General Merchandise

MASON, Ohio — A Procter & Gamble dog food brand is hosting a Facebook contest that seeks to find one dozen dogs to be featured in an exclusive 2013 calendar.

OAKLAND, Calif. — Clorox's Professional Products division has launched a new line of ready-to-use, one-step cleaner disinfectants engineered with a patented activated hydrogen peroxide formula.

WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. — A bottle designed to decrease colic symptoms among babies has entered the market.

Mam's anticolic bottle, which features a patented base, is designed to reduce the stress associated with newborn feedings and decreases colic symptoms in babies by 80%, the company said. What's more, the product also features nipple designs that eases the switch between breast-feeding and bottle feeding.

RACINE, Wis. — SC Johnson recently announced that it has released its Exclusive Fragrance Palette, a list of the fragrance ingredients found in the company’s products.

Sales of craft kits and art supplies “remain strong with a slight uptick,” according to Adrienne Appell, a spokeswoman for the Toy Industry Association. This segment of the toy category was up 7% in 2010 over 2009, according to the NPD Group, and is expected to perform well in 2011.

Some big winners for the holiday season were Spin Master’s Bizu, Crayola’s Glow Book and Fashion Angels’ “Project Runway” fashion design sketch portfolio. All retail for less than $20.

WAYNE, N.J. — A leader of the "As Seen on TV" consumer goods category has appointed a new EVP marketing.

Ideavillage Products said Jordan Stanley, a former executive at Y&R Worldwide, will serve as EVP marketing for the company, overseeing the company’s marketing and new product positioning efforts, as well as manage its Direct Response TV initiatives under Ideavillage CEO Anand “Andy” Khubani.

Portable power is the growth area of the battery category. While sales of alkaline batteries remain challenged, rechargeable batteries and chargers are becoming a bigger part of the category.

“This year, we expect overall revenue for primary alkaline batteries to decline about 3% as fierce competition among manufacturers continues to pressure pricing for round cells,” said Tim Doyle, a Consumer Electronics Association spokesman.

CINCINNATI — In an effort to support its Children’s Safe Drinking Water program, Procter & Gamble is enlisting Facebook users to participate in the program's global efforts.