Unilever still sells products in Russia, while other Western companies have left the country. Hein Schumacher, the newest CEO of Unilever, was called by activists last weekend to withdraw his company from Russia, where Unilever paid more than $330 million in taxes last year on profits from iced tea, ice cream and some shampoos sold there.
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On Monday, a Ukrainian organization put up a billboard at Unilever’s London headquarters, with photos of wounded Ukrainian soldiers. The text read: “Help finance the war in Russia”, alongside the logo of the Dove brand, a Unilever company.
“The time for excuses is over”
Due to the new law in Russia, it is possible that the Kremlin will stipulate that from now on Unilever’s 3,000 employees in Russia will be employed by the government. “He risks having his people and resources used in Putin’s machine. Some of the largest companies in the world have already left Russia. It is possible that – after 16 months of war – the time for apologies is over,” says the Ukrainian Solidarity Project (USP).
Research by Follow The Money previously showed that Unilever’s profits in Russia have doubled and more money is being spent in the country on marketing. While it was previously stated by the company that all imports and exports of products from Russia have been stopped and money is no longer being spent on advertising in Russia. According to Alan Jope, the point man up to this weekend, the increase is due to inflation and exchange rates, which are under severe pressure.
Unilever only sees “unwanted options”
Unilever says a departure from Russia is hard to come by. We also want to clarify that we are not trying to protect or manage our business in Russia. However, for companies like Unilever, which have a significant physical presence in the country, getting out of it is not easy’. According to the company, there are three options, close, sell or continue as now.
However, the company does not believe the closure is logical, because the Russian state will take over the production. One sale has failed “to date” because Unilever failed to find a “solution that prevents the Russian state from further benefiting”. The third option, currently in effect, is currently the most ideal for the company. The Dutch-British company points out that “neither option is desirable”.