Cover

Strategic Analysis 2024

Unilever

Global Consumer Goods Leader
Making Sustainable Living Commonplace

Executive Overview

Contents

01

Business Model

Five Business Groups, 400+ brands, global operations across 190 countries

02

Financial Performance

2024 results, segment analysis, and growth drivers across markets

03

Digital & AI Strategy

IT spending, AI use cases, and Compass transformation

04

Innovation Leadership

AI-powered R&D, digital twins, and sustainable innovation

05

Market Position

Power Brands, geographic presence, and competitive advantages

06

Future Outlook

GAP 2030, strategic priorities, and growth ambitions

Headquarters

London & Rotterdam

Employees

127,000+

Report Year

2024

Chapter 1

Chapter One

Business
Model

Five Business Groups, 400+ Brands, Global Reach

Company Overview

Global Consumer Goods Leader

One of the world's largest FMCG companies serving 2 billion consumers daily

Global Presence

Unilever operates in 190 countries with a portfolio of over 400 brands, including 14 Power Brands with turnover exceeding €1 billion each. The company's products are used daily by 2 billion consumers worldwide, spanning beauty, personal care, home care, foods, and ice cream categories.

Compass Strategy

Under the Growth Action Plan (GAP), Unilever is transforming from a complex matrix to an agile organization based on five Business Groups. The strategy focuses on fewer, bigger, better innovations while achieving sustainable growth and top-tier shareholder returns.

Headquarters

London

Rotterdam

Employees

127,000+

Founded

1929

Merger

Operational Scale

Unilever operates 280 factories and 500 warehouses globally, sourcing from 52,000 suppliers in over 150 countries. The company processes 25 million customer orders annually.

The company has undergone significant transformation through its Compass strategy, moving from regional structures to a more agile model with five Business Groups and global capability centers.

This transformation includes major investments in digital capabilities, with hundreds of millions of euros invested in AI, cloud infrastructure, and supply chain optimization.

Business Portfolio

Five Strategic Business Groups

Focused portfolio driving sustainable growth and market leadership

Beauty & Wellbeing

€13.2B TURNOVER

Hair Care, Skin Care, Prestige Beauty and Wellbeing. Strong performance with 6.5% underlying sales growth, driven by premiumisation.

USG Growth6.5%
Power BrandsDove, Vaseline

Personal Care

€13.6B TURNOVER

Deodorants, Skin Cleansing, Oral Care. Double-digit growth in Deodorants with strong volume performance across key brands.

USG Growth5.2%
Power BrandsRexona, Axe

Home Care

€12.3B TURNOVER

Fabric Cleaning, Fabric Enhancers, Home & Hygiene. Double-digit growth in Europe with strong innovation pipeline.

USG Growth2.9%
Power BrandsOMO, Persil

Foods

€13.4B TURNOVER

Condiments, Cooking Aids, Mini-Meals, Food Solutions. Knorr and Hellmann's driving 60% of turnover with strong margin improvement.

USG Growth2.6%
Power BrandsKnorr, Hellmann's

Ice Cream

€8.3B TURNOVER

In-home and out-of-home ice cream. Planned separation to create standalone business, improving performance through operational interventions.

USG Growth3.7%
Power BrandsMagnum, Ben & Jerry's

Portfolio Strategy

Focused portfolio with 30 Power Brands contributing 75%+ of turnover and delivering 5.3% underlying sales growth.

Fewer, bigger, better innovations
Science-backed premium products
Strategic portfolio reshaping
Chapter 2

Chapter Two

Financial
Performance

Strong 2024 Results & Volume-Led Growth

Financial Results 2024

Record Performance

Volume-led growth with improved profitability and strong cash generation

Turnover

€60.8B

+1.9%

Strong performance despite currency headwinds and portfolio rationalisation

Underlying Operating Profit

€11.2B

+12.6%

Operating Margin

18.4%

Free Cash Flow

€6.9B

Strong

Cash conversion of 106%, enabling €5.8B shareholder returns

Underlying Sales Growth

4.2%

Volume Growth

2.9%

EPS Growth

14.7%

Gross Margin

45%

Segment Analysis

Business Group Results

Strong performance across all five Business Groups with positive volume growth

Beauty & Wellbeing

TOP PERFORMER

Turnover

€13.2B

+5.5%

USG Growth

6.5%

Volume-led

Prestige Beauty 30% of turnover
Liquid I.V. +20% growth
K18 acquisition completed

Personal Care

VOLUME LEADER

Turnover

€13.6B

+5.2% USG

Volume Growth

3.1%

Strong

Deodorants double-digit growth
Rexona & Axe leading performance
Whole-body deodorants launch

Home Care

EUROPE TURNAROUND

Turnover

€12.3B

+2.9% USG

Volume Growth

4.0%

Highest in decade

Europe double-digit growth
Persil Wonder Wash launch
€150M European investment

Foods

MARGIN EXPANSION

Turnover

€13.4B

+2.6% USG

UOP Margin

21.3%

+2.7pp

Knorr & Hellmann's 60% of turnover
UFS high-single digit growth
Europe key profit driver

Ice Cream

€8.3B turnover - Planned separation to create standalone business with improved performance

USG Growth

3.7%

Chapter 3

Chapter Three

Digital &
AI Strategy

Compass Transformation & AI Innovation

Technology Investment

IT Spending Analysis

Digital transformation investments and technology priorities across global operations

Compass Investment

HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS

Unilever's Compass transformation represents the largest transformation in 15 years, with significant investments in AI, cloud infrastructure, and supply chain digitization to unlock agility and drive growth.

Key Drivers:

  • • Kinaxis AI-enabled supply chain planning
  • • Cloud migration and data lake creation
  • • AI and machine learning capabilities
  • • Digital twin and automation technologies

Industry Benchmarks

FMCG IT Spend % of Revenue2.5-3.5%
Global Retail IT MarketUSD 262B
Unilever Estimated IT€1.5-2.1B

Cloud Strategy

100% Cloud

AI Capabilities

500+

ERP Platforms

20+

Kinaxis Users

1,500+

Data Lake

Unified

Artificial Intelligence

AI & Automation in Action

Transforming operations and consumer experiences through intelligent technologies

Digital Twins Strategy

NVIDIA PARTNERSHIP

Revolutionary Content Creation

Photorealistic 3D replicas using NVIDIA Omniverse platform. Single digital twin contains all product data, enabling rapid AI-generated marketing assets for any channel.

87% Cost Reduction

TRESemmé Thailand campaign

65% Faster Turnaround

Beauty & Wellbeing brands

2x Click-Through Rate

Digital twin imagery performance

Retail AI Solutions

IN-STORE OPTIMIZATION

Smart Merchandising

AI tools empowering merchandising teams with personalized recommendations. Image recognition and sales data enable proactive shelf management across 6,000 stores in Brazil.

3,600 Merchandisers

Using AI tools across Brazil stores

Proactive Shelf Management

Empty shelf detection & prioritization

Data-Driven Execution

Localized action lists for maximum impact

Employee Training

23,000 employees trained in AI usage by end of 2024, with 75% of Personal Care office-based employees regularly using AI tools

R&D Acceleration

Odour Adapt technology developed using complex algorithms, slashing R&D timescales through rapid computer simulations

Smart Manufacturing

Hefei factory: 8% efficiency gain, 15% cycle time reduction, 20% waste reduction through AI and digital twin technologies

Responsible AI

Comprehensive framework governing AI development, deployment, and use, ensuring ethical practices and risk mitigation

Chapter 4

Chapter Four

Innovation
Leadership

AI-Powered R&D & Digital Innovation

Research & Development

Technology-Driven Innovation

AI and digital technologies accelerating product development and market execution

R&D Acceleration

AI-POWERED DISCOVERY

Complex biology analysis that used to take thousands of trials can now be done through rapid computer simulations. AI algorithms analyse sweat and bacteria interactions for customised formulations.

Odour Adapt Technology:

  • • Complex algorithms for whole-body deodorants
  • • Customised formulations through AI analysis
  • • Faster development and tailored performance

Digital Innovation Impact

Content Speed

2x Faster

Cost Reduction

50%

Digital twin technology enables rapid generation of marketing assets from single master files, transforming content creation across all channels.

Environmental & Social

Sustainability Leadership

Making sustainable living commonplace through responsible business practices

Compass Purpose

Unilever's purpose is to "Brighten everyday life for all" through sustainable business practices that create positive impact for consumers, communities, and the planet.

UN Sustainable Development Goals

100%

Sustainable sourcing

1B+

Health & wellbeing

50%

Environmental footprint

Committed to halving environmental footprint and improving health for 1 billion people by 2030.

Circular Economy

WASTE REDUCTION

Implementing circular economy principles to reduce waste, improve recycling, and promote sustainable packaging across all brands and operations.

Recyclable Packaging

100%

By 2025

Virgin Plastic

50%

Reduction

Social Impact

1

Diversity & Inclusion

Living wage across supply chain

2

Health & Wellbeing

Improving health for 1 billion people

3

Fair Trade

Supporting smallholder farmers

Future Outlook

Strategic Priorities 2025 & Beyond

GAP 2030 transformation roadmap for sustainable growth and market leadership

1

Volume-Led Growth

MARKET SHARE

Return to competitive volume growth through increased brand investment, innovation acceleration, and market execution excellence across all business groups.

Target

2.5-3%

Timeline

2025-26

2

Margin Expansion

GAP PROGRAMME

Deliver €1.5 billion productivity savings through GAP programme, reinvesting in brand building while expanding underlying operating margin to 17-18%.

Savings

€1.5B

Margin

17-18%

3

Brand Investment

15.5% OF TURNOVER

Increase brand and marketing investment to 15.5% of turnover, focusing on Power Brands and proven winners to drive market share gains and competitive advantage.

~€9.5B

Annual marketing investment by 2026

4

Ice Cream Separation

PORTFOLIO FOCUS

Separate Ice Cream business to create focused, high-growth company with enhanced strategic clarity and operational agility for both entities.

Revenue

€7.9B

Completion

2025

Final

Positioned for
Sustainable Growth

Unilever's strategic transformation through Compass strategy, AI-powered innovation, and sustainability leadership creates a powerful foundation for long-term value creation in the global consumer goods market.

4.2%

Underlying Sales Growth

500+

AI Capabilities Deployed

100%

Sustainable Sourcing Goal