Brand Marketing
FMCG firms cut senior roles by 32%; Total headcount shrinks 9.26% in FY25
Unilever, the consumer goods giant behind household names like Dove and Persil, reported mixed financial results for the first half of 2025. While the company saw sales rise, its operating profit fell, a trend CEO Fernando Fernandez says won't stop the company from building a "marketing and sales machine."
Unilever's second-quarter sales climbed 3.8%, beating analyst expectations. However, operating profit for the first half of the year dropped 4.8% to $6.64 billion. This decline comes amidst rising costs and a significant increase in marketing and brand-building investments.
Despite the dip in profit, the company’s first-half revenue was up 3.4% to $34.45 billion, thanks to strong performances from its personal care and ice cream divisions. Unilever's personal care brands, including Dove and Axe, saw sales grow by 4.8%, while the ice cream business saw a 5.9% year-on-year increase in the second quarter. This ice cream division is set to spin off into a separate company, The Magnum Ice Cream Company, in November, with Unilever retaining a 20% stake.
CEO Fernando Fernandez, who took the helm in February, is not backing down from his strategy to prioritize marketing investment. He's made it clear that he won't sacrifice brand-building for short-term profit gains. In fact, Unilever’s marketing budget for the first half of 2025 was 15.5% of its revenue, an increase of 0.4% from the previous year.
Fernandez’s new "influencer-first" marketing approach allocates a substantial 30% to 50% of Unilever's annual ad budget to creator partnerships. The strategy has already led to successful creator-led campaigns for brands like TRESemmé.
Additionally, Unilever's recent acquisition of men’s soap brand Dr. Squatch is part of a broader plan to deepen its reach into the Gen Z market.
Fernandez outlined a clear path forward for the company, stating, "Our priorities are clear: more beauty and wellbeing, and personal care; disproportionate investment in the U.S. and India; and a sharper focus on premium segments and digital commerce." He emphasized the company is "building a marketing and sales machine that drives desire at scale in our power brands and ensures execution excellence across all channels."
While U.S. rival P&G anticipates a significant financial hit from potential new tariffs, Unilever's acting CFO Srinivas Phatak said that any short-term impact of levies would be "well within [Unilever's] margin guidance" for the latter half of the year.
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