Procter & Gamble plans to rid itself of over half of its global brands in an effort to focus on its bestselling products and labels. The world’s largest consumer goods company will have approximately 70 to 80 labels when the cuts are over. There is no word on whether the company will keep its natural supplements brand, New Chapter.

The company did not specify which brands it will keep, but mentioned that these products comprise 90 per cent of its sales. The companies that will be removed from P & G’s roster may be sold to other companies.

“In an ideal world, we would’ve done this at the depth of the financial crisis, in the recession,” says A.G. Lafley, Proctor & Gamble CEO. “Having said that, I don’t see any reason to wait. I don’t see any virtue in waiting another minute.”

The company has already started selling its lower-earning brands such as the sale of Iams pet food and pet products to Mars Inc. By cutting down on its brands, the company hopes to spend more time and money on its higher-earning brands.

In its fourth quarter, the company notes its profits grew by 38 per cent due to cost-cutting measures. In its second quarter, the company reports a net income of US$2.58 billion, while revenue fell to $20.16 billion.

Happy Planet, the British Columbia-based producer of organic foods and juices, welcomes Danielle Pearson, Cristina Wu and Lauren Rebar to their new positions on its team.

Danielle Pearson is the company’s new VP of sales. Danielle has years of experience with companies such as Nature’s Path, Unilever, Nestle and Diageo in the fields of sales, trade marketing, category management and business and customer development.

Cristina Wu is Happy Planet’s new Canadian Sales Coordinator. She has six years of experience in sales and marketing, including a role with Sunrise Soya Foods. Cristina’s role will include debit note management and providing key analysis and support to the sales team.

Lauren Rebar has taken on the role of business development manager after over five years at Happy Planet. She brings a passion for the brand and extensive product knowledge to her role, which will include supporting the company’s Natural Trade retail partners and its broker teams, and will focus on expanding Happy Planet’s export business.

“We’re excited about moving forward and growing our partnerships with you as we continue to offer exceptional feel good food and juice which put smiles on everyone’s faces!” says Rex Sheehy, CEO of the company.

One year ago, food manufacturers were given until August 5, 2014 to ensure that any products labeled as gluten free contained less than 20 parts per million of gluten, meaning these products would be free of wheat, rye and barley, an amount safe for most sufferers of celiac disease.

Up until now, products could be labeled gluten free without being regulated, and manufacturers could decide independently what that meant. Until this rule came into place, wheat was required to be labeled, though rye and barley were not. The rule also ensures that products cannot be labeled as gluten free if they were cross-contaminated by other products from the same facility.

(https://7ziphelp.com)

The Walgreen Company has announced its plan to acquire the remaining part of British pharmacy chain Alliance Boots that it does not own in a deal worth $5.27 billion plus about 144.3 million Walgreens shares. This would bring The Walgreen Company’s total stores to about 11,000 operated in 10 countries. The new holding company, which will be called Walgreen Boots Alliance, plans on keeping its headquarters in Chicago.

This deal is part of a trend of American companies seeking to acquire smaller foreign companies in an effort to avoid higher corporate taxes in the United States, known as inversion, while having an overseas presence. Walgreens was unable to have an inversion deal, as it required the company to renegotiate its terms with Alliance Boots, which Boots did not agree to.

“The company concluded it was not in the best long-term interest of our shareholders to attempt to re-domicile outside the U.S.,” says Gregory D. Wasson, Walgreen’s president and CEO, in a news release.

Wasson went on to say that the full acquisition of Alliance Boots, “was in the best interest of our shareholders, and with this decision, we are now moving forward on an accelerated basis to create the global leader in pharmacy-led health and well-being.”

The deal is expected to close in the first quarter of 2015 after shareholder and regulatory approval. Walgreens purchased a 45 per cent stake in Alliance Boots in 2012, along with a three-year option to acquire the remaining 55 per cent. At that time, Walgreens paid approximately $6.7 billion for its share of the company.

UCLA’s Department of Neurosurgery’s program in Memory Restoration has been given $15 million by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) for a four-year project to create, surgically implant and test a memory prosthesis in the brain to help restore lost memory functions.

The grant will allow a UCLA team of experts in various fields, such as neurosurgery, engineering, neurobiology, psychology and physics to work on the project, which hopes to support the memory by stimulating the entorhinal area of the brain, an area that plays a major part in learning, memory and Alzheimer’s disease. The region is the entrance of the hippocampus, which helps form and store memories.

“Losing our ability to remember past events and form new memories is one of the most dreaded afflictions of the human condition,” says Dr. Itzhak Fried, the lead investigator for the UCLA project. “The entorhinal cortex is the golden gate to the brain’s memory mainframe. Every visual and sensory experience that we eventually commit to memory funnels through that doorway to the hippocampus. Our brain cells send signals through this hub in order to form memories that we can later consciously recall.”

The implanted neural device will be developed through a separate grant of $2.5 million from DARPA by the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and Stanford University Engineers, as well as UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science researchers, led by Dejan Markovic.

Sycamore Partners, a New York-based private equity firm, is considering purchasing Sears Canada. Sycamore Partners has recently purchased retailers Jones Group, Talbots and Hot Topic.

According to the New York Post, Eddie Lampert, the controlling stakeholder of Sears Holdings Corp., expects up to US$2 billion in the sale, which is comprised of 176 stores. Both Sycamore Partners and Sears Holdings have declined a comment.

Sears Canada has experienced a loss in market shares due to fellow American companies such as Wal-Mart entering the Canadian market. In May, Sears announced it would sell 51 per cent of its stake in Sears Canada and hire an investment bank to discuss its options for its share of Sears Canada.

Target Corp has hired Brian Cornell, a former PepsiCo and Sam’s Club executive, as its new CEO and chairman in an effort to regain customer confidence. Cornell is the retail giant’s first executive that was hired externally, and will start his role on August 12.

Cornell is replacing Gregg Steinhafel, who left the company in May following the holiday data breach and its disappointing entry in the Canadian market. Target’s comparable store sales have dropped in three of the last five quarters, and the company has also faced lower store visits for the past six quarters.

Target may have looked to Cornell to turn around the business, much like he did with Sam’s Club, a Wal-Mart banner, from 2009 until 2012. In 2012, Cornell joined PepsiCo Inc. where he was in charge of the Americas Foods unit. Prior to that, Cornell was CEO at the Michael’s chain of arts and crafts stores for two years.

“…His experience at large retail and consumer product goods organizations should be instrumental in guiding Target,” says Simeon Gutman, a Morgan Stanley analyst.

Manitoba Harvest Hemp Foods, the largest vertically integrated hemp food manufacturer in the world, has hired five new team members since June 1. Two new team members are within the sales and marketing support team, two are working in production, and one is within an administrative and human resources role. We wish them luck in their new roles!

Land Art, a leading brand in the field of liquid dietary supplements, is looking for a new Territory Manager for the Toronto region. Land Art develops and produces its own liquid dietary supplement products, which are then distributed across Canada.

Please see below for the full job posting.

TERRITORY MANAGER – TORONTO

Land Art is a leading brand in the field of liquid dietary supplements. Our unique,

multidisciplinary team develops and produces its own products, which are distributed across Canada. Joining our dynamic and human scale team is a great opportunity as we always strive to innovate and outpace the growth of our industry.

We have an exciting opportunity within our Sales Team for a TERRITORY MANAGER in Toronto. Using superior sales skills to address and fulfill customer’s needs, this position will be responsible for bringing our sales to another level while building and maintaining solid client relationships with all natural health retailers within the GTA. The chosen candidate will have a unique opportunity through this strategic position to help achieve the global objective of the Land Art brand.

Duties and Key Responsibilities

• Build and maintain solid relationships with key customers through superior service and follow up.
• Introduce our products to existing and potential Independent Health Retailers within the GTA.
• Develop these accounts through effective sales strategies, negotiation, communication and follow up.
• Provide accurate and concise information to buyers on the use of all company products.
• Manage in-store promotion, merchandising, display opportunities, demos and inventory control where applicable.
• Support and work closely with our distributor partners to optimize sales and products knowledge.
• Manage call cycle through prioritization for effective and efficient time usage.
• Become our product specialist and brand ambassador through retailer and consumer seminars as well as product presentations to key opinion leaders.
• Maintain regular contact with the director of sales & marketing
• Attend 2-3 trade shows and up to 3 consumer shows per year.
• Submit sales report on a weekly basis.
• Other responsibilities may be assigned from time to time.

Skills

• Minimum of 5 years experience in sales (retail).
• Sales driven and invent creative ways to grow business within the assigned territory.
• Experience/knowledge within the natural health sector an asset.
• Excellent objection handling skills.
• Excellent in negotiation and closing deals with retailers.
• Excellent business planning skills.
• Ability to present the unique key features of the products to sell.
• Proven track records in sales development.
• Must be results oriented and work independently.
• Excellent communication, presentation and interpersonal skills.
• Demonstrated ability to build solid clients relationships.
• Valid driver’s license and access to a vehicle.

To apply, please email your resume to mboivin@aromatik.ca. We thank all candidates who choose to apply; however only selected candidates will be contacted for an interview.