EL PASO, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Mar. 31, 2015--
Helen of Troy Limited (NASDAQ, NM:HELE), designer, developer and
worldwide marketer of brand-name personal care, health care, home
environment and household consumer products, announced today that it
has, through its subsidiaries, acquired the Vicks VapoSteam U.S. liquid
inhalant business from The Procter & Gamble Company (“P&G”), which
includes a fully paid-up license to the Vicks VapoSteam trademarks. In a
related transaction, the Company has also acquired a fully paid-up
license of P&G’s Vicks VapoPad trademarks for scent pads in the United
States. The vast majority of Vicks VapoSteam and VapoPads are used in
Vicks humidifiers, vaporizers and other health care devices already
marketed by Helen of Troy. The transaction includes the acquisition of
certain production assets and the inventory related to the above
categories, as well as the right to use related intellectual property.
The VapoSteam acquisition is expected to be financed with the Company’s
revolving credit facility. The United States Vicks VapoSteam business
associated with the transaction had annual revenues of approximately $10
million in calendar year 2014.
Julien R. Mininberg, Chief Executive Officer, stated: “Acquiring the
U.S. rights to Vicks VapoSteam makes us a leading player in the inhalant
category. Adding VapoSteam to our existing VapoPads inhalant further
strengthens our U.S. humidifier and vaporizer business, with consumable
refills in both the liquid and pad form that deliver the distinctive
Vicks scent and relief consumer’s love. By combining the businesses of
devices and consumables, we are now able to give inhalants greater
marketing focus and to invest in additional new product development.
With excellent historical gross margins above our Company average, these
transactions are expected to further enhance the profitability of our
Healthcare/Home Environment segment, add incremental cash flow to Helen
of Troy at an attractive valuation, and be accretive in fiscal year
2016. We are also delighted to deepen our long-term partnership with
P&G.”
About Helen of Troy Limited:
Helen of Troy Limited is a leading global consumer products company
offering creative solutions for its customers through a strong portfolio
of well-recognized and widely-trusted brands, including: Housewares:
OXO®, Good Grips®, Soft Works®, OXO tot® and OXO Steel®; Healthcare/Home
Environment: Vicks®, Braun®, Honeywell®, PUR®, Febreze®, Stinger®,
Duracraft® and SoftHeat®; and Personal Care: Revlon®, Vidal Sassoon®,
Dr. Scholl's®, Pro Beauty Tools®, Sure®, Pert®, Infusium23®, Brut®,
Ammens®, Hot Tools®, Bed Head®, Karina®, Ogilvie® and Gold 'N Hot®. The
Nutritional Supplements segment was formed with the recent acquisition
of Healthy Directions, a U.S. market leader in premium doctor-branded
vitamins, minerals and supplements, as well as other health products
sold directly to consumers. The Honeywell® trademark is used under
license from Honeywell International Inc. The Vicks®, Braun®, Febreze®
and Vidal Sassoon® trademarks are used under license from The Procter &
Gamble Company. The Revlon® trademark is used under license from Revlon
Consumer Products Corporation. The Bed Head® trademark is used under
license from Unilever PLC. The Dr. Scholl's® trademark is used under
license from MSD Consumer Care, Inc. For more information, please
visit www.hotus.com.
Forward Looking Statements:
This press release may contain forward-looking statements, which are
subject to change. The forward-looking statements are made pursuant to
the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform
Act of 1995. Any or all of the forward-looking statements may turn out
to be wrong. They can be affected by inaccurate assumptions or by known
or unknown risks and uncertainties. Many of these factors will be
important in determining the Company's actual future results.
Consequently, no forward-looking statement can be guaranteed. Actual
future results may vary materially from those expressed or implied in
any forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements are
qualified in their entirety by a number of risks that could cause actual
results to differ materially from historical or anticipated results.
Generally, the words "anticipates", "estimates", "believes", "expects",
"plans", "may", "will", "should", "seeks", "project", "predict",
"potential", "continue", "intends", and other similar words identify
forward-looking statements. The Company cautions readers not to place
undue reliance on forward-looking statements. The Company intends its
forward-looking statements to speak only as of the time of such
statements, and does not undertake to update or revise them as more
information becomes available. The forward-looking statements contained
in this press release should be read in conjunction with, and are
subject to and qualified by, the risks described in the Company's
Form 10-K for the year ended February 28, 2014 and in our other filings
with the SEC. Investors are urged to refer to the risk factors referred
to above for a description of these risks. Such risks include, among
others, the departure and recruitment of key personnel, the Company's
ability to deliver products to our customers in a timely manner, the
costs of complying with the business demands and requirements of large
sophisticated customers, the Company's relationship with key customers
and licensors, our dependence on the strength of retail economies and
vulnerabilities to an economic downturn, expectations regarding
acquisitions and the integration of acquired businesses, exchange rate
risks, disruptions in U.S., European and other international credit
markets, risks associated with weather conditions, the Company’s
dependence on foreign sources of supply and foreign manufacturing, risks
associated with the availability, purity and integrity of materials used
in nutritional supplements, the impact of changing costs of raw
materials and energy on cost of goods sold and certain operating
expenses, the Company's geographic concentration of certain U.S.
distribution facilities, which increases our exposure to
significant shipping disruptions and added shipping and storage costs,
the Company's projections of product demand, sales, net income and
earnings per share are highly subjective and our future net sales
revenue and net income could vary in a material amount from such
projections, circumstances that may contribute to future impairment of
goodwill, intangible or other long-lived assets, the risks associated
with the use of trademarks licensed from and to third parties, the
Company's ability to develop and introduce innovative new products to
meet changing consumer preferences, increased product liability and
reputational risks associated with the formulation and distribution of
nutritional supplements, risks associated with adverse publicity and
negative public perception regarding the use of nutritional supplements,
trade barriers, exchange controls, expropriations, and other risks
associated with foreign operations, the Company’s debt leverage and the
constraints it may impose, the costs, complexity and challenges of
upgrading and managing our global information systems, the risks
associated with information security breaches, the increased complexity
of compliance with a number of new government regulations as a result of
adding nutritional supplements to the Company’s portfolio of products,
the risks associated with tax audits and related disputes with taxing
authorities, potential changes in laws, including tax laws, and the
Company's ability to continue to avoid classification as a controlled
foreign corporation.
Source: Helen of Troy Limited
ICR, Inc.
Allison Malkin / Anne Rakunas
203-682-8200 / 310-954-1113