Rayovac 2008 Annual Report Download - page 13

Table of Contents
Index to Financial Statements
competitively priced with other premium brands. In Latin America, where zinc carbon batteries outsell alkaline batteries, the Rayovac brand is competitively
priced.
The pet supply product category is highly fragmented with over 500 manufacturers in the U.S. alone, consisting primarily of small companies with limited
product lines. Our largest competitors in this product category are Mars Corporation (“Mars”), The Hartz Mountain Corporation (“Hartz”) and Central Garden &
Pet Company (“Central Garden & Pet”). Both Hartz and Central Garden & Pet sell a comprehensive line of pet supplies and compete with a majority of the
products we offer. Mars sells primarily aquatics products.
Our primary competitors in the electric shaving and grooming product category are Norelco, a division of Koninklijke Philips Electronics NV (“Philips”),
which sells and markets rotary shavers, and Braun, a division of The Procter & Gamble Company, which sells and markets foil shavers. Remington sells both foil
and rotary shavers.
Our major competitors in the electric personal care product category are Conair Corporation, Wahl Clipper Corporation and Helen of Troy Limited
(“Helen of Troy”).
Our primary competitors in the portable lighting product category are Energizer Holdings, Inc. and Mag Instrument, Inc.
Products we sell in the lawn and garden product category through the Home and Garden Business face competition from The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company
(“Scotts Company”), which markets lawn and garden products under the Scotts, Ortho, Roundup and Miracle-Gro brand names; Central Garden & Pet, which
markets garden products under the AMDRO, Sevin and Pennington Seed brand names; and Bayer A.G., which markets lawn and garden products under the
Bayer Advanced brand name.
Products we sell in the household insect control product category through our Home and Garden Business, face competition from S.C. Johnson & Son, Inc.
(“S.C. Johnson”), which markets insecticide and repellent products under the Raid and OFF! brands; Scotts Company, which markets household insect control
products under the Ortho brand; and Henkel KGaA, which markets insect control products under the Combat brand.
Some of our major competitors have greater resources and greater overall market share than we do. They have committed significant resources to protect
their market shares or to capture market share from us in the past and may continue to do so in the future. In some key product lines, our competitors may have
lower production costs and higher profit margins than we do, which may enable them to compete more aggressively in advertising and in offering retail discounts
and other promotional incentives to retailers, distributors, wholesalers and, ultimately, consumers.
Seasonality
On a consolidated basis our financial results are approximately equally weighted between quarters, however, sales of certain product categories tend to be
seasonal. Sales in the consumer battery, electric shaving and grooming and electric personal care product categories, particularly in North America, tend to be
concentrated in the December holiday season (Spectrum’s first fiscal quarter). Demand for pet supplies products remains fairly constant throughout the year.
Demand for our lawn and garden and household insect control products sold though the Home and Garden Business typically peaks during the first six months of
the calendar year (Spectrum’s second and third fiscal quarters). For a more detailed discussion of the seasonality of our product sales, see “Management’s
Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Seasonal Product Sales.”
Governmental Regulations and Environmental Matters
Due to the nature of our operations, our facilities are subject to a broad range of federal, state, local and foreign legal and regulatory provisions relating to
the environment, including those regulating the discharge of
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Source: Spectrum Brands, Inc, 10-K, December 10, 2008