Kimberly-Clark Corporation
Consumer Packaged Goods and Disposable Hygiene ProductsFounded 1872- Updated July 2025
Reviewed by Swet Parvadiya
Last reviewed: July 2025
CorpDigest
Kimberly-Clark Corporation
Company History
Founded 1872 in Irving, Texas
Last reviewed: 2025-07-15 · By Swet Parvadiya
In 1914, Kimberly-Clark engineers in Neenah, Wisconsin, were trying to solve a cotton shortage. What they created instead was Cellucotton — a wood-pulp-based crepe wadding that was twice as absorbent as cotton and dramatically cheaper to produce. The company intended it as a surgical dressing material for field hospitals in World War I.
Army nurses had a different idea. They began using Cellucotton as sanitary napkins. By the time the war ended, the company had data on a product category that had never existed at commercial scale. In 1920, Kotex launched. It was not a line extension — it was the founding of modern femcare as a consumer goods category, sold through pharmacies wrapped in plain paper to reduce the embarrassment of purchase.
Four years later, the same material was repositioned again. A sales manager named Andrew Walton had been watching consumers use Kleenex cold cream remover cloths in ways the company had not intended — as handkerchiefs, as general-purpose face wipes, as disposable tissues. In 1924, Kleenex was relaunched as a disposable facial tissue. Within a decade, it had become the default word Americans used for any tissue product.
The 1995 acquisition of Scott Paper Company, for approximately $9.4 billion, doubled Kimberly-Clark's scale almost overnight and gave it control of the Scott, Cottonelle, and Viva brands. The Federal Trade Commission required divestitures in several categories as a condition of approval. What remained after those divestitures was still the largest tissue and hygiene products operation in North America, with manufacturing density and retailer relationships that took decades to build.
John A. Kimberly was a co-founder of Kimberly-Clark Corporation, having started the company in 1872 with Havilah Babcock, Charles B. Clark, and Frank A. Shattuck in Neenah, Wisconsin. Kimberly, an industrialist who recognized the untapped potential of the paper manufacturing sector following the expansion of the American railroad network, played a critical role in the early development of the company's manufacturing infrastructure and supply chain network. His expertise in industrial operations was instrumental in the company's ability to produce high-quality paper products at a scale that allowed it to compete with established mills in the Northeast, a strategic advantage that laid the foundation for the company's decades-long dominance in the paper sector. Kimberly's leadership style was characterized by a deep commitment to operational excellence, a relentless focus on cost management, and an unwavering commitment to providing high-quality products to the American consumer. His vision of creating a scalable, efficient manufacturing operation that could adapt to changing consumer preferences and macroeconomic conditions has guided Kimberly-Clark's evolution from a traditional paper mill to a $19.5 billion disposable hygiene powerhouse. His legacy lives on in the company's proprietary manufacturing network, its massive global supply chain infrastructure, and its psychological brand power that drives high-frequency customer traffic and maintains gross margins between 33% and 35%. Kimberly's contributions to the founding and early development of the company are recognized as foundational to its success and its evolution into a dominant force in the consumer packaged goods sector.
Frank A. Shattuck was a co-founder of Kimberly-Clark Corporation, having started the company in 1872 with John A. Kimberly, Havilah Babcock, and Charles B. Clark in Neenah, Wisconsin. Shattuck played a critical role in the early development of the company's manufacturing processes and later led the research team that invented Cellucotton in 1914, a highly absorbent wood pulp fiber that was five times more absorbent than traditional surgical cotton and could be produced at a fraction of the cost. This specific material science breakthrough allowed the company to pivot from a traditional paper manufacturer to a pioneer in disposable hygiene products, initially supplying Cellucotton to the military for use in surgical dressings during World War I, and subsequently adapting the material to create Kotex sanitary napkins and Kleenex facial tissues. Shattuck's technical expertise and his collaborative partnership with the other founders were instrumental in navigating the significant technical challenges of the early days, including the development of the proprietary pulping processes and the scaling of the Cellucotton production lines. His vision of creating a scalable, efficient manufacturing operation that could adapt to changing consumer preferences and macroeconomic conditions has guided Kimberly-Clark's evolution from a traditional paper mill to a $19.5 billion disposable hygiene powerhouse. His legacy lives on in the company's proprietary material science capabilities, its massive global supply chain infrastructure, and its psychological brand power that drives high-frequency customer traffic and maintains gross margins between 33% and 35%. Shattuck's contributions to the founding and early development of the company are recognized as foundational to its success and its evolution into a dominant force in the consumer packaged goods sector.
John A. Kimberly, Havilah Babcock, Charles B. Clark, and Frank A. Shattuck found the company in Neenah, Wisconsin, establishing the foundation for the paper manufacturing operation that would eventually become a global leader in disposable hygiene products.
A team of company researchers, including Frank A. Shattuck, invents Cellucotton, a highly absorbent wood pulp fiber that was five times more absorbent than traditional surgical cotton, revolutionizing the hygiene industry.
Kimberly-Clark adapts Cellucotton to create Kotex sanitary napkins, creating an entirely new product category that generated billions in lifetime revenue and established the company as a pioneer in disposable feminine care.
Kimberly-Clark introduces Kleenex facial tissues, initially marketed as a cold cream remover, which subsequently evolved into the dominant facial tissue brand globally, achieving genericized trademark status in many regions.
Under the leadership of CEO Darwin Smith, Kimberly-Clark acquires the Scott Paper company in a $9.4 billion transaction, instantly doubling its tissue capacity and adding iconic brands like Scott and Cottonelle to its portfolio.
Kimberly-Clark moves its global headquarters from Neenah, Wisconsin, to Irving, Texas, a strategic move designed to optimize its global supply chain, access a broader talent pool, and reduce operational costs.
Kimberly-Clark generates $19.5 billion in net sales for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2024, reflecting a robust stabilization of revenue following the post-pandemic normalization of consumer purchasing patterns and the successful implementation of aggressive pricing actions.
Kimberly-Clark acquired the Scott Paper Company for $9.4 billion to instantly double its tissue capacity, add iconic brands like Scott and Cottonelle to its portfolio, and establish dominant market share in the global family care segment.
Kimberly-Clark acquired Ballard Medical Products to expand its presence in the healthcare and incontinence care markets, adding specialized medical devices and premium adult incontinence products to its portfolio.
The cellulose wadding Kimberly-Clark supplied as a cotton substitute for army bandages during World War I found a second life when the company launched Kotex sanitary napkins in 1920. That pivot created an entirely new disposable feminine hygiene category and moved Kimberly-Clark decisively away from its roots as a commodity paper mill.
When Kimberly-Clark introduced Kleenex in 1924 it was marketed as a disposable way to remove cold cream and makeup. After the company noticed consumers were using the tissues for colds and runny noses, it repositioned Kleenex as a facial tissue in the 1930s, and the name eventually became a genericized trademark for the whole category.
Kimberly-Clark launched Huggies in 1978 to compete directly in the fast-growing disposable diaper market that Procter & Gamble's Pampers had opened. Huggies grew into one of Kimberly-Clark's largest brands and anchors the Personal Care segment that today drives the company's highest product margins.
Kimberly-Clark moved its global headquarters to Irving, Texas in 2015 after more than 140 years tied to Neenah, Wisconsin. The relocation was aimed at lowering operating costs, widening access to executive talent, and positioning the company closer to global supply and distribution hubs.
During his tenure as CEO from 1971 to 1991, Darwin Smith sold much of Kimberly-Clark's coated-paper business, including mills that had defined the company for a century, to concentrate capital on consumer products like diapers and tissue. That decision is frequently cited in business literature as a defining example of a company reinventing its core rather than defending a declining one.