Unilever

What Unilever does

Unilever PLC is a London-headquartered, publicly listed (LSE: ULVR) consumer packaged goods company operating across four reporting segments — Beauty & Wellbeing, Personal Care, Home Care, and Foods — with €50.5 billion in 2025 turnover, 96,000 employees, and presence in 190 countries. Its brand portfolio spans mass-market staples (Lifebuoy, Lux, Wheel, Knorr, Surf Excel) and premium lines (Dove, TRESemmé, Pond's, Vaseline, Sunsilk), with 78% of revenue generated by a defined set of Power Brands and 59% of turnover from emerging markets. The company sells 3.7 billion consumers daily through a three-tier distribution model: general trade (1.3 million retailers in Bangladesh including Dyutis and Pallydyuts micro-retailers), modern trade, and e-commerce, with local manufacturing covering 96% of Bangladesh demand from facilities such as the Kalurghat factory operational since 1964.

The business is undergoing a structural portfolio transformation. In December 2025, Unilever completed the demerger of Magnum Ice Cream Company (€7.89 billion market value) and in March 2026 announced a Reverse Morris Trust combination of its Foods division with McCormick ($44.8 billion enterprise value, 65% equity to Unilever, expected close mid-2027), leaving Unilever as a pureplay HPC company. Concurrent strategic actions include a €800 million restructuring programme with 7,500 job cuts under new CEO Fernando Fernandez, premium beauty acquisitions (K18 for ~$700M, Dr. Squatch, Color Wow, Medik8, Wild), and the FIFA World Cup 2026 sponsorship activating 35+ brands across 120+ markets. Revenue mechanics are unit-pricing B2C sales through third-party retailers with no anchor contracts; pricing is market-determined at retail.

Unilever positions itself as an AI-first enterprise, deploying AI across manufacturing (digital twins cutting energy use and boosting capacity), marketing (AI Content Studio producing 18,000+ assets), R&D (claims generation 75% faster via analysis of 1,000 monthly data sources, BostonGene multiomics partnership, India fragrance hub combining AI with neuroscience), and supply chain (demand forecasting for limited editions). A five-year Google Cloud partnership announced February 2026 underpins the data and cloud migration. The R&D base is anchored by €836 million annual spend and 16,500+ active patents globally. Sustainability is a stated strategic pillar across four priority areas (Climate, Nature, Plastics, Livelihoods) with measurable programmes such as 32,000+ tonnes of plastic waste collected in Bangladesh since 2022.

Name

Unilever

Legal name

Unilever PLC

Website

https://unilever.com.bd

Company type

Public

Founded year

1889

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

5,001–10,000 employees

Short description

Unilever is a global consumer packaged goods company operating across Beauty & Wellbeing, Personal Care, Home Care, and Foods. It serves 3.7 billion consumers daily across 190 countries through iconic brands including Dove, Lifebuoy, Sunsilk, and Knorr.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Consumer Packaged Goods

NAICS

All Other Specialty Food Retailers (445298)

SIC

Food And Kindred Products (2000), Canned, Frozen & Preservd Fruit, Veg & Food Specialties (2030), Canned, Fruits, Veg, Preserves, Jams & Jellies (2033)

akta.pro primary industry

Condiments, Sauces & Dressings (CRADAAAB)

Keywords

• Consumer packaged goods
• Personal care products
• Home care products
• Beauty and wellbeing
• Food and refreshments

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Product Sales - Beauty & Wellbeing: Premium beauty and personal care products including Dove, Vaseline, Pond's, Sunsilk, TRESemmé, Glow & Lovely, Glow & Handsome, Clear, Clinic Plus. Beauty & Wellbeing represents approximately €13bn of portfolio.
2. Product Sales - Personal Care: Mass-market personal care products including Lifebuoy, Lux, Pepsodent, Closeup. These products reach 9 out of 10 Bangladeshi households daily.
3. Product Sales - Home Care: Home care products including Surf Excel, Rin, Vim, Domex, Wheel. Manufacturing operations in Bangladesh produce 96% of products locally.
4. Product Sales - Foods: Food products including Knorr. Unilever's Foods business generated €12.9 billion (26% of sales) in 2025, down 3.2%, with a deal to combine with McCormick expected to close by mid-2027.
5. Strategic Investments: Unilever as investor in startup companies like Create Wellness through Alliance Consumer Growth and Impact Capital funding round.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Unilever manufactures and sells branded consumer packaged goods across four segments: Beauty & Wellbeing (Dove, TRESemm?, Sunsilk, POND's, Vaseline, Clear), Personal Care (Lifebuoy, Lux, Close Up, Pepsodent), Home Care (Surf Excel, Vim, Wheel, Rin, Domex), and Foods (Knorr, Hellmann's, Marmite). The company's products reach 3.7 billion consumers daily across 190 countries through general trade, modern retail, and e-commerce channels. Unilever is also undergoing a major portfolio restructuring, including combining its Foods business with McCormick and pursuing an AI-first enterprise strategy spanning manufacturing, R&D, marketing, and supply chain operations.

Product overview

Unilever is a diversified consumer goods company operating across four main business segments: Beauty & Wellbeing, Personal Care, Home Care, and Foods. The portfolio includes 20 brands in Bangladesh alone (Clear, Clear Men, Clinic Plus, Close Up, Domex, Dove, Glow & Handsome, Glow & Lovely, Knorr, Lifebuoy, Lux, Pepsodent, POND's, Rin, Sunsilk, Surf Excel, TRESemmé, Vaseline, Vim, Wheel) plus global brands like Hellmann's, Marmite, French's, Colman's, Nutrafol, K18, Dr. Squatch, and Liquid I.V. The company is undergoing major restructuring, combining its Foods division with McCormick (pending completion by mid-2027) while focusing on Beauty, Personal Care and Wellbeing. Unilever is also implementing an AI-first enterprise strategy, deploying AI across manufacturing (digital twins), marketing (AI Content Studio creating 18,000+ assets), R&D (fragrance creation, claims generation 75% faster), and supply chain optimization.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Clear: Hair care and personal care brand
• Clear Men
• Clinic Plus
• Close Up
• Domex
• Dove
• Glow & Handsome
• Glow & Lovely
• Knorr
• Lifebuoy
• Lux
• Pepsodent
• Pond's
• Rin
• Sunsilk
• Surf Excel
• TRESemme
• Vaseline
• Vim
• Wheel

Products and services

• Dove Personal care brand offering deodorants, body washes, soaps, hair care, and beauty products. Unilever's flagship personal care brand with global presence.
• TRESemm? Hair care brand offering shampoos, conditioners, and styling products for professional-quality hair care at home.
• Sunsilk Hair care brand offering shampoos and conditioners designed to nourish and protect hair, popular across South Asian markets.
• POND's Skin care and beauty brand offering products for cleansing, moisturizing, and skin treatment.
• Vaseline Skin care brand known for petroleum jelly-based products offering moisturizing and healing solutions.
• Lifebuoy Soap and personal hygiene brand focused on health and hygiene products, present in Bangladesh since the 1960s.
• Lux

Quantifiable outcome

• 90%+ products produced locally in Bangladesh
• +6 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability12 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core, strategic and minor.

• Young Power in Social Action (YPSA)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 11 May 2026Tripartite partnership with Chattogram City Corporation and YPSA for plastic waste management in Bangladesh. Since 2022, the partnership has worked across all 41 wards of Chattogram City Corporation to enhance the plastic waste value chain, collecting over 32,000 tonnes of plastic waste. The partnership was renewed for another two years in May 2026.
• Chattogram City Corporation (CCC)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 11 May 2026Tripartite partnership with YPSA and CCC for plastic waste management. Since 2022, the partnership has worked across all 41 wards of Chattogram City Corporation to enhance the plastic waste value chain, linking waste workers, scrap buyers, and recyclers through an inclusive system designed to be more inclusive.
• McCormick & CompanycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 31 March 2026Agreement to combine Unilever's Foods business with McCormick, creating a $20 billion global flavour leader. Unilever and shareholders will receive 65% equity stake plus $15.7 billion in cash. Deal structured as Reverse Morris Trust, expected to close by mid-2027.
• Samy AgencystrategicGTM or Marketing Partner · 27 March 2026Unilever hired social agency Samy to develop a global influencer strategy for its Foods business group across 13 markets. The strategy will leverage Samy's proprietary Maia platform, granting Unilever Foods access to over 120 million influencers worldwide.
• BostonGenestrategicTechnology or Integration · 3 March 2026Partnership to apply multiomics in the development of new consumer products. BostonGene will provide multiomics analysis capabilities to help Unilever develop new consumer products.
• Google Cloud (Alphabet Inc.)coreTechnology or Integration · 17 February 2026Five-year partnership with Google's parent company Alphabet Inc.'s Google Cloud to leverage AI and data technologies for transforming consumer engagement and operational platforms. The deal involves migrating Unilever's data and cloud infrastructure to Google Cloud and developing intelligent systems to enhance demand generation and market responsiveness.
• TRANSFORM (Unilever, UK Government FCDO, EY)strategicStrategic or Co-development Partner · 16 January 2026Impact accelerator led by Unilever, the UK Government's FCDO, and EY. Over the past 10 years since its launch in 2015, TRANSFORM has positively impacted the lives of more than 240,000 people in Bangladesh and supported 13 innovative initiatives.
• Katjes InternationalminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 2 December 2025Acquisition of Unilever's Graze brand of healthy snacks by Katjes International. Unilever had owned Graze since 2019, transforming it into a profitable retail brand in the UK before divesting it as part of strategic portfolio pruning.
• Orange Corners Bangladesh (OCB)strategicStrategic or Co-development Partner · 23 June 2025Partnership with Orange Corners Bangladesh to accelerate progress by investing in youth potential and creating newer pathways to thrive. 'Ecosystem in Action: Powering Future Builders' platform where aspiring entrepreneurs learn from Unilever Bangladesh leaders.
• Kewkradong BangladeshstrategicStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022Partnership with Kewkradong Bangladesh to lead the International Coastal Cleanup (ICC) at St Martin's Island. 500 volunteers removed 1,850 kg of marine debris including 70% flexible plastic.

Scale indicators21 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Nestlé: Nestlé is the world's largest packaged-foods company and overlaps directly with Unilever's Foods division (Knorr, Hellmann's, Maggi) as well as nutrition and beverages. Highly relevant given Unilever Foods is merging with McCormick.
• Danone: Danone is a global CPG peer with overlapping packaged foods, nutrition, and adjacent personal/wellness categories. Relevant as a comparable for Unilever's remaining Foods portfolio pre-McCormick close.
• L'Oréal: L'Oréal is the global beauty leader and the most direct competitor to Unilever's Beauty & Wellbeing portfolio (Dove, TRESemmé, Pond's). Its prestige and dermatological beauty scale mirrors Unilever's K18/Medik8/Nutrafol strategy.
• Henkel: Henkel competes with Unilever in laundry and home care (Persil, Schwarzkopf) and consumer adhesives. The German company's portfolio mix and emerging-market focus make it a like-for-like European CPG comparable.
• Beiersdorf: Beiersdorf (NIVEA, Eucerin, La Prairie) competes directly with Unilever's skincare and personal care brands (Dove, Vaseline, Pond's). Highly relevant to Unilever's premium beauty pivot.
• Procter & Gamble: Procter & Gamble is Unilever's closest global competitor, operating across beauty, personal care, home care, and grooming with comparable Power Brand economics (Tide, Pampers, Gillette). Direct head-to-head across nearly every category Unilever serves.
• Colgate-Palmolive: Colgate-Palmolive is a direct competitor in oral care (Colgate vs Pepsodent/Close Up), personal care, and home care, with comparable emerging-market distribution and brand portfolios.
• Estée Lauder Companies: Estée Lauder is a prestige beauty peer whose skincare, fragrance, and hair care portfolios overlap with Unilever's premium beauty acquisitions (K18, Dr. Squatch, Medik8, Color Wow).
• Church & Dwight: Church & Dwight (Arm & Hammer, Trojan, Batiste) competes in household and personal care, with similar Power Brand-led economics and a growing premium/acquisition strategy analogous to Unilever's.
• Reckitt Benckiser: Reckitt is a global CPG peer focused on health, hygiene, and home care (Dettol, Lysol, Finish, Nurofen), directly competing with Unilever's Home Care and Personal Care segments in many emerging markets.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/Unilever
• Facebookfacebook.com/HindustanUnileverLimited
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/unilever
• Instagraminstagram.com/unileverbd.official

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles12 records

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Unilever