The company was founded in 1907 by
Alexander Block, a Russian immigrant who had a small drugstore on
Fulton Street in
Brooklyn, New York. He turned the company into a wholesaler in 1915, then became a drug manufacturer in 1925, acquiring a 50 percent interest in Wernet's Dental Manufacturing Company. Although Alexander Block built the company largely through acquisitions, he developed the Polident brand internally during the 1930s. After Alexander Block's death in 1953, •
early 1950s – Nytol. •
1964 – introduced Tegrin •
1978 – Block Drug entered the feminine hygiene market, with the ultimately unsuccessful Gentle Spring brand. •
1982 – The company acquired Phazyme/700 from the Stuart division of ICI, leading to the OTC entrance of Phazyme. •
1983 – The company acquired
Passaic, New Jersey–based
2000 Flushes toilet bowl cleaner manufacturer Flushco. •
2000 – Block Drug hired
Goldman Sachs as an adviser to evaluate a potential sale. •
2001 – At the time of its sale to Glaxo, Block Drug was reported to have $900 million in annual sales, operations in 100 countries and employed 3,000 people.
Secrecy Although Block Drug was a public company from 1971 until 2001, it operated much like a private, family-run firm, with the Block family holding all voting shares plus 54 percent of the non-voting stock. In addition, the company never held annual meetings or issued proxy statements. == Aftermath ==