Unilever chief on how to activate 35 brands at the Fifa World Cup Sport Business With the World Cup a sponsor’s heaven, Matt Hardy asks Unilever how the FMCG behemoth activates 35 brands amid a need to be noticed. A number of the brand campaigns at this Fifa World Cup have been sublime, others have fallen a little flat. Activating at a tournament watched by billions across nearly 200 countries [...]
Pigment boss: ‘We’re replacing legacy players at the speed of light’ Tech Eléonore Crespo, co-founder and chief executive of Pigment, said the company is replacing legacy enterprise software providers “at the speed of light”, as demand for AI-native business planning accelerates across the private sector. The Paris-headquartered platform, which helps companies including Unilever, Siemens, Anthropic and Coca-Cola run financial planning and performance management, is approaching $100m (£75m) [...]
Terry Smith sells Magnum stake weeks after Unilever salvo Retail Star stockpicker Terry Smith has offloaded his entire holding in Unilever spin-off Magnum Ice Cream just weeks after exiting his stake in its former parent company, which he accused of abandoning the priorities of its long-term investors. Smith, the feted fund manager who runs the £12.7bn Fundsmith Equity Fund, dumped his stake in Amsterdam-listed Magnum [...]
Burberry delays climate pledge by a decade to 2050 May 29, 2026 Burberry has pushed back its net zero target by a decade, becoming the latest blue-chip business to water down ambitious climate goals set in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, City AM can reveal. The high-end fashion firm, known for its trench coats and tartan scarves, made the decision to delay its target to become [...]
Exclusive: F1 Academy launch partnership with Unilever’s Dirt is Good May 18, 2026 Unilever brand Dirt Is Good will today announce a partnership with the all-female racing series F1 Academy, City AM can reveal. The laundry group, which counts OMO, Persil, breeze and Skip within its brand portfolio, has signed a multi-year deal with the single-seater series which will begin this weekend in Canada. F1 Academy is an [...]
Star stockpicker Terry Smith dumps entire Unilever holding after McCormick mega-merger May 12, 2026 One of Britain’s best-known fund managers has dumped his holding in Unilever worth hundreds of millions of pounds, accusing the consumer goods giant of abandoning its traditional shareholders in favour of activist-driven deals like last month’s McCormick mega-deal. Terry Smith, the star stockpicker behind the £12.5bn Fundsmith Equity Fund, sold out of his position in [...]
Unilever beats analyst expectations but food spin-off costs up to €500m April 30, 2026 Unilever beat analyst expectations to record nearly three per cent volume growth, despite a €500m hit from its food spin-off and falling revenue. The FTSE 100 consumer goods giant said it will face between €400m and €500m (up to £433m) of “stranded costs” after it offloaded its food brands – including Marmite and Hellman’s – [...]
Bank of England Live: Interest rates held as hawks warn of ‘highly uncertain’ energy prices April 30, 2026 Welcome back to the City AM liveblog. The Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee has today decided to hold interest rates at 3.75 per cent in a hawkish display. In last month’s decision, the Bank held rates in a unanimous decision. Afterwards, short-term gilt yields, which reflect government borrowing costs, sharply rose as traders priced [...]
Unilever gets Marmite reaction to McCormick deal as investor fury spreads April 28, 2026 Unilever is facing a mounting investor backlash over its recent multibillion-pound tie-up with US food giant McCormick, with shareholders accusing the consumer goods behemoth of rushing the deal through without a vote and loading the new vehicle up with too much debt. Shareholders in the FTSE-100 conglomerate told City AM that they were supportive overall [...]
Marmite maker Unilever creates food empire in $45bn merger March 31, 2026 Unilever has sealed a $45bn merger of its food brands with US spice and seasoning giant McCormick, forging a $60bn food empire in which the London-based firm holds a majority stake. Unilever and its shareholders will own 65 per cent in the new body, with the firm receiving $15.7bn (£11.6bn) in cash and the equivalent [...]