Unilever, the world’s second-biggest consumer-goods company, plans to increase its business in China to as much as five times the current level, according to Harish Manwani president of Unilever’s Asia, Africa, and Eastern and Central Europe.“Our business has been growing steadily about 18-19% per annum,” Manwani told Bloomberg TV in Jakarta at the World Economic Forum on East Asia. “Our commitment in China is to build a business four- or fivefold” what it is now, he said, without giving a timescale.
More than 55% of Unilever’s business now comes from emerging markets, Manwani said.
Unilever’s Chinese expansion goal is realistic, according to Shaun Rein, managing director of China Market Research Group, a Shanghai-based consumer consulting company. Premium brands in the fast-moving consumer-goods industry are growing about 20% annually in the country. “The government is trying to shift the economy from manufacturing-oriented to consumption-led,” Rein said. “Unilever are well poised because they have a strong branding and they created trust with the consumer.”
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