Rayovac Corporation (1906–2005)
In 1906, the French Battery Company was founded in Chicago by James Bowen Ramsay (1869–1952). Its first president was German-born chemist Alfred Landau, who had been making batteries in Europe. The Ramsay collective invested in Landau's functioning low-profile Columbia Dry Battery Company which had been halted by copyright issues regarding the adopted name "Columbia". The re-started and renamed assembly plant soon relocated to Wisconsin where Landau's efforts to advance the French company too quickly, combined with a bad run of batteries, led to virtual bankruptcy and he was sacked. He moved on to Toronto and set up a factory making X-Cell brand batteries for Canada.
Neither Ramsay nor the other shareholders knew how to make batteries, but Ramsay's leadership kept the enterprise alive, by having assembly line staff make the "Fleur de lis" branded batteries to a lower standard. Ramsay's fiery self-belief in the industry led him to contract a university chemist C. F. Burgess to concoct a battery to rival those made in America and Europe. Burgess actually succeeded, to his own financial cost, and the company survived, with him becoming a shareholder; but after a fire destroyed the plant in 1915, he left to found his own successful battery company. French battery production accelerated through World War I, and by 1920, the French Battery Company had US$2.74 million in sales and 600 employees, and 1,000 employees in 1931.[4]
In 1930, the company name was changed to Ray-O-Vac, an allusion to the then-new technology of vacuum tubes and electron rays. In 1933, the company patented the first wearable vacuum tube hearing aid.[5] During World War II, Rayovac supplied the United States military with nearly 500 million batteries. As a result of this, they were awarded eight Army-Navy "E" awards for major contributions to victory.
In 2003, Rayovac decided to diversify,[3] and acquired non-battery related businesses including Remington Products and United Pet Group. In 2004, Rayovac successfully underbid Energizer (Eveready) as RadioShack's battery supplier and produced the "Enercell" brand of battery sold exclusively at RadioShack. In January 2005, Rayovac purchased United Industries Corporation for about $476 million in cash and stock. Brands included in United Industries were Vigoro, Spectracide and Sta-Green lawn products, Cutter, Hot Shot and Repel insect control products, and pet supply products with the Marineland, Perfecto, and Eight in One brands.[6]
In 2005, Tetra, a major provider of pet-fish products, was acquired. This diversification prompted the name change from Rayovac to Spectrum Brands.[3] Rayovac also bought other battery companies including VARTA, Ningbo Baowang, and Microlite S.A. The Microlite acquisition included the rights to the Rayovac name in Brazil, giving the company worldwide rights to the Rayovac name.[7] With this acquisition, Rayovac consolidated its presence in the majority of countries in Latin America.
Spectrum Brands (since 2005)
On February 3, 2009, Spectrum filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.[8] The company later emerged from bankruptcy on August 28, 2009.[9][10] Since emerging from Chapter 11, Spectrum has announced year-over-year increases in sales and adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) for the second quarter of their fiscal 2010.
Rayovac, as a division of Spectrum Brands, remained headquartered in Madison, Wisconsin, along with Remington, while parent company Spectrum Brands was headquartered in Georgia. On April 15, 2010, Spectrum Brands announced that it would be moving its corporate headquarters back to Madison; Spectrum Brands moved its headquarters to the suburb of Middleton, Wisconsin, in October 2013.
Spectrum Brands finalized a merger with Russell Hobbs, Inc. on June 16, 2010, to form a new $3 billion consumer products company. Russell Hobbs' brands include George Foreman Grill, Toastmaster, Black & Decker Home appliances, and Russell Hobbs.[11]
