Band-Aid and Tylenol will have a new name on their packaging

We’ve all heard of Band-Aid, Tylenol, Benadryl and Johnson’s baby powder.

We’ve never heard of the new invented word Kenvue.

But Kenvue will be the new corporate parent of these familiar consumer health brands next year.

Johnson & Johnson, which owns these brands, is in the process of splitting into two companies – one focused on medical devices and medicines, the other on consumer health products.

J&J is keeping its recognizable name for its larger pharmaceutical business unit, but needed to create a new brand identity for the smaller consumer arm.

The company said on Wednesday that it landed at Kenvue, a combination of “Ken”, an English word for knowledge used primarily in Scotland, and “vue”, a reference to vision.

“The launch of the Kenvue brand is a watershed moment for our stakeholders and an important part of the planned separation,” said Thibaut Mongon, who has been designated CEO of the new company, which also includes Motrin, Listerine, Neutrogena and other brands. The division should be completed next year.

A J&J spokesperson said a small team worked with a naming agency to develop and select thousands of names for the new company.

J&J wanted the name to be distinctive and memorable.

It also needed to clear trademarks in more than 100 markets and “pass linguistic and cultural exams in 89 languages ​​and dialects”.

In addition to the new name, the company has a new logo and design. Kenvue appears in white letters against a green background, and the letter “K” includes a heart on the side.

It’s no coincidence that Kenvue has no meaning or history, said Jay Jurisich, CEO and creative director of branding agency Zinzin.

Companies often look for names that are completely clear of any controversy.

The Kenvue name reflects J&J’s desire for the consumer company’s new identity to take a back seat to well-known brands like Band-Aid.

This is a similar strategy to other consumer products conglomerates such as Unilever, which owns Dove and Hellmann’s, and Procter & Gamble, which owns Bounty and Charmin.

“It’s really just a holding company behind all these other brands,” Jurisich said. “They want a name that fades into the background and brands stand out.”

Corporate name changes are a common tactic for a variety of reasons such as spin-offs, mergers and acquisitions or new parent companies.

Companies embroiled in the PR crisis have also changed their names to remove any negative associations with their previous brands, such as Philip Morris, who changed his name to Altria in 2001.

Then there were brands that changed their names to signal a change in strategy, like Dunkin’ releasing “Donuts” in 2018.

This is not the first time two words have been combined in the name of a new company.

In 2012, Kraft Foods split its food brands as Oreo into Mondelez from a combination of “monde”, derived from the Latin for “world”, and “deliz”, short for “delicious”.