GSK has revealed that its consumer healthcare business, whose brands include Sensodyne toothpaste, Voltaren and Panadol painkillers, will be called Haleon following its planned spinoff and London stock market listing this summer.
The drugmaker said Haleon (pronounced “Hay-Lee-On”) was inspired by the merging of the words “Hale”, which is an old English word that means “in good health” and Leon, which is associated with the word “strength”.
The business has grown in size over the years after merging with consumer product portfolios from Novartis and Pfizer, and now generates annual sales of £10bn.
The new company’s chairman-designate is the former Tesco boss Sir Dave Lewis, whose top priority at present is to assemble its board.
GSK trumpeted Haleon’s growth prospects when it revealed in mid-January it had rebuffed three takeover bids for the venture from the consumer giant Unilever just before Christmas. The last offer was worth £50bn, but the drugmaker said it undervalued the business and its potential. GSK predicted organic sales growth (excluding acquisitions) of 4% to 6% in the medium term, higher than analysts’ forecasts.
It believes there is strong demand for Haleon’s products, with people focusing more on health and wellness since the Covid-19 pandemic, coupled with rising demand from an ageing population and emerging middle classes in countries such as China and India.
Emma Walmsley, GSK’s chief executive, reiterated on Tuesday that Haleon had “strong prospects for growth, and through listing will unlock significant value for GSK shareholders”.
She has been under pressure from the activist investor Elliott Management to explore a sale of the business, rather than a spin-off. The New York hedge fund has also questioned whether she is the right person to lead GSK after the split. the GSK board has firmly backed Walmsley.
Brian McNamara, chief executive designate of Haleon, said: “Introducing Haleon to the world marks another step in our journey to become a new, standalone company. Our name is grounded in our purpose to deliver better everyday health with humanity and to be a world leader in consumer healthcare. We are on track to launch Haleon in mid-2022 and our business momentum is strong.”
GSK will further update analysts and investors at a capital markets day .
Haleon will be headquartered in Weybridge in Surrey, with its new campus expected to open at the end of 2024, with a R&D centre and a shopper science lab.
