Unilever aims to double revenue
UNILEVER, the company behind Magnum ice-cream and Marmite, will spend up to e2 billion (R19bn) a year acquiring new ice cream, hair care and laundry product brands through acquisitions and the company aims to double its sales revenue in the next 10 years or less.
Global chief executive Paul Polman said the group was considering companies its own size when it came to growing the business.
"We are always on the lookout for the right opportunities. Every buyer needs a seller after all," he said.
In 2009 Unilever made a few strategic bolt-on acquisitions when it bought Sara Lee's personal care brands, which include Sanex and Radox. Analysts gave the deal the thumbs up at the time, pointing to the fact that the Sara Lee business had been growing at 4 percent a year over the past few years.
Polman maintained that personal care brands were a focus area for the company, which he believed significantly strengthened Unilever's European business.
"We also made smaller bolt-on acquisitions such as the Tigi professional hair care brands, mainly in the US, and the Baltimor ketchup business in Russia," he said.
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