Procter & Gamble has discontinued distribution of the Zirh brand, the company stated Thursday, to “invest future resources in growing our grooming brands with the strongest global growth potential, namely Gillette, Old Spice and The Art of Shaving. We began communicating this to our retail partners in early July,” said Damon Jones, global communications director, Male Grooming at Procter & Gamble.
P&G bought Zirh Holdings in June 2009 for an estimated $40 million, twice its sales. At the time, Zirh was best known for its high-end skin care products, including face washes, masks and antiaging serums. The purchase brought P&G’s grooming business into Bloomingdale’s, Barney’s New York, Saks Fifth Avenue and Sephora.
“The decision comes after a thorough review [of] the future potential of Zirh relative to other investment opportunities,” continued Jones, citing The Art of Shaving as P&G’s fastest-growing Beauty & Grooming brand, which it is investing heavily in this year for national retail expansion. Art of Shaving is expected to be operating 50 stores by the end of 2011, up from 38 in 2009.