Tag: Rohit Jawa

HUL Posts Rs 2,768 Crore Profit in Q1, Boosted by Minimalist Buy

MUMBAI: Hindustan Unilever Limited (HUL) has kicked off FY26 with a frothy performance in Q1, brewing Rs 2,768 crore in net profit up 6 per cent from the same quarter last year despite flat volume growth and a mild lather of margin pressure. Total revenue stood at Rs 16,323 crore, a 5 per cent rise from the previous year’s Rs 15,547 crore, driven by modest gains across key verticals including Home Care (Rs 5,815 crore), Beauty & Wellbeing (Rs 3,265 crore), Foods (Rs 3,896 crore), and Personal Care (Rs 2,126 crore). The company’s EBITDA for the quarter clocked in at Rs 3,718 crore with a margin of 22.8 per cent, a dip of 130 basis points versus the previous year.

But what added extra glow to the balance sheet this quarter was the inclusion of Uprising Science Private Limited makers of the cult-favourite skincare and haircare brand *Minimalist*. HUL completed a 90.5 per cent stake acquisition in April 2025 for Rs 2,706 crore, and the brand’s contribution from April to June has already been factored into the consolidated earnings.

While profit before tax stood at Rs 3,362 crore, a Rs 138 crore exceptional item mostly restructuring expenses and adjustments to legacy tax provisions shaved off some sheen. However, a re-estimation of tax expenses added a 12 per cent boost to PAT growth, softening the blow.

Interestingly, despite a slight dip in operating margins, HUL managed to grow its bottom line due to disciplined cost controls and a diversified category strategy. Foods and Beverages continues to be the tastiest pie, contributing Rs 3,896 crore in revenue, while Home Care kept the household engine running with Rs 5,815 crore.

On the segment results side, Home Care led the pack with Rs 1,093 crore in profits, followed closely by Beauty & Wellbeing (Rs 1,046 crore) and Foods (Rs 627 crore). Personal Care, however, saw a relative slide, reporting Rs 398 crore for the quarter.

With this quarterly update, HUL’s CEO Rohit Jawa seems to have set a confident tone for the year. The acquisition of *Minimalist* hints at a sharper pivot towards premium and digitally native brands, while its core continues to be driven by daily-use essentials.

Even as rural demand remains patchy, and discretionary consumption cautious, HUL is leaning into a “more for less” strategy revamping portfolios while keeping margins lean and marketing sharp.

A minimalist acquisition, a maximalist balance sheet HUL might just be setting the tone for the FMCG playbook in FY26.

July 31, 2025
Hindustan Unilever appoints Priya Nair as new CEO & MD

Mumbai: Hindustan Unilever Limited (HUL) has announced the appointment of Priya Nair as its new chief executive officer & managing director, effective 1 August 2025. She will also join the HUL board and remain a member of the Unilever Leadership Executive.

Nair brings nearly 30 years of experience with Unilever, having held various sales and marketing roles across home care, beauty & wellbeing, and personal care. Her previous roles include executive director, home care, HUL (2014-2020), executive director, beauty & personal care, HUL (2020-2022), and global chief marketing officer, beauty & wellbeing at Unilever. Since 2023, she has served as president of beauty & wellbeing, one of Unilever’s fastest-growing divisions.. She is credited with consistently delivering business transformation through brand building, premiumisation, digital commerce, and purpose-led innovation.

Rohit Jawa will step down as CEO and MD on 31 July 2025, to pursue new personal and professional endeavours. Jawa assumed the role in 2023, and during his tenure of over two years, HUL achieved volume-led competitive growth. He also introduced the ‘aspire’ strategy, aimed at transforming the portfolio and channels towards high-growth demand spaces. HUL chairman Nitin Paranjpe thanked Jawa for his leadership in navigating challenging market conditions and strengthening the company’s foundations.

The appointment of Nair is subject to shareholder and other necessary statutory approvals. The board meeting to approve these changes commenced at 5:30 pm IST and concluded at 6:25 pm IST on Thursday, 10 July 2025.

July 10, 2025
Former Britannia CEO to captain HUL’s food division

MUMBAI: Hindustan Unilever Limited (HUL) has tapped Rajneet Singh Kohli, the former culinary captain of Britannia, to helm its foods division, marking a strategic move in the competitive consumer goods landscape.

Effective 7 April 2025, Kohli will slide into the executive director, foods role, replacing Shiva Krishnamurthy, who is departing to explore external opportunities. With a sizzling 28-year career spanning consumer goods and retail, Kohli brings a recipe for success that could just be the secret sauce HUL needs.

At Britannia, Kohli proved himself a master chef of business strategy, seasoning the company’s market position with product innovation and digital prowess. His leadership portfolio includes appetising stints at Jubilant Foodworks, The Coca-Cola Co, and Asian Paints.

HUL chief executive Rohit Jawa praised Krishnamurthy’s decade-long tenure, highlighting his transformation of the tea portfolio and marketing brilliance. “Rajneet brings extensive experience in managing large foods and beverages businesses,” Jawa said, signalling high expectations for the incoming executive.

The foods business represents a significant growth runway for HUL, with Kohli’s track record suggesting he might just be the perfect ingredient to cook up further success.

March 27, 2025
HUL picks up a stake in Lucro to turn plastic waste into treasure

MUMBAI: Hindustan Unilever Ltd (HUL) is putting its money where its sustainability pledge is, snapping up a 14.3 per cent stake in Lucro Plastecycle, a rising star in recycled flexible plastics. The deal, approved by HUL’s board today, marks a fresh push towards a zero plastic waste future.

Lucro isn’t just in the business of recycling—it’s on a mission to turn trash into cash by converting post-consumer flexible plastics into high-quality recycled material. The tieup with HUL aims to boost the supply of recycled content for packaging, giving businesses a clearer path to sustainability and tackling the challenge of hard-to-recycle plastics.

“This investment is a significant step in building the capabilities in recycling and developing the circular economy model for plastic, which is in line with our firm belief that what is good for India is good for HUL,” said HUL CEO & MD Rohit Jawa.

Lucro managing director Ujwal Desai said the deal will help ramp up recycling capacity and drive large-scale commercial adoption of post-consumer resin. “This investment by HUL paves the way for us to set a new benchmark for sustainable plastics,” he said.

HUL, India’s biggest FMCG player, already reaches nine out of ten Indian households—and now, it wants to clean up the planet while it’s at it.

March 20, 2025
Hindustan Unilever Q2 FY2025 sees 4 per cent decline in PAT amid competitive pressures

Mumbai: Hindustan Unilever Limited (HUL), one of India’s largest fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) companies, faced a mixed financial performance for the quarter ending September 2024 (Q2 FY2025). While the company managed to maintain a stable revenue flow, posting a modest 2 per cent year-on-year growth, its profit after tax (PAT) took a hit, declining by 4 per cent compared to the same quarter last year. This marked a challenging period for the consumer giant as rising input costs and sluggish consumer demand weighed down its profitability.

The financial results released on 23 October 2024, indicate that HUL’s revenue from operations stood at Rs 15,319 crores, up from Rs 15,027 crores in Q2 FY2024. However, the company’s Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation, and Amortisation (EBITDA) margins saw a slight contraction. EBITDA for the quarter came in at Rs 3,647 crores, marking an 80 basis points (bps) decline to 23.8 per cent from 24.6 per cent in the same period last year.

A key highlight from the results was the dip in PAT to Rs 2,612 crores, down from Rs 2,717 crores in Q2 FY2024, representing a 4 per cent decline. This drop was driven by multiple factors, including escalating material costs and competitive pricing pressures in key segments like personal care and home care. Additionally, the company faced an exceptional restructuring charge of Rs 16 crores during the quarter, further compressing net earnings.

HUL’s executive director and company secretary, Dev Bajpai, commented on the results, stating: “While we continue to deliver on our commitment to revenue growth, profitability challenges are real. We are focused on operational efficiencies and agile strategies to navigate the cost pressures.”

The company’s Home Care division reported a sales increase to Rs 5,737 crores, while Beauty & Wellbeing achieved sales of Rs 3,323 crores. Yet, Personal Care and Foods & Refreshment segments faced marginal declines, with Personal Care revenue dropping to Rs 2,412 crores.

In a bid to reward shareholders, HUL declared an interim dividend of Rs 19 per equity share and a special dividend of Rs 10 per share for FY2025, totalling Rs 29 per equity share. The record date for the dividend is set for 6 November 2024, with the dividend payout scheduled for 21 November 2024. Despite the decline in PAT, HUL’s strong cash flow allowed it to maintain its dividend policy, signalling confidence in its long-term growth strategy.

The FMCG giant remains cautiously optimistic about the future. The company continues to emphasise innovation, digital transformation, and a consumer-centric approach to fuel long-term growth. Commenting on the company’s outlook, MD & CEO Rohit Jawa said: “Our investments in innovation and sustainability are non-negotiable as we focus on both protecting margins and driving top-line growth in the challenging macroeconomic environment.”

Looking forward, HUL’s ability to manage costs and drive sales growth in a competitive market will be crucial. With consumer preferences shifting and economic pressures persisting, the company must stay agile and innovate to regain momentum in the upcoming quarters.

October 23, 2024
Rohit Jawa CEO & MD of HUL to chair distinguished IAA IndIAA Awards jury

Mumbai: Rohit Jawa the chief executive officer and managing director of Hindustan Unilever will chair the distinguished jury panel to select the winners at the IndIAA awards for creative excellence, organized by the India Chapter of the International Advertising Association (IAA).

The other jury members are

. Charulata Ravikumar, managing director, Accenture

. Geetika Mehta, managing director, Nivea

. M R Jyothy, managing director, Jyothy Laboratories Ltd.

. Abhinandan Lodha, chairman, Lodha Ventures

. Cecil de Santa Maria, chief operating officer, ORRA

. Mohit Malhotra, chief executive officer, Dabur India Limited

. Pulkit Trivedi, managing director – India, Snap Inc

IAA president Avinash Pandey said, “Any award is only as good as the jury that judges them. We are privileged to have such an elite group on our jury panel. It speaks volumes for the heights the IndIAA awards have scaled.

Adds Abhishek Karnani, chairman IndIAA awards, “These awards are unique. You cannot enter your work on your own. A group of senior editors in the marcom trade media who are viewing advertising every day, need to shortlist your creative work. And this shortlist will be placed before our elite jury.

All co-creators of the winning work will be felicitated at the grand IndIAA Awards Nite which will be held on the 22nd. August 2024.

July 22, 2024