Introduction to Unilever
March 2012
Safe harbour statement
This document may contain forward-looking statements, including „forward-looking statements‟ within the meaning of the United States Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words such as „will‟, „aim‟, „expects‟, „anticipates‟, „intends‟, „believes‟, „vision‟, or the negative of these
terms and other similar expressions of future performance or results, and their negatives, are intended to identify such forward-looking
statements. These forward-looking statements are based upon current expectations and assumptions regarding anticipated developments and
other factors affecting the Group. They are not historical facts, nor are they guarantees of future performance.
Because these forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties, there are important factors that could cause actual results to differ
materially from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements, including, among others, competitive pricing and activities,
economic slowdown, industry consolidation, access to credit markets, recruitment levels, reputational risks, commodity prices, continued
availability of raw materials, prioritisation of projects, consumption levels, costs, the ability to maintain and manage key customer relationships
and supply chain sources, consumer demands, currency values, interest rates, the ability to integrate acquisitions and complete planned
divestitures, finalising fair values related to prior acquisitions, the ability to complete planned restructuring activities, physical risks,
environmental risks, the ability to manage sustainability, regulatory, tax and legal matters and resolve pending matters within current estimates,
legislative, fiscal and regulatory developments, political, economic and social conditions in the geographic markets where the Group operates,
completion of the Sustainable Development Report 2011 and new or changed priorities of the Boards. Further details of potential risks and
uncertainties affecting the Group are described in the Group‟s filings with the London Stock Exchange, Euronext Amsterdam and the US
Securities and Exchange Commission, including the Group‟s Annual Report on Form 20-F for the year ended 31 December 2011 and the Annual
Report and Accounts 2011. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this document. Except as required by any applicable
law or regulation, the Group expressly disclaims any obligation or undertaking to release publicly any updates or revisions to any forwardlooking statements contained herein to reflect any change in the Group‟s expectations with regard thereto or any change in events, conditions
or circumstances on which any such statement is based.
Contents
1
Mission
2
Geographic Reach
3
Categories and Brands
4
Our Strategy
5
Sustainable Living Plan
6
Unilever in Emerging Markets
7
Financial Performance , Governance and Shares
8
Contact Information
1
Mission
We are a successful, growing, sustainable business
We work to create a better future every day.
We help people feel good, look good and get more out of life with brands and
services that are good for them and good for others.
We will inspire people to take small everyday actions that can add up to a big
difference for the world.
We will develop new ways of doing business that will allow us to double the size of
our company while reducing our environmental impact.
€80bn
€46bn
€40bn
environmental impact
2
Geographic Reach
Well positioned for growth
2bn
consumers
worldwide use a
Unilever product
on any day
Products sold in
more than
190
countries
54%
of sales in
emerging markets
More than
50 years
experience in
Brazil, China, India
and Indonesia
Balanced scale across categories
Personal care
Home care
€15.5bn Turnover
€8.2bn Turnover
33% of sales
18% of sales
Balanced scale across categories
Foods
Refreshment
€14.0bn Turnover
€8.8bn Turnover
30% of sales
19% of sales
Balanced scale across geographies
Asia/Africa/RUB
€17.7bn
38% Sales
The Americas
€15.3bn
33% Sales
Europe
€13.5bn
29% Sales
“Our deep roots in local cultures and markets around the world give us our strong relationships with
consumers and are the foundation for future growth. We will bring our wealth of knowledge and
international expertise to the service of local consumers - a truly multi-local multinational” - extract from
Unilever’s Corporate purpose
3
Categories and Brands
Regions and categories
Clear, distinct, complementary roles
Categories - deliver global platforms
Regions – in-market execution
Responsible for:
Responsible for:
Brand development
Managing the business
Innovation
Deploying brands and innovations
Research and Development
Customer management
Accountable for:
Medium/long term market share
Brand health
Innovation metrics
Category value creation
Accountable for:
Short term market shares
Growth
Profit
Cash flows
Leadership positions across the portfolio
World Number 1
World Number 2
Local Strength
Savoury
Laundry
Oral Care
Dressings
Daily Hair Care
Household Cleaning
Tea
Ice Cream
Spreads
Deodorants
Mass Skin
Number 1 and 2 in more than 80% of the business
Great brands achieving key milestones
€4bn
€3bn
€2bn
Our €1bn brands
€1bn
Brands
And more coming
The next
10 bigger
brands
4
Our Strategy
Our Compass strategy sets out our ambition
It is to double the size of Unilever whilst at the same time reducing
our environmental footprint.
€80bn
€46bn
€40bn
environmental impact
Unilever long term focus
1. To drive volume growth ahead of our markets
2. Steady and sustainable core operating margin improvement
3. Strong cash flow
4
Our Strategy
I. Winning with Brands and Innovation
Innovation becoming a competitive strength
Consistently high innovation rate
Innovations in ten or more markets
>30%
70
40
9
2009
2010
2011
Innovating across the Portfolio - Hair
Sedal – Keratinology
Dove – Nourishing oils launch
Clear – global re-launch
Innovating across the Portfolio - Deodorants
Axe
Each year new variant
reaches 50+ countries
Rexona
Rolled out to 50+ countries
Dove Men+Care
Now in more than 40 countries
Innovating across the Portfolio - Skin
Radox – spa range
Dove – visible care
Axe – shower
Innovating across the Portfolio - Laundry
Dirt is Good
Global re-launch with
enhanced cleaning
perception with built in
pre-treaters
Radiant
Patented optical
whitener
technology
Comfort
Superior freshness
in-wear
Surf launch into white spaces
Innovating across the Portfolio - Oral
Mentadent Maximum Protection
Maximum protection for the family
Signal Sensitive Expert
Protects the tooth nerve of pain stimulus and
strengthens the gums
Close Up Fire - Freeze
For ultimate long lasting freshness
Signal Complete 8
Complete protection
Innovating across the Portfolio – Ice Cream
Magnum – US launch
Cornetto - Europe
Fruttare - Asia, LATAM
Innovating across the Portfolio – Savoury
Knorr – Stockpot
Knorr – Soups
Knorr – Sauce Pur
Innovating across the Portfolio – Tea
Lipton – Ice Tea
Lipton with TESS technology
– Russia
Lipton – Cold Tea
Innovating across the Portfolio – Spreads
Rama Irresistible
Latta & Luftig
Flora Liquids
Sharpening the portfolio through M&A
Personal care – Sara Lee
Personal Care – Concern Kalina
Hair / Skin - Alberto Culver
M&A as a growth driver: bolt-on acquisitions on core categories - €1bn - €2bn p.a.
White space: ~100 brands into new markets p.a.
4
Our Strategy
II. Winning in the Marketplace
Market development - our repeatable model
More Users
More Usage
More Benefits
Customer partnerships
Unilever has unparalleled reach across the store, bringing unique „shopper insight‟ to our partnership
with customers
Customer Insight and Innovation Center roll out now
completed
London Leatherhead
Paris
Shanghai
Englewood Cliffs
Sao Paolo
Singapore
4
Our Strategy
III. Winning through Continuous Improvement
We are stepping up capex investment
capex % turnover
Stage 1: under-invest
%
Stage 2: kick-start growth
Stage 3: sustainable levels
4%
3%
2%
2006
2008
2010
2012
Investing for growth – particularly in emerging markets
2014
Savings programmes
Total Savings
€bn

Excellent savings from continuous improvement
programme
1.1
2008
1.4
2009
1.4
2010
1.5
2011

Contribution from supply chain, overheads and A&P

Difficult macro-economic environment – no let up in
our productivity initiatives
Driving return on brand support
Advertising production and fees
Reduced by

Evaluating the effectiveness of our marketing

Rapidly adopting new cost-effective models that make us
more competitive:
€128m

Improving customer management
in 2011

Using handheld computers to track in-store
performance and order sizes

Better tracking of our point-of-sale materials
€6.1bn on A&P in 2011
Driving the Virtuous Circle of Growth
Cost
Leverage
+
Efficiencies
Profitable
Volume
Growth
Innovation
A&P / R&D
Cost
Savings
4
Our Strategy
IV. Winning with People
People are at the heart of our business
Proud to work in Unilever
86%
of managers
Most preferred graduate FMCG
employer in
14
countries
Talent for €80 business ambition
The Talent & Organisation Readiness Framework
We are building the…
•Talent
Talent
•Skills
•Organisation
Culture
Organisation
Organisation
•Culture
Skills
…to match our
growth ambition
“Great Place, Great People”
Unilever Employer Ranking 2011
Number 1 FMCG employer in 14 countries
South Africa, Vietnam, Indonesia, Australia, Bangladesh, Pakistan, India
Sri Lanka, Argentina, Chile, Brazil, Netherlands, Russia, Turkey
We continue to improve our employer brand rankings
Various sources quoted - 2011 Universum survey, AC Nielsen reports
We have local roots with global scale
Our heritage and local expertise mean
that D&E is in our DNA
• Understanding of the local
consumer
• Brands and products across a
wide range of income levels
• Critical mass on the ground
• Corporate reputation with local
stakeholders and talent pool
Local roots
Leveraging our scale brings us
advantages over local competition
• Global portfolio of brands and
categories
• Dedicated R&D investment
• Shared values and standards of
behaviour
Global scale
We are driving a new performance culture
 3+1 goals
More
stretch
More
 More variable pay
differentiation
 Individual assessment based on rating
3+1 goals
More
reward
 Top 100 required to hold 1.5x salary in shares
 ULE required to hold >3x salary in shares
internal and external appointments – 2/3rd of senior management in new roles
Unilever Leadership Executive
Doug Baillie
HR
Geneviève Berger
R&D
Jean-Marc Huët
Finance
CEO
Harish Manwani
COO
Alan Jope*
North Asia
Kees Kruythoff*
North America
Tonia Lovell
Legal
Jan Zijderveld*
Europe
Pier-Luigi Sigismondi
Supply Chain
Kevin Havelock
Refreshment
Keith Weed
Marketing & Communications
* = report to
Harish Manwani, COO
Paul Polman
Dave Lewis
Personal Care
Antoine De Saint-Affrique
Food
5
Sustainable Living Plan
Unilever Sustainable Living Plan
HELP 1 BILLION PEOPLE IMPROVE THEIR
HEALTH & WELLBEING
HALVE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS
OF OUR PRODUCTS
SOURCE 100%
OF AGRICULTURAL RAW MATERIALS SUSTAINABLY
The business case for sustainability
consumer preference
win with customers
sustainable innovation
100% sustainable raw
materials by 2020
The business case for sustainability
grow our markets
cost savings
Pack weight reduced by 10-15%
250 metric tonnes of packaging saved
Reached more than
130m people since 2002
aim to reach 500m
people by 2020
€5m savings p.a.
USLP: launch of the Unilever Foundation
Helping more than one billion people improve their health and well-being
6
Unilever in Emerging Markets
Unilever: the emerging market company
100%
80%
developed
60%
54%
40%
20%
emerging
0%
1946
1956
1966
1976
1986
1998
2004
2008
2009
2010
2011
Emerging markets: consistent growth over 20 years
Underlying sales growth
16%
12%
8%
4%
0%
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
00
01
02
03
04
05
06
Consistent track record – 9% CAGR over the last 20 years
07
08
09
10
11
We have the best footprint in emerging markets
54%
15%
25%
Source: Annual Report & Accounts, analysts estimates, Unilever estimates
35%
45%
55%
The opportunity - more consumers
billions of people
2010
2020
Have lots
1.9
3.0 3.0
3.0
More benefits
Haves
2.0
2.72.7
2.7
More usage
Have nots
2.9
1.91.9
More users
Source: Unilever estimates Globegro, updated upon LSM 2.0 baseline studies.
We are ideally positioned to capture D&E growth
population
value share
relative market share
China
1.4bn
>10%
0.4
India
1.3bn
>35%
>2
Indonesia
230m
>40%
>1.5
Brazil
195m
>35%
>1.5
Pakistan
170m
>35%
0.9
Bangladesh
160m
>50%
>2
Philippines
90m
>35%
>1.5
Market development is a major growth driver
in BRIC alone, by 2020
washing
machines
+230%
kitchen
sinks
+115%
inside
toilets
+100%
Source: CMI
fridge
freezers
+190%
microwave
ovens
+130%
Example: market development bath & shower
US$ spend per capita
20
17
Developed markets
Emerging markets
5
13
14
Australasia
Brazil
5
3
1
Vietnam
Source: Euromonitor
1
2
2
Indonesia
China
India
Turkey
Mexico
Argentina
USA
United
Kingdom
Example: developing our markets by increasing
frequency of consumption
Oral Care Market Development Model
France
Indonesia
Nigeria
Most 100M+ population countries will be in emerging
markets (13 out of 15) by 2020
Russia
US
Egypt
Mexico
Nigeria
Pakistan
China
India
Ethiopia
Vietnam Philippines
Bangladesh
Indonesia
Brazil
Source: Unilever Estimates from Globegro
Japan
“Perfect Stores”: emerging markets ambition
from 1 million (2010) to 3 million (2012)
GT
MT
5m prefect stores by 2020
Sustainability
Unilever leads the agenda in emerging markets
Sustainable Palm Oil
Access to Clean Water
Rainforest alliance
Less Water
Empowering Women
Hygiene for all
7
Financial Performance, Governance and Shares
A more competitive Unilever
Strong growth
Growth acceleration in
emerging markets
Value shares improving
USG
USG
bps change
6.5%
2.0%
8.1%
4.1%
3.5%
2009
2010
2011
2009
2.2%
7.9%
11.5%
2.0%
2.2%20
10
2010
2011
FY 2011
L12 w
Commitment to shareholder value
Unilever measures its Total Shareholder Return, over a 3 year rolling period, amongst a peer group of
20 other companies
Peer group in 2011
• Avon
• Kellogg‟s
• Beiersdorf
• Kimberly-Clark
• Campbell
• Kraft
• Coca-Cola
• L‟Oréal
• Colgate
• Nestlé
• Danone
• Pepsico
• General Mills
• Procter & Gamble
• Heinz
• Reckitt Benckiser
• Henkel
• Sara Lee
• Kao
• Shiseido
Unilever‟s TSR position relative to the peer group over a rolling 3 year
period
0
7
14
21
1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
“… our road to sustainable, profitable growth, creating long term value for our shareholders, our people, and
our business partners” extract from Unilever’s Corporate purpose
Legal structure, governance and shares
Unilever was formed in 1930 from two companies:
Margarine Unie
(Netherlands)
Lever Brothers
(UK)
It was a full business merger, operating as a single business entity
Two separate legal parent companies were maintained:
- Unilever NV (Netherlands) and Unilever PLC (UK).
This works through an equalisation agreement and other contracts between the two companies
Legal structure
Unilever NV and PLC have separate legal identities but operate as a single entity
NV shareholders
PLC shareholders
Directors
NV
NV owned operating companies
Equalisation and other agreements
Jointly owned operating companies
PLC
PLC owned operating companies
Legal structure
Unilever firmly believes in maintaining high standards of
Corporate Governance
These have evolved in response to developments in Europe (UK Combined Code, Dutch Corporate Governance Code) and
the US (Sarbanes Oxley, NYSE listing rules)
Unilever operates a unified board: the boards of NV and PLC comprise the same directors
There is a majority of independent, non-executive directors on the board. The Chairman is non-executive
The boards have ultimate responsibility for the business as a whole
Details of current arrangements can be found in the report and accounts in the investor centre at
www.unilever.com/investorrelations
Share listings
• Unilever NV ordinary shares or certificates (depositary receipts) are listed on the stock exchanges in Amsterdam and as
New York Registry shares on the New York Stock Exchange.
• Unilever PLC ordinary shares are listed on the London Stock Exchange and as American Depositary Receipts in New York.
Each ADR represents 1 underlying ordinary PLC share.
• There are 1,714,727,700 NV ordinary shares in issue, each with a nominal value of €0.16.
• There are 1,310,156,361 PLC ordinary shares in issue, each with a nominal value of 3 1/9 pence.
• The equalisation agreement between NV and PLC is such that each NV ordinary share has the same rights and benefits as
each PLC ordinary share.
• The combined share count excluding treasury stock, for calculating basic EPS, was 2,816 million at the end of 2011
• The combined share count excluding treasury stock, for calculating diluted EPS, was 2,908 million at the end of 2011
Further information can be found in the investor centre at www.unilever.com
Share listings
Exchange
Amsterdam
London
New York
Share
Unilever NV
Unilever PLC
Unilever NV NY
Unilever PLC NY
Ticker
UNA
ULVR
UN
UL
Cash payment per share
2011
€0.88
£0.77
$1.24
$1.24
Share listings and ownership
Share listings as a percentage of identified capital
PLC ADR
5%
PLC
39%
NV NY
9%
Share ownership by country at the end of 2011
UK
30%
Other
38%
NV 47%
Netherlands
7%
USA
25%
An attractive and growing dividend
€0.88
1979
1989
1999
Dividend payout 1979 - today 8% CAGR
2011
8
Contact Information
Further information and contact details
More information on Unilever is available at www.unilever.com/investorrelations
Download the Unilever IR app for the iPhone and iPad
The shareholder centre at www.unilever.com/investorrelations gives information on how to
purchase Unilever stock
The IR team can be contacted by
telephone as follows:
+ 44 (0) 20 7822 6830
Or by e-mail at:
investor.relations@unilever.com