Unilever to slim skincare portfolio

Unilever, the consumer goods behemoth behind Marmite and Lynx, is mulling over selling two of its personal care brands.

According to Sky News, Unilever is working with advisers on the disposal of Kate Somerville and REN, the upscale skincare brands that it acquired in 2015. It was also reported that the company has engaged PricewaterhouseCoopers to field interest from potential buyers.

This comes after affordable lines like Cerave and The Ordinary grew rapidly, while premium lines have suffered from a squeezed middle along with the a slew of other brands which cater to aspirational shoppers.

The group has also signalled that it plans to demerge its vast ice cream division, which owns Magnum, Wall’s and Ben & Jerry’s. A sale of the business to private equity investors is also a possibility.

Earlier this year, the company announced that it would scale back its environmental and social pledges and enact a productivity plan to “drive performance in the company”. Unilever has announced plans to cut around a third of its office jobs in Europe – about 3,000 – as well as the sale of its ice-cream empire, which includes Magnum, Wall’s, and Ben & Jerry’s.

The consumer goods giant reported last month a rise in net profit in the first six months of the this year, driven by higher sales. Profit after tax rose to €3.7 billion ($3.1bn) compared with the first half of 2023, the maker of multiple products including Cif surface cleaner, Dove soap and Ben & Jerry’s ice cream said in an earnings statement.

Both volume of sales and prices increased in the first half, Unilever noted.

The company earlier this year announced plans to create a standalone ice cream business as part of a major overhaul expected to cost about 7,500 mainly office-based jobs worldwide. The group, which employed about 128,000 people globally at the time of the March announcement, is seeking to save €800 million over the next three years.