Procter & Gamble (P&G) UK, the consumer goods company behind household brands including Fairy, Gillette and Pampers has launched a new video series going behind the scenes at its UK plants. The series aims to celebrate the people and skills powering its UK manufacturing operations and inspire the next generation to consider a career in the sector
Launching in time for National Manufacturing Day on 24 September, the new three-part series, From Our Home to Yours, takes viewers into P&G UK’s manufacturing sites in Reading, Manchester and London. It explores how Gillette razors and shaving foam, Pampers nappies and Fairy washing-up liquid are made, while introducing the dedicated people who help bring these much-loved products into kitchens and bathrooms across the country.
P&G sells around 24 products every second across the UK*, powered by a workforce whose talent has evolved alongside almost a century of manufacturing in Britain. Today, careers across its UK Plants and supply chains span engineering, science, technology, automation and more, combining generations of manufacturing expertise with the needs of the future.
Timon Soliman, Vice President P&G Product Supply Northern Europe says: “The UK is an important market for P&G, and our manufacturing presence here gives us a strong and resilient supply chain that has been built over generations. Whatever is happening in the world, our job is to keep the products people rely on moving from our sites to retailers across the country. National Manufacturing Day is an opportunity to celebrate the people who make that possible, but it is also a chance to show what modern manufacturing looks like today and the opportunities it can offer the next generation.
“The launch of From Our Home to Yours gives our employees a platform to tell their own stories of life at P&G UK, allows us to celebrate their commitment to our products, customers and consumers – and, above all, will help inspire future talent.”
Manufacturing careers that span generations
At P&G UK’s Reading Plant, manufacturing has been part of the local community since the 1950s. That sense of connection is felt through the generations of people who have built their careers there, including Ashley Keep, who has worked at the site for 15 years after following in the footsteps of his father who also worked at the Reading Plant.
Ashley Keep says: “The Reading Plant was part of my life long before it became my workplace. I remember its swimming pool and Christmas pantos when I was a child – truly creating a community for its staff and their families. Our manufacturing is continually evolving to ensure we’re ready for what the future brings, with our scientists already working on what’s next long before a product reaches the shelf. However, the one thing that has stayed the same is the feeling of community.
“I’m proud to be part of a team that ensures Gillette products remain the ‘best a man can get’ and well stocked on the nation’s shelves – and I hope the next generation will see the opportunities here and want to become part of it.”
Putting consumers at the heart of innovation
Across P&G UK’s sites, innovation starts with understanding the people who use its products. Each year, around 20,000 men visit Gillette’s dedicated innovation centre in Reading to shave, giving teams first-hand insight into everything from shaving pressure to angle and helping translate real consumer experiences into product improvements.
The same consumer-first approach can be seen for Pampers. Every week, hundreds of local families visit P&G’s European research facility, where babies help test prototype nappies during play and sleep before they reach the market. Seeing how products perform as babies move, play and rest helps teams continually refine Pampers with the needs of parents and babies at the centre of development.
Manufacturing for the next generation
In Manchester, From Our Home to Yours follows Luke Omahoney, an employee working on Pampers production who is preparing to become a father himself – giving his role on the manufacturing line a new personal significance.
Luke said: “Looking ahead to fatherhood has given me a different perspective on the work we do here. I know how important Pampers can be for families, and it’s special to think something I help make will soon be part of my own family’s day-to-day life. I’m proud to show how my team and I take Pampers from our Manchester plant to shelves, homes and those all-important first moments across the nation.
“For me, life at P&G UK is so much more than a job, it’s challenging, fulfilling and full of opportunities to grow – as we look to National Manufacturing Day, I’d encourage anyone considering it to take the leap and pursue a career in manufacturing, I’ve never looked back!”
From the production line to retailers across the UK
The From Our Home to Yours series goes beyond what happens inside the factory, showing how products made at P&G UK sites move through the wider supply chain and into homes across the country.
For example, all Fairy Liquid sold in the UK is produced at P&G UK’s London Plant at Thurrock, a site that has been part of the capital’s manufacturing heritage for more than 90 years. Its film shows how from the London Plant, bottles move from the production line through the supply chain to retailers nationwide.
Vice President of Product Supply for P&G Northern Europe, Timon Soliman, says: “Having our manufacturing plant and distribution centre together at Thurrock means we can think about the journey from production line to retailer as one connected operation. We’re continuing to invest in technology, infrastructure and automation where it adds value, helping us improve how we work while building a supply chain that can respond quickly and is ready for whatever the future holds.”
Made in the UK for generations and inspiring the next
For P&G UK, From Our Home to Yours is as much about what comes next as it is about celebrating what has come before. By taking viewers behind the scenes, the series shows how manufacturing – and careers within the sector – continues to evolve while remaining rooted in the people and communities that have shaped it for generations.
Launching around National Manufacturing Day, the films are intended to give more people, particularly those thinking about where their careers could take them, a clearer view of what working in manufacturing can look like today.
The three From Our Home to Yours films can be viewed here:
- Gillette – Reading: From Our Home to Yours: Gillette UK
- Pampers – Manchester: From Our Home to Yours: Pampers UK
- Fairy – London: From Our Home to Yours: Fairy UK
To find out more about careers in manufacturing and supply chain at P&G UK, visit https://www.pgplantjobs.com/uk/en
Read other recent UK Manufacturing news: https://uk-manufacturing-online.co.uk/category/news/
