Unilever has put up prices by 11.2% to cope with a €4.6bn bill for inflation, but says the strength of its brands will limit the loss of shoppers (The Times £). Unilever, the owner of brands ranging from Marmite and Ben & Jerry’s to Dove soap and Domestos bleach, has raised its prices by 11.2% in recent months and expects to do so again throughout the year (The Guardian). Unilever has boosted full-year revenue growth forecasts after raising prices to cover soaring costs and a fall in sales volumes (The Daily Mail). The company is growing the value of its sales by more than expected but admits consumers are likely to be more wary globally as the threat from inflation damages household budgets (Sky News).
Jope must pull levers of power harder, writres Emma Powell in The Times. “There hasn’t been much praise lately for Alan Jope, the boss of Unilever, pilloried by some big shareholders for an ill-judged and failed bid for GSK’s consumer healthcare division. And though the giant consumer goods group may have lifted sales guidance for this year, investors should be wary of heaping gratitude his way.” (The Times £)
Coca-Cola has upgraded its annual sales guidance amid robust demand for fizzy drinks despite higher prices and Costa Coffee’s continued recovery pandemic café closures. (The Times £)
Unilever, Coca-Cola and McDonald’s laid bare the impact of global inflation on Tuesday, responding to higher costs with price increases that will heap more pressure on households. (The Financial Times £)
The online shopping group THG has ended an agreement under which the Japanese conglomerate SoftBank had agreed to invest in it, blaming “global macroeconomic conditions” (The Guardian). An agreement for SoftBank, of Japan, to acquire a potential $1.6 billion stake in the technology division of THG has been terminated, delivering a new setback for the British online retailer (The Times £). The Hut Group has terminated a collaboration agreement with SoftBank and ruled out the conglomerate exercising a call option to inject £1.1billion into the group’s tech arm (The Daily Mail).
Frozen foods group Iceland is facing a particularly acute hit from rising energy costs because of the aisles of chest freezers that make up its UK stores. (The Financial Times £)
Companies seeking protection from inflation are outsourcing their catering, giving a boost to Compass Group (The Times £). Compass, the world’s largest catering company, said rising costs will dent profits in the coming months (The Daily Mail).
US retail giant Walmart has warned over its profits for the second time since May, as the soaring cost of food and fuel hits customer spending. (The BBC)
Supermarkets using facial recognition cameras to scan shoppers to identify thieves face investigation by a watchdog after the first legal complaint against their use (The Telegraph). Shoppers at a grocery store chain across southern England are being surveilled with facial recognition cameras, prompting a legal complaint by civil rights campaigners (The Guardian).
Shop prices are rising at an unprecedented pace, deepening the cost of living crisis that has already sent consumer confidence levels to record lows. (The Times £)
While diners in central London are forking out £15 for smashed avocado on toast, Australia has an avo glut and is desperately looking for markets to offload the fruit. (The Financial Times £)
Greggs and Primark on a roll with second fashion collaboration. Steak bake seller emblazons logo on bucket hats to bumbags, as partners aim to match earlier success. (The Guardian)
A British wine wholesaler who last year criticised Brexit as the biggest threat to his business in 30 years has decided to leave the UK after post-Brexit paperwork made a £150,000 hole in revenue. (The Guardian)
Is Amazon cheap, asks the FT. “If there was ever a company where it was dumb to worry about a single quarterly result, it’s Amazon. This is a company that has remade two industries in the last 20 years, all while showing a lordly disdain for short- term profit. If you like the big story at Amazon, a terrible quarter is nothing but a buying opportunity.” (The Financial Times £)
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