Billionaire and activist investor Carl Icahn is pushing for a sale of Clorox, the consumer-products conglomerate that owns Durham-based Burt's Bees.

Icahn offered to buy Clorox for $76.50 a share, or more than $10 billion. But he also urged company officials to seek other "strategic buyers" including Procter & Gamble, Kimberly-Clark, Unilever and Colgate-Palmolive.

These potential acquirers could market Clorox's brands more aggressively overseas, Icahn wrote in a letter to Clorox CEO Donald Knauss.

"I would love to have this company," Icahn told CNBC today. But he added that he expects there will be competing offers.

GlaxoSmithKline is attracting multiple bidders for the consumer-health brands it plans to sell, CEO Andrew Witty said today in Brussels.

The sale process "will start to roll at the end of the summer," Witty said after a news conference in Brussels, Bloomberg News reported.

GSK announced earlier this year that it wants to sell 19 brands, including the Alli diet pill, Beano gas relief, Nytol sleep aid, and Goody's and BC headache powders.

The assets are getting strong interest from private equity firms and pharmaceutical companies, Witty said. "I am very pleased with the interest," he said.

Combined, the products contribute more than $800 a year in revenue for GSK, the British company with a North American headquarters in Research Triangle Park.

Unilever plans to expand its factory in Raeford that makes a variety of body washes, shampoos and deodorants, adding 65 jobs over the next three years.

The consumer-products conglomerate and Gov. Bev Perdue's office announced the expansion this afternoon at the Hoke County facility, located about 80 miles southwest of Raleigh.

Unilever will receive a state grant worth up to $195,000 if it meets its latest hiring goals. That grant also requires matching local incentives.

The new jobs will pay average annual salaries of $39,605. The Hoke County average is $25,324.

Unilever also considered expanding its factory in Missouri.

The new boss at Burt's Bees made his public debut in the Triangle this week.

This morning in downtown Raleigh, general manager Nick Vlahos helped kick off the Planet Earth Celebration. He competed against Raleigh Mayor Charles Meeker in a contest that involved making a strawberry-lemonade smoothie using a blender powered by a stationary bicycle. (Meeker won.)

Part of Vlahos' job at Durham-based Burt's is to reinforce the company's image as an environmentally friendly and socially conscious business. The company sells lip balms, lotions and other personal-care products made from honey and other natural ingredients.

Correction: Vlahos didn't help build a Habitat for Humanity house on Tuesday.

GlaxoSmithKline plans to sell 19 of its consumer-health brands, including the controversial Alli weight-loss drug and Goody's, the headache powder invented in Winston-Salem.

CEO Andrew Witty announced in February that the pharmaceutical giant planned to sell some "non-core" brands to raise money and focus attention on faster-growing products.

Today, the company released a list of products it plans to divest, including Beano gas relief, Debrox ear wax cleanser, Nytol sleep aid and others.

Combined, the products contribute more than $800 million a year in revenue for GSK, the British corporation that has its North American headquarters in Research Triangle Park.

Burt's Bees has a new boss.

Parent corporation Clorox appointed 15-year veteran Nick Vlahos as vice president and general manager of the Durham-based personal-care products company.

He replaces John Replogle, who unexpectedly stepped down as CEO in February to join Seventh Generation, a Burlington, Vt., company that makes environmentally friendly household products.

Vlahos' role and new title reinforces that Clorox is in control of Burt's, known for its lip balms, lotions and other products made mostly from natural ingredients. Replogle had been CEO before Clorox bought the company three years ago for $925 million.

Vlahos, 43, is an Indiana University graduate who joined Clorox in 1995 as a sales manager. He previously was vice president of the company's Laundry, Brita and Green Works brands.

John Replogle has stepped down as CEO of Burt's Bees, the personal-care products company based in Durham.

Replogle was recruited to become CEO of Seventh Generation, a Burlington, Vt.-based company that makes environmentally friendly household products. He'll start the new job on March 7.

Because Seventh Generation makes cleaning products that compete with the Green Works line sold by Clorox, which has owned Burt's Bees since 2007, he resigned immediately.

"This is about me finding the next growth opportunity personally," Replogle said. "It's bittersweet. I absolutely love Burt's Bees. I have a passion for building businesses, teams and brands. I'm ready for the next great opportunity."

Burt's Bees is worth a bit less, at least on the books of its parent corporation.

Clorox Co., which bought Durham-based Burt's Bees for $925 million three years ago, announced Monday that it will take a charge of up to $255 million to write down the value of that business.

Clorox blamed the accounting move on the "continuing global economic recession and projected slower sales growth ramp-up in new international markets."

Burt's Bees makes lotions, lip balms and other personal-care products, mostly from natural ingredients. The company, led by CEO John Replogle, has been expanding outside the United States in the past year, entering new markets in Latin America, Asia and Europe.

A beauty products company is planning a $12 million expansion at its Sanford manufacturing operations and expects to add 140 jobs by early next year.

Coty Inc. already makes lotions and fragrances at its Sanford facility, which opened in 1971 and employs about 800 people. The expansion will add production lines to make nail polishes. Production is scheduled to begin in March.

City and Lee County officials provided incentives worth about $280,000 to attract the jobs, which will pay an average of about $38,000 a year, said Bob Heuts, economic development director for Lee County.

"We did provide some incentives to make sure that project ended up here and not somewhere else," Heuts said. "Obviously, a manufacturer like that has many options around the world."

Burt's Bees, the Durham company that makes lip balms and other natural-care products, released its Social and Environmental report today, highlighting its sustainability efforts and green initiatives.

To save money, the report is paperless this year, with online, multimedia charts and videos.

Most of the report is glowing, showcasing Burt's Bees recycling, natural products, packaging and "Living the Greater Good" workplace culture. Videos feature CEO John Replogle, sustainability director Yola Carlough and other employees.

But the report also mentions some missteps the company made this year, including missing sales and profit goals.