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How Johnson & Johnson became the sprawling healthcare giant it is today
Published by maria gbaf
Posted on November 15, 2021
2 min readLast updated: January 28, 2026
Global Banking & Finance Review®
Company
Published by maria gbaf
Posted on November 15, 2021
2 min readLast updated: January 28, 2026
Johnson & Johnson plans to spin off its consumer health division, focusing on pharmaceuticals and medical devices, marking a major shift in its 135-year history.
By Carl O’Donnell
(Reuters) – Johnson & Johnson plans to spin off its consumer health division that sells Listerine and Baby Powder to focus on pharmaceuticals and medical devices in the biggest shake-up in the U.S. company’s 135-year history.
Here is how J&J got to where it is today.
1886
Robert Wood Johnson partners with brothers James Wood Johnson and Edward Mead Johnson to found Johnson & Johnson in 1886. It originally focused on ready-to-use sterile surgical dressings.
1894
J&J begins producing Johnson’s Baby Powder.
1918
In response to a global flu pandemic, J&J begins selling a mask designed to limit the spread of the airborne viral illness.
1920
J&J invents Band-Aid and begins marketing it in 1921.
1944
J&J completes its initial public offering and becomes a publicly traded company. It had annual sales of around $95 million at the time, compared to more than $80 billion in 2020.
1959
J&J acquires Tylenol maker McNeil Laboratories.
1961
J&J acquires Janssen Pharmaceuticals, which now makes ADHD drug Concerta and J&J’s COVID-19 vaccine.
1997
The first lawsuit alleging that J&J’s Baby Powder contains cancer-causing asbestos is filed against J&J. Since then, J&J has faced thousands of lawsuits and billions of liabilities and has ceased distributing Baby Powder in the United States and Canada.
1999
J&J acquires Centocor Biotech Inc, maker of Remicade for Crohn’s disease, and renames it Janssen Biotech.
2012
Johnson and Johnson acquires orthopedic device maker Synthes for nearly $20 billion to expand its medical product offerings.
2017
J&J acquires Actelion for $30 billion, adding heart disease medicines such as Tracleer to its portfolio.
2020
J&J begins developing a COVID-19 vaccine. It received authorization to begin administering its COVID-19 shot the following year.
Sources:
https://www.jnj.com
https://www.asbestos.com/companies/johnson-johnson
https://www.reuters.com/investigates/special-report/johnsonandjohnson-cancer
(Reporting by Carl O’Donnell, Editing by Nick Zieminski)
The article discusses Johnson & Johnson's history and its plan to spin off its consumer health division.
To focus more on pharmaceuticals and medical devices.
Key milestones include its founding in 1886, the invention of Band-Aid, and the acquisition of Janssen Pharmaceuticals.
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