HAZLETON, Pa. — Troy Healthcare in January acquired the distribution of its Stopain brand, an external analgesic Troy has been manufacturing since 2002 that is already an up-and-coming pain-relief spray. The brand cracked the top 10 list of external analgesic rubs for the 12 weeks ended Dec. 26, 2010, moving into the No. 10 spot with $1.3 million in sales across food, drug and mass (excluding Walmart), according to SymphonyIRI Group data. SKU growth of 16.1% in that period also is outpacing category growth of 11.3%.


Gojo Industries this past fall reacquired its Purell hand-sanitizer brand from Johnson & Johnson and is currently putting the pieces in place to reassume a category leadership role for waterless hand washing.


The endeavor is not without its challenges. Today, hand sanitizers are a highly commoditized category. And though sanitizers certainly benefited from increased awareness associated with last year’s H1N1 pandemic, that awareness didn’t translate into sales; the $100-million-plus category is down 35.4% in 2010, according to SymphonyIRI Group data. 


DEERFIELD, Ill. — Walgreens this month rounded out the pharmacy purchasing team led by Jeff Berkowitz, who joined the company in the fall as SVP pharmaceutical development and market access.


SUPPLIER NEWS — Drug maker Valeant Pharmaceuticals International has acquired U.S. and Canadian rights to certain formulations of a GlaxoSmithKline drug used to treat cold sores. Valeant acquired the rights to nonophthalmic topical formulations of Zovirax (acyclovir) from GSK for $300 million through its Canadian subsidiary, Biovail Labs.



SUPPLIER NEWS — Marcal has reformulated its Small Steps line, which is made of 100% recycled paper, the company said. Marcal Small Steps paper towels now are stronger when wet, while Marcal Small Steps two-ply bath tissue is softer. The company also will reformulate its facial tissues.



Homeopathy products, especially in the cough-cold space, appear to be doing very well. That’s good news in and of itself, but according to recent Boiron research, it gets better: People who place homeopathy in their market baskets tend to buy more by the time they get to the checkout.


WAYNE, N.J. — IdeaVillage’s new EasyFeet is the latest introduction in the active foot care As Seen On TV category. The flip-flop-like product — called a car wash for the feet — has 10,000 soft-scrubbing bristles and a built-in pumice stone to clean feet and rub away dead, dry skin on the heels. Suction cups hold EasyFeet in place, so consumers can safely use the product on tub and shower surfaces.


EasyFeet ships in March and will retail for $9.99. Idea­Village EVP Ronald Boger called EasyFeet a “monster hit for 2011.”



McNeil Consumer Healthcare recently parlayed its Tylenol brand franchise into external analgesics to quite a bit of success. For the four weeks ended Dec. 26, 2010, Precise “from the makers of Tylenol” became the No. 3 best-selling heat patch, with $1.9 million in sales across food, drug and mass (excluding Walmart), according to Symphony­IRI Group. And its pain-relieving cream similarly broke in among the top-selling brands — No. 9 with $1.3 million in sales for the four-week period.

LOS ANGELES — When it comes to choosing the right medicine for their kids, moms go by the book — Facebook, that is. Moms new and old are spending more and more time on mommy blog-type sites and then tweeting or “Facebooking” any interesting tidbits they may find there. It’s a highly engaged group of consumers. According to recent findings by market researcher Morpace, U.S. Facebook users are on the site for one of every three minutes of time they spend online.