Unilever slims skincare portfolio with Kate Somerville sale

Unilever, the FTSE-100 consumer goods behemoth behind Marmite and Lynx, is trying to slim its portfolio of personal care brands by putting two of them up for sale.

Sky News has learnt that Unilever is working with advisers on the disposal of Kate Somerville, an upscale skincare brand it acquired in 2015.

City sources said this weekend that the company had engaged PricewaterhouseCoopers to field interest from potential buyers.

It was unclear what valuation Unilever would seek for Kate Somerville, which is well-known in Hollywood and formed part of the company’s Prestige personal care portfolio.

Insiders said that Unilever was also planning to offload REN, another skincare brand, which it also bought in 2015.

The potential disposals come just over a year after a shake-up at the helm of Unilever, one of the world’s largest consumer goods producers.

Hein Schumacher, a former HJ Heinz executive, was appointed as Unilever CEO in July 2023 amid dissatisfaction from some shareholders at the company’s performance.

Since then, the group has signalled that it plans to demerge its vast ice cream division, which owns Magnum, Wall’s and Ben & Jerry’s.

A sale of the business to private equity investors is also a possibility.

Unilever declined to comment.