The goal: Build an Enduring Franchise 3 of 6  
 

An International View
Building a stronger relationship with the consumer also is a critical element to succeeding in our International business as we leverage leading brands such as Evergreen®, Levington®, Fertligene®, Substral®, KB®, Miracle-Gro® and Roundup®. In recent years we have gained market share in some categories but remain focused on improving our performance even further.

Our International efforts in 2006 and beyond will be focused on three factors: improving our competitive position, reducing costs within the business and realigning the organization to better leverage our knowledge of the marketplace and the consumer.

Because the European market is more fragmented than the U.S., our market share in our largest International markets – the UK, France and Germany – averages about 25 percent. While our branded business is significant, private label products also are critical in Europe by providing us with additional shelf space while also helping to achieve supply chain efficiencies.

In both the UK and France, we laid the groundwork in 2005 for continued growth. Agreements with key retailers will help us build both our branded and private label businesses.

We also continue to rationalize the number of SKUs in this business and take even more costs out of the operation, some of which will be reallocated to support a more aggressive advertising effort. Recent organizational design changes are expected to drive further International improvements. We are realigning the business and abandoning a country-specific approach to managing the business and adopting a category-specific approach. We are taking significant steps to improve our supply chain and provide a higher level of service to our retail partners.

 

In 2006, we will recommit ourselves to the International business and bring an intensity to this unit that is in keeping with our company-wide strategy to Gro, Excel & Win.

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