johnson's actions as they pertain to tax evasion, with Judge Stadtmueler stating that "the legality of SC Johnson's actions (and whether those actions did, in fact, occur) is of no importance to the Court's consideration of the defendant's motion for summary judgment."[42] The Wisconsin Court of Appeals reviewed DeGuelle's case and affirmed an earlier ruling of the Racine County Circuit Court in favor of SC Johnson for defamation related to Deguelle's claims of tax evasion and breach of a confidentiality agreement.[44][45]
S. C. Johnson & Son was one of 13 large consumer product companies who were together fined €948.9million by Autorité de la concurrence in France in 2016 for price-fixing on personal hygiene products. At the time, it was the largest single fine ever imposed by Autorité de la Concurrence.[46]
In March 2022, S. C. Johnson & Son faced public scrutiny after its decision to continue to operate in Russia despite widespread sanctions in response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The company was reported to have stopped new investments and scaled back unspecified operations as of April 1, 2022. [47]
^Stumpf, Charles; Price, Tom (1987), Heavenly Days! The Story of Fibber McGee and Molly, Waynesville, NC: The World of Yesterday, pp. 41–202, ISBN0-936505-05-2
^Johnson, Samuel C. (1988), The Essence of a Family Enterprise, Indianapolis, Indiana: The Curtis Publishing Company, pp. 49–50, 63, 65, 70–72, ISBN0-89387-086-2
