48-474: Colworth House is an 18th-century mansion set in an area of parkland on the edge of the village of Sharnbrook in Bedfordshire . It is a Grade II* listed building. The surrounding site has been occupied since prehistoric times. The current house was started in 1715 by Mark Antonie, a self-made man who aspired to become part of the landed gentry. It passed down to John Antonie, who bequeathed it on his death to
96-522: A colour cosmetics brand. In July, the company then announced that it had acquired the organic herbal tea business, Pukka Herbs. In September 2017, Unilever acquired Weis , an Australian ice cream business. Later that month Unilever acquired Remgro's interest in Unilever South Africa in exchange for the Unilever South Africa spreads business plus cash consideration. Even later that month, Unilever agreed to acquire Carver Korea, with 2.7billion USD,
144-530: A cousin, the MP William Lee , who then adopted the additional surname of Antonie. On his own death in 1815 William Lee Antonie left it to his nephew, the astronomer and antiquarian John Fiott , who thereupon adopted the surname of Lee. The house and extensive grounds were acquired in 1935 by Henry Mond, 2nd Baron Melchett and subsequently sold to Unilever in November 1947, who restored and developed them into
192-468: A hair care products business. In 2017, significantly smaller Kraft Heinz made a $ 143 billion bid for Unilever. The deal was declined by Unilever. On 20 April 2017, Unilever acquired Sir Kensington's, a New York–based condiment maker. On 15 May 2017, the company acquired the personal care and home care brands of Quala, a Latin American consumer goods company. In June, the company acquired Hourglass,
240-502: A holding company Unilever PLC and N.V. with Anglo-Dutch structure, which has its registered office at Port Sunlight in Merseyside, United Kingdom and its head office at Unilever House in London, United Kingdom. The company has been restructured several times, for example in 2018 and 2020 (see "history"). In 2018, Unilever announced its intention to simplify this structure by centralising
288-490: A loop in the River Great Ouse and almost due north of Bedford , the village has developed as a ribbon-settlement running south-east to north-west, with the core of the community clustered at the north-western end. The village has two schools, the larger of which Sharnbrook Academy has a campus on the west of the village, serves a wide area and was attended by the marathon world record holder Paula Radcliffe , who opened
336-457: A maker of products made of oils and fats, and expanded its operations worldwide. It has made numerous corporate acquisitions, including Lipton (1971), Brooke Bond (1984), Pond's (1987), Hellmann's (2000), Ben & Jerry's (2000), SlimFast (2000), Knorr (2000), Alberto-Culver (2010), Dollar Shave Club (2016), and Pukka Herbs (2017). Unilever divested its speciality chemicals businesses to Imperial Chemical Industries in 1997. In
384-587: A merger of UAC Ghana Limited and Lever Brothers Ghana Limited. In 1993, Unilever acquired Breyers from Kraft , which made the company the largest ice cream manufacturer in the United States. In the same year, it acquired the Isaly Klondike Company, makers of Klondike bar , and Popsicle Industries . In 1996, Unilever merged Elida Gibbs and Lever Brothers in its UK operations. It also purchased Helene Curtis , significantly expanding its presence in
432-624: A merger of the operations of Dutch Margarine Unie and British soapmaker Lever Brothers , with the name of the resulting company a portmanteau of the name of both companies. In the 1930s, the business grew, and new ventures were launched in Africa and Latin America. During this time, Unilever acquired the United Africa Company , created from a merger of the African & Eastern Trade Corporation and
480-758: A new stand-alone beauty business, Elida Beauty, which will own and manage the following brands: Brut, Brylcreem, Timotei, Q-tips, Noxema, TIGI, VO5, Toni & Guy, Matey, Moussel, Monsavon, Impulse, St Ives, Alberto Balsam, Badedas, Fissan, Pento, Pond's, Careess, Lever 2000, Williams, Elida, and Alberto. In August 2021, Florida governor Ron DeSantis placed Unilever on a list of "Scrutinized Companies that Boycott Israel" because it had "no current plan to prevent Ben & Jerry's from terminating business activities in Israeli-controlled territories". The ice-cream brand has 90 days to stop engaging in "the BDS movement ", or
528-507: A research laboratory through 1948, with the first staff moving in during 1950. Unilever employed up to 1,750 people at Colworth during the 1970s and constructed several laboratory buildings surrounding a central grassed park. In 2004 Unilever entered into a joint venture with property investment company Arlington Securities to manage Colworth Science Park, with the aim of turning it into a science cluster by attracting science businesses, academic outposts, and science-based entrepreneurs. Arlington
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#1732877315279576-612: A result, Unilever began to operate a "hands-off" policy towards the subsidiaries and left American management to its own devices. Sunsilk was first launched in the United Kingdom in 1954. Dove was first launched in the US in 1957. Unilever took full ownership of Frosted Foods in 1957, which it renamed Birds Eye . The US-based Good Humor ice cream business was acquired in 1961. By the mid-1960s, laundry soap and edible fats still contributed around half of Unilever's corporate profits. However,
624-642: A skincare business brand of AHC in North Asia. In October 2017, Unilever acquired Brazilian natural and organic food business Mãe Terra. In November, Unilever announced an agreement to acquire the Tazo speciality tea brand from Starbucks . Later in November 2017, the company acquired Sundial Brands, a skincare company. In December 2017, Unilever acquired Schmidt's Naturals , a US natural deodorant and soap company. In December 2017, Unilever sold its margarine and spreads division to investment firm KKR for €6.8bn. The sale
672-481: A stagnant market for yellow fats (butter, margarine, and similar products) and increasing competition in detergents and soaps from Procter & Gamble forced Unilever to diversify. In 1971, Unilever acquired the British-based Lipton Ltd from Allied Suppliers . In 1978, National Starch was acquired for $ 487 million, marking the largest ever foreign-acquisition of a US company at that point. By
720-418: Is being turned into a science park for use by a number of companies. Sharnbrook is home to the village's boys' and men's football teams, which predate by many years the women's team that was established in 2002. Sharnbrook railway station opened in 1857, but was closed in 1960. Sharnbrook is served by bus service 50 which is operated by Stagecoach and operates between Kettering and Bedford. The service
768-497: Is executive director. Jope will be proposed as joint executive director at Unilever's 2019 AGM. Previously, Paul Polman was CEO for ten years, succeeding Patrick Cescau in 2009. In November 2019, Unilever announced that Nils Andersen would be replacing Chairman Marijn Dekkers, who stepped down after three years in the role. In January 2023, it announced Hein Schumacher as its new CEO, effective July 2023. The three markets of
816-510: Is headquartered in London , England . The company's products include baby food, beauty products, bottled water, breakfast cereals, cleaning agents, condiments , dairy products , energy drinks, healthcare and hygiene products, ice cream , instant coffee , instant noodles , pet food, pharmaceuticals, soft drinks, tea, and toothpaste. It is the largest producer of soap in the world, and its products are available in over 190 countries. The company
864-487: Is hourly Monday to Saturday and two hourly on Sundays and Bank Holidays. Sharnbrook is the village where the prototype of Uncle Silas, Joseph Betts, the protagonist of H.E. Bates 's My Uncle Silas lived. Sharnbrook is home to a colony of red kites . In 1998, Sharnbrook resident Sean Stewart become the youngest father in Britain at only twelve years of age. He lived next door to the mother of his child, Emma Webster, who
912-503: Is organised into five business groups: Beauty & Wellbeing, Personal Care, Home Care, Nutrition, and Ice Cream. It has research and development facilities in China, India, the Netherlands, Pakistan, the United Kingdom, and the United States. In the 1930s, Unilever acquired the United Africa Company . During the second half of the 20th century, the company increasingly diversified from being
960-644: The Birds Eye brand in the UK) and Batchelors Peas , one of the largest vegetables canners in the United Kingdom. In 1944, Pepsodent was acquired. In 1933, Unilever Indonesia was established in December as Lever Zeepfabrieken N.V. and had operations in Cikarang , West Java at Rungkut , East Java and North Sumatra . After 1945, Unilever's once-successful American businesses (Lever Brothers and T.J. Lipton) began to decline. As
1008-662: The Domesday Book of 1086 as a parish within the Hundred of Willey but was probably first developed in Saxon times. The oldest surviving building, St Peter's Church , is Norman . The name is believed to be derived from the Anglo Saxon word sharn meaning dung . Many of the older buildings in the village are constructed of the local oolitic limestone , also used in other traditional north Bedfordshire settlements. Situated just north of
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#17328773152791056-559: The Paula Radcliffe Sharnbrook Community Sports Centre named after her in April 2005. This Community Sports Centre is not only for students but also serves the wider local community of North Bedfordshire with sporting facilities. Students are aged from 11 to 18 and take both GCSE and A Level exams. The village's other school is Sharnbrook Primary which caters for young children aged from 3–11 years old who live in
1104-582: The Royal Niger Company , which oversaw British trade interests in present-day Nigeria during the colonial era. The Nazi occupation of Europe during the Second World War meant that Unilever was unable to reinvest its capital into Europe, so it instead acquired new businesses in the United Kingdom and the United States. In 1943, it acquired T. J. Lipton , a majority stake in Frosted Foods (owner of
1152-615: The 2010s, under the leadership of Paul Polman , the company gradually shifted its focus towards health and beauty brands and away from food brands that showed slow growth. Unilever has a primary listing on the London Stock Exchange and a secondary listing on the Euronext Amsterdam , and is a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index and the AEX index . In September 1929, Unilever was formed by
1200-569: The Biochemical Society in 1963. The award recognises outstanding research by a young biochemist of any nationality who has carried out the majority of their work in the UK. Sharnbrook Sharnbrook is a village and civil parish located in the Borough of Bedford in Bedfordshire , England, situated around 7 miles (11 km) north-west of Bedford town centre. The settlement was recorded in
1248-472: The N.V. to merge into the PLC. In October 2020 Unilever announced that 99 per cent of shareholders in its UK arm agreed with the merger, i.e., voted to base the group in London. The completion of the unification was announced on 30 November 2020. Since then there is one class of shares. In January 2019, Alan Jope succeeded Paul Polman as the chief executive officer. The chief financial officer, Graeme Pitkethly,
1296-497: The UK, it merged its Lever Brothers and Elida Fabergé businesses as Lever Fabergé in January 2001. In 2003, Unilever announced the sale of the Dalda brand in both India and Pakistan . In 2003, Bunge Limited acquired the Dalda brand from Hindustan Unilever Limited for reportedly under Rs 1 billion. On 30 March 2004, Unilever Pakistan accepted an offer of Rs. 1.33 billion for
1344-483: The United Kingdom's ninth best private sector employer based on millions of employee ratings and reviews. In 2020, Unilever announced it has reviewed its corporate structure again and that the company was to merge Unilever N.V. into Unilever PLC forming one holding company to be based in the United Kingdom. However, a Dutch 'exit tax' plan would require Unilever to reconsider this unification. In September 2020 Unilever's Dutch arm shareholders overwhelmingly voted for
1392-497: The United States shampoo and deodorant market. The purchase brought Unilever the Suave and Finesse hair-care product brands and Degree deodorant brand. In 1997, Unilever sold its speciality chemicals division, including National Starch & Chemical, Quest , Unichema and Crosfield to Imperial Chemical Industries for £4.9 billion. In 1998, Unilever established a sustainable agriculture programme. In 2000, Unilever acquired
1440-429: The United States, China and India account for over one third of turnover. Thirteen brands account for over half of sales. Unilever's largest international competitors are Nestlé and Procter & Gamble . In 1930, the logo of Unilever was in a sans-serif typeface and all-caps. The current Unilever corporate logo was introduced in 2004 and was designed by Wolff Olins , a brand consultancy agency. The 'U' shape
1488-562: The boutique mustard retailer Maille, Ben & Jerry's and SlimFast for £1.63 billion, Bestfoods for £13.4 billion. The Bestfoods acquisition increased Unilever's scale in foods in America, and added brands including Knorr , Marmite , Bovril , and Hellmann's to its portfolio. In exchange for European regulatory approval of the deal, Unilever divested itself of Oxo , Lesieur, McDonnells, Bla Band, Royco, and Batchelors . In 2001, Unilever split into two divisions: one for foods and one for home and personal care. In
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1536-610: The brands Mazola, Argo & Kingsfords, Karo, Golden Griddle, and Henri's, along with several of its Canadian brands, to ACH Food Companies, an American subsidiary of Associated British Foods . In 2004, Unilever Bangladesh, which was established in 1964 changed its former name Lever Brothers Bangladesh Ltd to its present name in December 2004, is owned 60.4% by Unilever and 39.6% by the Government of Bangladesh . In 2007, Unilever partnered with Rainforest Alliance to sustainably source all its tea. In 2009, Unilever agreed to acquire
1584-502: The company would sell Elida Beauty to Yellow Wood Partners, a private equity firm in the United States. In March 2024, Unilever announced plans to spin off its ice cream unit, which makes among others, brands such as Magnum and Ben & Jerry's, into a standalone business starting in March 2024 and planned to complete by the end of 2025. The announcement was part of a cost-savings programme that would cut 7,500 jobs. Unilever has
1632-512: The duality of legal entities and keeping just one headquarters in Rotterdam, abandoning the London head office. Business groups and staff would have been unaffected, as would the dual listing. On 5 October 2018 the group announced it would cancel the restructuring due to concern that the United Kingdom shareholders would lose value if the company fell out of the London FTSE100. A shareholder vote
1680-517: The end of the 1970s through acquisitions, Unilever had gained 30 per cent of the Western European ice cream market. In 1982, Unilever management decided to reposition itself from an unwieldy conglomerate to a more concentrated fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) company. In 1984, Unilever acquired Brooke Bond (maker of PG Tips tea) for £390 million in the company's first successful takeover . In 1986, Unilever strengthened its position in
1728-492: The immediate area. Another major presence is the multinational company Unilever which has the Lipton Institute of Tea research centre on the north-western edge of the village. This uses the grounds of Colworth House , originally built in the early 17th century and rebuilt in its present form by 1774 as a private house. The house itself is used as office space, with modern laboratory buildings beside and behind it. The site
1776-929: The personal care business of Sara Lee Corporation , including brands such as Radox , Badedas and Duschdas. The Sara Lee acquisition was completed on 6 December 2010. In 2010, Unilever acquired the Diplom-Is in Denmark, Unilever announced that it had entered into a definitive agreement to sell its consumer tomato products business in Brazil to Cargill , purchased Alberto-Culver , a maker of personal care and household products including Simple, VO5 , Nexxus , TRESemmé , and Mrs. Dash , for US$ 3.7 billion. acquired EVGA 's ice cream brands, which included Scandal, Variete and Karabola, and its distribution network in Greece, for an undisclosed amount. In 2012, Unilever announced it would phase out
1824-479: The sale of its Dalda brand and related business of edible oils and fats to the newly incorporated company Dalda Foods (Pvt.) Limited. In 2002, the company sold its speciality oils and fats division, known as Loders Croklaan, for RM814 million (€218.5 million) to IOI Corporation , a Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia–based oil palm company. As part of the deal, the Loders Croklaan name was maintained. Unilever sold
1872-483: The site. The Colworth House grounds was the location of a Channel 4 Time Team programme, first broadcast on February 22, 2009. Numerous finds by amateur archaeologists led to the discovery of a Roman villa and farm in a field adjacent to the property. Colworth House has also given its name to the Colworth Medal , established by the late Professor Tony James of Unilever Research and Professor Henry Arnstein of
1920-672: The state will no longer contract with the parent company Unilever or any of its subsidiaries. In November 2021, Unilever agreed to sell most of its tea business under the Ekaterra division to investment firm CVC Capital Partners for €4.5 billion. This deal excluded the Unilever tea business in India, Indonesia and Nepal, and the Lipton Ice Tea joint-venture with PepsiCo. The deal was completed in summer 2022. In December 2023, Unilever announced
1968-629: The use of microplastics in the form of microbeads in their personal care products by 2015. In 2014, Unilever agreed to acquire a majority stake in the China-based water purification company Qinyuan for an undisclosed price, acquired Talenti Gelato & Sorbetto, acquired Camay brand globally and the Zest brand outside of North America and the Caribbean from Procter & Gamble . In 2015, Unilever acquired British niche skincare brand REN Skincare, This
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2016-515: The world skin care market by acquiring Ponds (merged from Chesebrough Manufacturing and Pond's Creams ), the maker of Ragú , Pond's , Aqua-Net, Cutex , and Vaseline in another hostile takeover. In 1989, Unilever bought Calvin Klein Cosmetics, Fabergé , and Elizabeth Arden , but the latter was later sold (in 2000) to FFI Fragrances. In 1992, Unilever Ghana was established in July following
2064-413: Was completed in July 2018, and the new company was named Upfield . Upfield's notable brands include Flora , Stork , I Can't Believe It's Not Butter , Rama , Country Crock , Becel , and Blue Band . Unilever announced that to help tackle the global COVID-19 pandemic , it would contribute over € 100m through donations of soap, hand sanitiser, bleach and food. In April 2021, Unilever established
2112-521: Was followed in May 2015 by the acquisition of Kate Somerville Skincare LLC. The company also acquired the Italian premium ice cream maker GROM for an undisclosed amount. Unilever also separated its food spreads business, including its Flora and I Can't Believe It's Not Butter! brands, into a standalone entity named Unilever Baking, Cooking and Spreading. The separation was first announced in December 2014 and
2160-477: Was four years older than he. The child was conceived when the pair were only 11 and 15. Webster said Stewart had told her he was her age when they started going out. Some also consider Stewart to be the youngest father ever recorded. Unilever Unilever PLC is a British multinational fast-moving consumer goods company founded on 2 September 1929 following the merger of British soap maker Lever Brothers and Dutch margarine producer Margarine Unie . It
2208-536: Was made in response to declining worldwide sales in that product category. Unilever bought the United States–based startup company Dollar Shave Club for a reported $ 1b (£764m) to compete in the male grooming market. On 16 August 2016, Unilever acquired Blueair, a supplier of mobile indoor air purification technologies. In September 2016, Unilever acquired Seventh Generation Inc. for $ 700 million. On 16 December 2016, Unilever acquired Living Proof Inc,
2256-559: Was planned to decide for the listing of a new Unilever Dutch entity, which would have seen Unilever dropping out of the FTSE 100 Index . When it appeared that the vote would fail, due to uncertainty over the Netherlands dividend tax, the scheme was cancelled on 5 October 2018. In October 2018, it acquired a 75% stake in the Italian personal-care business Equilibra and acquired the high-end, eco-friendly laundry and household cleaning products company The Laundress for an undisclosed sum. In 2018, UK recruitment website Indeed, named Unilever as
2304-454: Was subsequently acquired by Goodman, a property group involved in long-term ownership, development, and management of commercial and industrial property. In 2015, the joint venture vehicle was acquired by Palmer Capital and Wrenbridge Land. Colworth Science Park remains one of Unilever's six research centres located around the world with around 750 Unilever employees. An additional 200 personnel are employed by several small companies located on
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