Reckitt has completed the divestment of its Essential Home business, closing the sale to Advent International on 31 December 2025.
Key Points
Essential Home sold to Advent International
Reckitt retains a 30% minority stake
Supplier portfolio narrowed further
Ownership shifts outside Reckitt
The transaction, first announced in July, removes Essential Home from Reckitt’s operating portfolio. While Reckitt will retain a 30% equity stake in the acquisition vehicle, strategic and operational control of the business now sits with Advent.
For supermarket buyers and wholesalers, the move confirms a clear shift in supplier strategy. Reckitt is concentrating on a smaller set of higher-growth, higher-margin brands, stepping back from parts of the household and home care mix that previously sat within Essential Home.
This change matters operationally. Ownership influences how brands are funded, how ranges are prioritised, and how commercial decisions are made across categories. Under private-equity ownership, Essential Home brands are likely to follow a more focused and cost-disciplined approach.
Reckitt said Essential Home will be excluded from its like-for-like net revenue growth for the 2025 financial year, in line with its reporting policy for completed disposals. This creates a clean separation between Reckitt’s remaining portfolio and the divested business.
The group has also confirmed plans to return excess capital to shareholders, alongside its existing share buyback programme and ordinary dividend policy.
From a trade perspective, the strategic signal matters more than the financial mechanics. Across the UK FMCG market, large suppliers are simplifying portfolios, reshaping supplier–retailer relationships and category investment priorities.
For buyers, attention now turns to how Essential Home brands will be positioned under new ownership, and how Reckitt’s remaining household and hygiene brands are prioritised going forward.
About Reckitt
Reckitt is a UK-based FMCG company focused on household, hygiene, and consumer health products. The group was founded in 1814 and is headquartered in London.
Its portfolio includes well-known household and home care brands such as Dettol, Finish, Harpic, Lysol, and Vanish, which are widely sold through supermarkets and wholesale channels. Reckitt’s products sit mainly in the household cleaning, hygiene, and health categories rather than food and drink.
The company operates globally and supplies major retailers across the UK, Europe, and international markets.
Editor’s note: This article is based on Reckitt’s official announcement dated 31 December 2025, alongside previously published company disclosures and UK regulatory filings.
