Unilever 2013 Annual Report Download - page 21

OUR
OPERATIONS
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INNOVATION +
MARKETING
INVESTMENT
PROFITABLE
VOLUME
GROWTH
COST
LEVERAGE +
EFFICIENCY
The transformation of our global
supply chain and go-to-market strategy
is enabling us to deliver sustainable,
profitable growth. We are reaching more
consumers in more markets, using
partnerships throughout our value chain
to help us achieve our sustainability and
innovation objectives while improving
margins, and delivering outstanding
operational performance – the ‘brilliant
basics’ of quality, service, execution and
cash generation. And there is potential to
create even more value for our business,
so we arecontinuing to simplify our
operations, always aiming for greater
speed and agility.
REAHIN MORE ONSUMERS
lobally, populatons are growng and
becomng more affluent We am to dentfy
the varyng needs of consumers and meet
them through growth n new markets,
through nnovatng new products, or
through dfferentatng our brands to meet
prce expectatons We call ths ‘reachng
up, reachng down, and reachng wde’ ts
success depends on us contnuously
mprovng our extended supply chan and
marketng and sales operatons so that
they are agle and adaptable, ensurng that
the products consumers demand are
always avalable, properly dsplayed, and
at the rght prce
REAHIN WIDE
We am to be ‘frst and fast’, not only n new
markets, but also n new channels So
2013 saw a contnued expanson nto whte
spaces, wth 32 of our global brands
launched n new markets, ncludng eght
brands launched throughout Afrca, where
we contnued to see growth opportuntes
even as other emergng markets showed
some dampenng effects from the global
economc downturn We are further
expandng programmes such as our Shakt
rural sellng operaton n Inda, whch now
nvolves over 65,000 women entrepreneurs
coverng more than 167,000 vllages We
have also ncreased our presence n
e-commerce, where our sales grew by
more than 40% n 2013
REAHIN UP, REAHIN DOWN
Because the aspratons and budgets of
consumers are dfferent, we am to meet
them through asegmented market strategy
– whch requres a segmented product
portfolo and a segmented supply chan
to delver t By ‘reachng up’, we are
creatng products for consumers who
want premum qualty for example, our
Dove har premum portfolo has grown
almost two tmes faster than the premum
har market or the faster growth of lqud
detergents over powder n brands lke Omo
and Surf Thsprocess of premumsaton
delvers growth and drves hgher margns
– but wehave a contnung commtment
to offer affordable brands, whch can also
drvegrowth Lfebuoy, for example, whch
serves a vtal purpose n basc hygene, has
had an average underlyng sales growth of
18% per annum n the last three years
REAT BRANDS  WHERE
ONSUMERS AN FIND THEM
By workng wth our customers, we’re
ncreasng the on-shelf avalablty (OSA)
ofour products – n other words, ensurng
that consumers are able to fnd and buy
them 934% of the tme, shoppers can
Gross margin
41.3%
2012: 40.2%
Perfect Stores
6.9 MILLION
across 90 markets
2012: 5.1 million across
75markets
Turnover in
emerging markets
56.7%
2012: 55.2%
Turnover
€16.2 BILLION
2012: €17.1 billion
Underlying
sales growth
4.6%
2012: 7.9%
Core operating
margin
14.3%
2012: 14.2%‡
THE AMERIAS
Unlever Annual Report and Accounts 2013Strategc report18
OUR OPERATIONS
OUR EORAPHIAL AREAS