Premium products account for 33% of HUL’s product portfolio

In a presentation filed to the exchanges on Friday, the maker of Surf Excel detergent and Dove soaps, said its portfolio in India has transformed over the last decade to reflect more premium products as well as use of digital channels to sell its goods. In FY12 premium products formed 22% of the company’s portfolio. Premium products are those indexed at over 120.

In FY22, the company reported a turnover of ₹50,336 crore. Nine out of 10 Indian households use products manufactured by the company. Its products reach 9 million outlets in the country; in fact, 25% of this demand is captured digitally, the company said. HUL also offers a B2B ordering app for retail stores under the name Shikhar. The company has five digital-first brands.

Upward mobility in income is likely to fuel consumption and drive premumimization, the company said highlighting some of the top future macro-economic events in India. In its beauty segment, for instance, the company said it was building portfolios tapping into emerging masstige demand spaces including brands such as Simple, Love Beauty and Planet, and Acne Squad.

HUL has a portfolio of over 50 brands across 15 categories and maintains a market leader position in across 85% of the portfolio. The company sells over 60 billion units of products annually. Out of the over 50 brands, 16 brands have a turnover of over ₹1,000 crore.

The company also pointed to low penetration of categories such as milk food drinks, face wash, body wash, and washing liquids that it said presents an opportunity for it to drive growth in the market.

India is already Unilever’s top market by volumes.

Targeting consumers in rural markets that account for a large part of the consuming population was also highlighted as a key trend.