Unilever’s bosses are holding urgent meetings with staff and leading investors about its strategy after welcoming Nelson Peltz, the high-profile activist, on to its board (The Times £). The appointment of the Trian Fund Management founder has heightened expectations of a drastic overhaul at Unilever, which faces discontent among its broader investor base over lacklustre performance and a failed attempt to buy GlaxoSmithKline’s consumer health division (The Financial Times £). Billionaire activist investor Nelson Peltz has joined the board of Unilever as pressure grows on chief executive Alan Jope to carve up the business (The Telegraph).

Analysts at RBC and Credit Suisse welcomed Peltz’s appointment, saying he could effect positive changes to company culture and financial performance. (The Daily Mail)

Two factors should help Peltz, writes The FT’s Lex column. One is an atmosphere friendlier than at P&G, where he eventually won an acrimonious proxy battle. Unilever has, in contrast, ushered the activist on board despite a relatively small exposure of 1.5%. Second, Unilever is already part way down the road. The maker of Dove shampoo and Hellmann’s mayonnaise is dismantling its intersecting geographic and category silos. (The Financial Times £)

Peltz’s arrival has heightened speculation that Unilever could consider selling off its ice cream division, or a separate listing for its foods business. After all, Jope had said that a sale of its food and refreshment business, which generated more than two-thirds of the group’s €50 billion revenues, could have funded a takeover of GSK’s consumer arm. (The Times £)

The FT’s Alphaville writes: “If Peltz is lobbying for Unilever to sell its food division it would likely be in conflict with Unilever CEO Alan Jope, whose rote answer about any break-up is that there are “no immediate plans”. So is Jope’s job safe? In short, no. Unilever’s misjudged tilt at GlaxoSmithKline’s consumer health division destroyed what little goodwill he had with some shareholders.” (The Financial Times £)

Peltz gives Jope a jolt, but stakeholders should be careful what they wish for, writes The Mail’s Alex Brummer. “British consumers and investors should never forget that Peltz was the nation’s very own ‘barbarian at the gate’ who dismantled that best loved of companies, Cadbury Schweppes… Unilever, its board and stakeholders should be careful what they wish for. Peltz could fashion a business with a purpose into a real Horlicks.” (The Daily Mail)

Retailer B&M has said it expects profit to fall below the pandemic-driven highs of the past two years, in a sign that even discounters are not immune to the squeeze on household incomes in the UK (The Financial Times £). The outgoing boss of B&M European Value Retail warned that its earnings will fall this year despite predicting that more cash-strapped shoppers will turn to the discount chain during the cost of living crisis (The Times £). The discount retailer B&M has warned that its profits could drop as customers struggling with the cost of living crisis opt for cheaper products (The Guardian). Discount retailer B&M has appointed finance boss Alex Russo as the group’s next chief executive as it reported a dip in sales for the past year (The Daily Mail).

Brewdog, the brewer and pubs group, has narrowed its annual loss after its revenue grew by 21% (The Times £). BrewDog has forked out £9m on trying to fix its culture problem and ease pressures on staff after facing claims that workers were “burnt out, afraid and miserable.” (The Telegraph)

Shop prices grew at the fastest rate in more than a decade during May, spurred on by rapidly-accelerating food inflation. (Sky News)

Average petrol prices have reached a new record high, in part being caused by climbing oil prices, which increased further after European Union leaders agreed to cut 90% of the bloc’s oil imports from Russia by the end of the year. (Sky News)

The next raspberries you eat might have been picked by a Kraken-like four-armed robot, rather than a human. Fruit harvested by what is believed to be the world’s first raspberry-picking robot in commercial operation is now on sale in British supermarkets. (The Guardian)

Businesses seize on cross selling to counter inflation’s bite. Companies can earn commission revenue, and your partner gets the production headaches. So fettuccine from UK delivery service Pasta Evangelists comes with a side of come-ons for gourmet cheese and cocktails, while the US’s Home Chef meal kits include promotions for high end cookware and wine. (The Financial Times £)

The Czech billionaire in line to take over the National Lottery will have to wait an extra three months for a bumper payout after his company’s stock market listing in New York was delayed. (The Daily Mail)

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