News

Supply chain improvements deliver savings for Unilever

Unilever has reported that supply chain optimisation programmes have helped it rack up savings of 1.4bn euros and boost turnover by 11.1% to €44.3bn in 2010.

The company's chief executive officer , Paul Polman (pictured), noted that in 2010 the characterised by intense competition, weak consumer confidence in many markets and the impact of rising commodities costs in the second half.

"Savings programmes delivered strongly across both supply chain and indirects. We invested in our product quality and significantly increased the investment behind our brands whilst improving advertising quality. In the fourth quarter, advertising and promotions was lower by 170bps reflecting the phasing of activities and some re?balancing between above and below the line support in developed markets," Polman said.

"Whilst markets showed little or no growth in the developed economies, emerging market growth remained healthy. We grew our volumes ahead of the market in all regions and finished the year strongly despite a strong prior year comparator. Whilst in?quarter pricing was flat throughout much of the year, it became positive in the fourth quarter as we responded to increasing commodity costs."

Presenting Unilever's 2010 earnings Polman reported that the company's underlying volume growth was 5.1%. Underlying operating margin, however, was down 20bps primarily due to increased commodity costs.