B R A N D ID EN TITY M A N U A L

For more than 70 years, the Rubbermaid® brand has stood for innovative, highquality products that help simplify and organize life. From its original line of
simple, durable housewares, Rubbermaid has grown to be a major presence in a
wide array of categories ranging from home organization, shelving, food storage
and outdoor storage to commercial cleaning and medical products. Recognized as
a “Brand of the Century,” Rubbermaid is one of only 100 companies named as
having an impact on the American way of life.
Laying the Foundations
In 1920, a small group of men rented a building known as the “Piano Factory” in
Wooster, Ohio, to produce Sunshine Brand toy balloons, and The Wooster Rubber
Company was born. In 1927, two executives with the Wear-Ever Division of the
Aluminum Company of America purchased the company as an investment. Horatio
B. Ebert and Errett M. Grable kept their day jobs, which included selling Wear-Ever
pots and pans, but they dreamed of running their own company full time.
Meanwhile, in New England, James R.Caldwell, a rubber chemist, and his wife,
Madeleine, sat around their kitchen table dreaming up ideas for new products
made from rubber that could be brightly colored thanks to a new technique. At the
time, Caldwell was vice president of the Seamless Rubber Company in New Haven,
Connecticut, but he also aspired to build his own business someday.
BRAND IDENTITY MANUAL
COMPANY HISTORY
Madeleine and James settled on a rubber dustpan as their first product, and a
patent was issued in 1933. This humble object was nonetheless the proverbial
“better mousetrap,” embodying many of the factors that would guide
Rubbermaid’s success.
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Based on an understanding of consumers’ real lives, this product offered novel,
superior design. Unlike metal dustpans, which got bent out of shape easily and
chipped plaster walls when hung in the pantry, the Caldwells’ model conformed to
floor contours and was gentle to walls. Moreover, it was attractive and priced at a
premium: $1.00, while metal dustpans’ cost was 39 cents. The name, “Rubbermaid,”
too, showed an astute awareness of emerging trends. Prior to the Depression, even
middle-class households commonly employed maids – an era that was never to
return. The Caldwells understood their audience’s interest in having products that
could make their lives a little easier.
Store buyers, however, didn’t think that such a premium product would sell, so
Caldwell took his product door-to-door – where consumers eagerly bought it and
started asking for it at stores. Soon Rubbermaid drain boards, soap dishes and sink
stoppers, all in bright colors, joined the dustpan in housewares departments at stores
throughout the country.
Horatio Ebert spotted these “Rubbermaid” goods while calling on stores for Wear-Ever
and immediately realized they would be a good fit for The Wooster Rubber Company.
Caldwell joined the company soon thereafter, adding his technical expertise and
innovative ideas to the company’s manufacturing and distribution capabilities. In
1957, the company dropped its original name and became Rubbermaid Incorporated.
Building the Brand
Rubbermaid’s earliest print advertisement was placed in 1932 in the Boston Post,
promoting the company’s full line of products for the kitchen, from sinkware to floor
mats. Throughout the 1940s, Rubbermaid ads regularly appeared in magazines such
as Better Homes & Gardens, Good Housekeeping and Ladies Home Journal.
BRAND IDENTITY MANUAL
COMPANY HISTORY
The company’s first national television ads date back to 1962. Among the most
memorable TV spots was the one called “Garbage Truck” produced in 1975, which
featured Rubbermaid’s Roughneck Refuse Container absorbing the crushing force of a
garbage truck and popping back into perfect shape, punctuated by the garbage man’s
reaction of defeated surprise. That ad was widely credited for converting an entire
nation’s trash container market from metal to plastic. It also received honors in the
advertising industry, including the coveted 1976 Clio Advertising Award.
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Continuing a Tradition of Innovation
Strong leadership and well-articulated business principles helped the company
grow steadily over time. Caldwell, who was the company’s President and General
Manager until 1958, articulated an enduring corporate credo:
“A firm insistence on product quality, creation of new products, national
advertising, and fair treatment of consumers, suppliers, business customers, and
company associates.”
The Rubbermaid portfolio of products continued to grow. In 1947, the company
introduced a wire dish drainer coated in rubber – dipped in the same tanks used by
company founders to produce balloons. It was a superior product which helped
prevent the chipping and breaking of dishes. In 1956, Rubbermaid introduced the
first all-plastic dishpan. And in 1967, Rubbermaid offered consumers a new choice
in a familiar category, introducing a plastic dish drainer alongside the (now) vinylcovered wire drainer. Both products continue to sell in large quantities today.
Donald E. Noble joined the company as a young accountant in 1941. He was to stay
for 39 years, including 21 years as Chief Executive Officer. Noble set the objective of
doubling the business every six years – a goal he was able to achieve by continuing
to innovate.
“We had an iron-clad rule that we would not bring out any new product that did not
have some new feature. To qualify as ‘new,’ a product had to be totally new or had
to have an improvement making it demonstrably better than anything currently
being sold…we did not introduce any ‘me-too’ products.”
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Under Noble’s watch, Rubbermaid led in other ways. To stay in touch with
consumers, the company employed leading-edge consumer research techniques. In
1955, it took its products to “church women and band mothers,” paying their
organizations a small fee in exchange for reactions to new product concepts. Later,
it enlisted organizations to help set up consumer panels that today are called
“focus groups.” Rubbermaid also was one of the earliest companies to appreciate
the value of technology. In 1963, Rubbermaid purchased a General Electric 225
computer, the most advanced technology available at the time.
Noble also continued a strong tradition of national advertising, which began in
1938, when The Wooster Rubber Company placed an ad in Better Homes and
Gardens magazine. Capitalizing on a growing medium, Rubbermaid began
advertising nationally on daytime television in 1962, introducing the Roughneck®
Refuse Container – the first plastic trash container, which quickly became preferred
over metal for its resiliency and durability.
Stanley Gault became CEO when Noble retired in 1980. A son of one of the original
Wooster Rubber Company founders, Clyde Gault, he upheld Noble’s objective that
30 percent of total annual sales should come from products introduced over the
previous five years. During his tenure, the company introduced products like
microwave cookware in 1983, just as the appliance was catching on, and Servin’
Saver® Food Containers in the mid-1980s. The slogan “Don’t you wish everything
was made like Rubbermaid?” was plastered on the airwaves and the company fleet,
and brand awareness reached 30 percent.
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Spearheading a strategic plan to diversify into new product areas, Gault also
launched an ambitious program of acquisitions, including Con-Tact®, Little Tikes,
Gott Corporation, Seco Industries, and MicroComputer Accessories. When acquired
in 1984, Little Tikes had seven product lines with some 40 items. Today, there are
more than 20 product lines encompassing several hundred products. International
acquisitions also were made and Gault established the International Division in
1986. Rubbermaid garnered much acclaim and numerous awards. In 1992,
Wolfgang R. Schmitt, a veteran of the company since 1966, was appointed CEO. By
the end of 1995, it had been in the top 10 list of “America’s Most Admired
Corporations” for 11 consecutive years.
New Ownership: Newell Rubbermaid
In 1999, Rubbermaid joined the Newell family of companies to create a new entity:
Newell Rubbermaid Inc., a global marketer of consumer products with 2004 sales
of $6.7 billion. Its powerful brand family includes Sharpie®, Paper Mate®, Parker®,
Waterman®, Rubbermaid®, Calphalon®, Little Tikes®, Graco®/Century®, and
Levolor® along with the Irwin/Lenox Group, which markets top quality hand tools
and power tool accessories for the professional tradesman.
Today, the Rubbermaid name appears on a wide range of products that help
simplify people’s lives. Product lines include home storage, kitchen organization,
cleaning, closet organization, hardware/seasonal and an array of commercial
products designed to help people work smarter.
Rubbermaid products can be found nearly everywhere: in mass retailers, hardware
and home center stores, warehouse clubs, supermarkets, drug stores, department
stores, specialty stores and others.
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Rubbermaid Home Products
Rubbermaid Foodservice Products
Rubbermaid Commercial Products
Fairlawn, OH
Huntersville, NC
Winchester, VA
Leading brand in home storage
Leading brand in food storage,
Leading brand in facilities
and organization including
beverage, kitchen and bath
maintenance solutions, providing
closet, garage and outdoor for
products, for retail and
our business partners with superior
the retail and builder channels
commercial channels of
quality products and innovative
of distribution.
distribution.
solutions for their businesses.
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U.S. DIVISIONS
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Our Rubbermaid brand strategy is to forge into new markets and new channels
around the globe, through strategic alliances, acquisitions, new sales ventures and
integrated marketing efforts across all Newell Rubbermaid brands.
Asia
Europe
Niedercorn - Luxembourg
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INTERNATIONAL DIVISIONS
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BRAND IDENTITY MANUAL
INTERNATIONAL DIVISIONS
Canada
Mexico*
Latin America*
*Mexico figures included with Latin America.
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Rubbermaid fosters a culture based on three core values:
Consumer intimacy
Our marketing research team conducts extensive research with consumers to
understand what kinds of products our audience finds compelling, and to test how/if
the products we develop meet their needs and expectations. Our associates
continuously visit key retail sites to understand how our audience experiences
Rubbermaid products in-store and strives to optimize that experience.
Innovation
We are committed to leveraging a world-class new product development process.
Our approach to innovation builds on the fundamentals that underpin our
leadership in categories like home organization, commercial cleaning and food and
beverage storage: long-lasting, innovative solutions that offer better made and
better designed products.
Leadership
Prior to their unification, Rubbermaid and Newell each had a long history of
leadership. Rubbermaid, which has enjoyed a higher profile, stands in the public
mind for product leadership and integrity: it is a trusted name for dependable,
durable products representing the quality standard in their categories. As a
corporation, Newell Rubbermaid is committed to maintaining its reputation for
leadership with all stakeholders, including consumers, employees, investors,
suppliers and retail partners. We will sustain this leadership by a dedication to
innovation, continuous improvement and fair dealing.
These three core values are supported by the Newell Rubbermaid culture wheel
illustrated below.
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BRAND IDENTITY MANUAL
COMPANY CORE VALUES AND CORPORATE IDENTITY
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