Over 30 acres is about to open up in South Boston. Procter & Gamble announced it will move the Gillette manufacturing team from Southie along Fort Point Channel to its Andover location.
The company wants to make better use of the local ~31-acre campus + the newer 150-acre P&G campus ~25 miles outside of Boston.
This cut is the end of an era, so to speak, since blade-making has been part of the storied neighborhood since 1904. The company began in a South Boston building with Gillette founder King Camp Gillette on West First Street.
Today, the Gillette World Shaving Headquarters is located at 1 Granite St. and the company is valued is at approximately $6.6 billion.
There are 450 manufacturing workers in South Boston today and all will be offered jobs in Andover. The corporate team of 750 engineering + research and development employees will remain in South Boston, for now — there is no word if the team will remain at the current location or move to a nearby vacant leased office space. Until then, the “World Shaving Headquarters” sign will still shine bright.
P&G expects to complete the move of manufacturing employees by 2026.
The team is hoping to work with the community to design and plan for a space that better serves the South Boston neighborhood. Some ideas mentioned include more market and affordable housing, public space, and climate-resilient developments. As an added benefit, the increase in new development would lead to more jobs for the community.
So, you tell us
: What would you like to see in this redeveloped space?