Colgate-Palmolive :: Oral Hygiene Industry

WS1 CP Paper Colgate-Palmolive has been a leader in household and personal care products. In 1991 the company planned new product launches while planning to venture into new markets (Quelch & Laidler, 2011). The company’s plan worked and now the company offers products from oral hygiene products to dish soap to dog food. This paper will discuss the company’s mission. This paper will also discuss a SWOT analysis which according to Kotler and Keller (2009) is â€Å"the overall evaluation of a business’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.† Mission A mission statement should be clear and thoughtful. A mission statement should also provide employees with a sense of purpose and direction (Kotler & Keller, 2009). According to Colgate (2011) the company’s mission statement is â€Å" to provide Colgate with a significant competitive advantage by reducing total delivered costs, extending technology resources and developing excellence in purchasing, logistics and sourcing processes.† The company has been successful in its mission and accomplishing its goals. Strengths Colgate-Palmolive has been a strong force in the oral hygiene industry. The company has many strengths that have contributed to the company’s success. The company has become a global leader with seventy five percent of sales coming from international operations (Colgate, 2011). The company has built strong brand recognition over the years. According to Sekar and Thomas (2008) â€Å"brand differentiation is now becoming an important tactic for combating competition in the hostile marketplace.† While price is important, brand is also an important influence for consumers (Chain Drug Review, 2010). Another influence is product positioning. Colgate-Palmolive has been successful in positioning their products in stores and displaying more skus than other brands. The company has a focus on new product development and innovation. Products range from oral hygiene products to pet foods. The company sells high margin products that they are able to produce at a low cost to the company (Datamonitor, 2011). Colgate-Palmolive’s financial strategy has helped the company to achieve great success. Weaknesses Although the company has many strengths the company does have some weaknesses. While the company remains the market leader in Ireland (Checkout, 2008), the company has experienced a decrease in sales in other European countries (Datamonitor, 2011). This decrease could be the result of less spending on advertising compared to the company’s competitors (DeSanto, 2010).