The world’s largest consumer goods company, Procter & Gamble (PG), said on Thursday it will cut 7,000 jobs, approximately 6% of its total workforce, over the next two years as part of a new restructuring plan to combat falling consumer demand and higher costs due to tariffs.
P&G said it also plans to exit some product categories and brands in certain markets.
P&G, which makes popular brands such as Pampers and Tide detergent, said the restructuring plan comes when consumer spending is pressured. Like P&G, other consumer companies are also facing a drop in demand, such as Unilever.
President Trump’s tariffs on trading partners have deeply impacted global markets and led to recession fears in the US, which is the biggest market for P&G. A Reuters poll revealed that Trump’s trade war has cost companies over $34B in lost sales and higher costs.
My colleague Brian Sozzi highlights some of P&G’s changes within his latest piece, stating that the consumer goods brand knows how to do a “few things very well.”
P&G was forced to raise prices on some products in April. Pricing and cost cuts were the main levers, CFO Andre Schulten said.
On Thursday, Schulten and P&G’s operations head Shailesh Jejurikar acknowledged that the geopolitical environment was “unpredictable” and that consumers were facing “greater uncertainty.”
