1. Unilever Bestfoods in France Best in France Case Study December 15, 2003 Patricio Aylwin, Nicolas Chabut, Matthew Nolan and Björn Seidel

2. Overview Unilever & Unilever Bestfoods –General presentation –Organization –Values –Reasons for an division in France The French subsidiary of Unilever Bestfoods –Characteristics –Work process The specific aspects and an adaptation to France –Specific activities –The French constraints –The French advantages

3. Unilever & Unilever Bestfoods General presentation Created in 1930 by the merger of a British soap- maker, “Lever Brothers’’ (founded in 1885) and a Dutch margarine producer, “Margarine Unie’’ (which grew through mergers in the 1920s) Unilever’s business : –Food –Home and personal care Main food brands : Becel, Blue Band, Bertolli, Ben & Jerry’s, Flora, Knorr, Magnum, Lipton, Maille, Amora, …

4. Unilever & Unilever Bestfoods General presentation Few key figures : –Worldwide turnover in 2002 : €48 760 million –Number of employees : 247,000 people, with 90% of managers locally recruited and trained –Every day, 150 million people choose Unilever brands to feed their families and to clean their homes –Over half of all sales are generated by the foods division brands Unilever Bestfoods : Created in 2000 by acquisition of Bestfoods gathering Bestfoods and Unilever’s food division

5. Unilever as it sees itself

6. Unilever & Unilever Bestfoods Organization UNILEVER BESTFOODS REGIONS –Foods North Africa, Middle East and Turkey –Ice Cream and Frozen Foods –Unilever Bestfoods Asia –Unilever Bestfoods Latin America –Unilever Bestfoods North America & Slimfast Worldwide –Unilever Bestfoods, Europe

7. Unilever & Unilever Bestfoods Unilever Bestfoods Europe HQ : Rotterdam (The Netherlands). Local offices in almost all European countries. European customer base of some 650 million people. A wide cross section of consumers, incorporating people in both the developed markets of western Europe and the developing markets of former Eastern block countries.

8. Unilever & Unilever Bestfoods Company values The core values of the company expressed through a Code of Business Principles : These values are not negotiable and applicable to the whole world, including France. –Public activities –The Environment –Innovation –Competition –Business Integrity –Conflicts of Interests –Compliance, Monitoring, Reporting –Standard of Conduct –Obeying the Law –Employees –Consumers –Shareholders –Business Partners –Community involvement

9. Unilever & Unilever Bestfoods Reasons for an installation in France 1.Conquest of the market –Proximity of the market –Adaptation to local habits –Development of the products (A branch of the European HQ in France) 2.Existing in European and French installations at merger

10. The French subsidiary of UBF Characteristics Production and commercialization –HQ in Rueil-Malmaison –11 Factories in France

11. The French subsidiary of UBF Characteristics 2 types of status : –Local workers –Expatriates Presence of a branch of the European HQ

12. French subsidiary of Unilever Few 2002 key figures Sales of Unilever France –€ 3.875 billion of which € 555 million are exports 5250 Employees € 420 million in advertising

13. The French subsidiary of UBF Work process A strong guideline given by the European HQ : –Recruitment –Compensation –Planning –Evaluation and assessment –Training A free local implementation The example of Bestfoods acquisition

14. An adaptation to France Specific activities A complex business in France The strategic axes of Unilever

15. An adaptation to France Constraints Social laws Benchmarking as a consequence Example of an economic gathering

16. An adaptation to France Advantages A firm adapted to the market UBF seems not to benefit from ‘’the French advantages’’

17. Conclusion First reason for being in France : –To be close to the market –It seems inconvenient to sell without producing in France. Second reason : –Management of existing structures But beware to the benchmark to capture future installations !

18. We Thank HR Director of the French branch : Mrs. Andrée Bosset 01 41 96 50 56 Andree.bosset@unilever.com Commercial Manager of Foodsolutions France: Mrs. Barbara Campos 01 41 96 51 18 barbara.campos@unilever.com 23 Rue Francois Jacob 92500 Rueil-Malmaison France

19. References Web sites : www.unilever.com www.you-unilever.com Questionnaire

20. Our Team Members : –Patricio Aylwin –Nicolas Chabut –Matthew Nolan –Björn Seidel Address : MBA / HEC 78351 JOUY-EN-JOSAS CEDEX