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| Sunday, 9 June 2002 |
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| News Business Features Editorial
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Unilever Ceylon reports highest growth rate in Asia The annual review of Unilever Ceylon for its key supermarket chain customers was held in Colombo recently. Over 100 key managers from the main supermarkets - Cargills Food City, Keells, Arpico, the Cooperative Wholesale Establishment, Bahiraha and Park 'n' Shop - and stand-alone supermarkets from all over the island were present at this programme. With more Sri Lankans patronising supermarkets, this sector is growing at around 25 per cent annually, and already accounts for seven per cent of Unilever Ceylon's sales. Unilever Ceylon Chairman Ehsan Malik, addressing the audience, said: "We have changed our mindset to a focus on value growth. We have refreshed the portfolio to focus on the markets of tomorrow. We are simplifying the portfolio to focus on powerful leading brands." He noted that if Unilever Ceylon's 'Share of Wallet', or the total spend on consumer goods in Sri Lanka on Unilever brands was replicated in India, the Hindustan Lever Business would be three times as large. Vinu Sudan, Director - Finance and IT, addressing the audience on 'Relentless pursuit of growth' and the vision of doubling the business by 2006, said the first quarter of 2002 was great for Unilever Ceylon. In the first quarter, Unilever Ceylon had recorded the highest growth rate among all Unilever businesses in Asia. Brands Director Amal Cabraal said Sunlight, the company's biggest brand, had grown 41 per cent in supermarket compared to 2001 and Signal by more than 70 per cent. After a decline last year, Lux which was recently relaunched, was back on track, growing well nationally and in supermarkets. More innovation is planned across all Home and Personal Care brands. Amali Nanayakkara, Foods Director said the Food business, with strong brands such as Astra, Marmite, Knorr and Kist, is expected to grow this year. Channels and Customer Development Director, Salim Azim addressed the gathering on the commitment Unilever Ceylon has shown in building partnerships. Key areas included developing the concept of preferred supplier status, heavy investment in merchandising and display, introduction of new concepts and training. He also spoke of the way forward, with concepts such e-mail order connectivity, accessibility to databases by customers and suppliers, payments through IT connectivity and ECR and category management; to enhance customer satisfaction through better service. Touching upon modern trade initiatives, he spoke of the need for excellence in supply chain management and collecting shopper insights through research. |
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