Procter & Gamble Puts Focus on Moms in P&G Family Home

(ATR) Procter & Gamble, sponsoring its first Summer Olympics, opens a hospitality center that rivals those of more established patrons of the Games and features all the comforts of home.

The P&G U.S. Family Home, a private facility which held its official housewarming Friday, is an extension of the company’s "Thank you, Mom" campaign, which encompassed 34 brands from Pampers to Duracell to Tide.

"Obviously what we want at the end of the day is for our families, our moms, to be as comfortable as possible," Melanie Healey, P&G Group President, North America, tells Around the Rings.

In the 65,000-square foot building near London Bridge, moms can get their nails done in the salon, check email in one of four red telephone booths, play with babies and small children in the Pampers Playground, eat meals and watch the Olympics on large screens. P&G will even do laundry, with a 24-hour wash and fold service.

"My sister-in-law is going, ‘Can we take some over today?’ said Joy Robles, mother of U.S. weightlifter Sarah Robles. "I said, ‘I think we’d better wait until tomorrow.’"

The dads (plus brothers and uncles) aren’t left out of the amenities. There is a "Mancave" – downstairs, of course -- where they can play pool or get a haircut.

Procter & Gamble became an Olympic sponsor prior to the 2010 Vancouver Games and the deal extends through the 2020 Olympics.

"Why Procter & Gamble at the Olympics? You make soap and toothpaste; you don’t make athletic equipment and sports apparel," said Marc Pritchard, marketing and brand building officer at P&G. "We know that no athlete gets to the Olympic Games alone. It really starts with the moms."

While P&G sponsors 32 U.S. athletes including swimmer Ryan Lochte, gymnast Jordyn Wieber and sprinter Allyson Felix, the company also gave a $1,000 Visa gift card to every mom of a U.S. Olympian and Paralympian.

Healey, who would not divulge what the Family Home costs, said that the "moms" campaign "ranks absolutely up there" with other company advertising initiatives.

"I think it’s one of our best," she said. "And it’s new for us to really have the P&G brand marketed this way (instead of one brand at a time). This was a great opportunity to really showcase the many wonderful brands we have."

P&G’s partnership with the U.S. Olympic Committee is also a company first.

"Procter & Gamble came to us in 2010 and said, ‘How can we make a difference?’" said Scott Blackmun, the Chief Executive Officer of the USOC. "It’s important to us because of the impact it has on the athlete."

Blackmun says the P&G Family Home "simplifies their lives" because they know that their families have a place where they can have a meal and be comfortable.

"The P&G Family Home is such a great opportunity for the families to meet other families that are going through the same experience, perhaps in different sports," said Connie Carpenter-Phinney, a 1984 gold medalist in cycling whose son Taylor is on the U.S. road racing team. "It’s also a place where you can not only enjoy some of their products and services, but also enjoy the food and see the events away from the city.".

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Reported in London by Karen Rosen

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