Unilever (Euronext: UNA, LSE: ULVR) is an AngloDutch multinational consumer goods company with products that include foods, beverages, cleaning agents and personal care. It is the world's third-largest consumer goods company measured by 2011 revenues (after Procter & Gamble and Nestlé) and the world's largest manufacturer of ice cream. Unilever owns over 400 brands, amongst the largest selling of which are Aviance, Axe/Lynx, Ben & Jerry's, Dove, Flora/Becel, Heartbrand, Hellmann's, Knorr, Lipton, Lux/Radox, Omo/Surf, Rexona/Sure, Sunsilk, Toni & Guy, TRESemmé, VO5, Wall's and PG Tips. It is a dual-listed company consisting of Unilever N.V., based in Rotterdam, Netherlands, and Unilever PLC, based in London, United Kingdom. Both companies have the same directors and they operate as a single business. Unilever was founded in 1930 by the merger of the British soapmaker Lever Brothers and the Dutch margarine producer Margarine Unie. It has made numerous corporate acquisitions, including of Chesebrough-Ponds (in 1987); Best Foods, Ben & Jerry's and Slim Fast (in 2000); and Alberto-Culver (in 2010). Unilever PLC has a primary listing on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index. Unilever N.V. has a primary listing on Euronext Amsterdam and is a constituent of the AEX index. Both Unilever PLC and Unilever N.V. have secondary listings on the New York Stock Exchange. Unilever PLC provides fast-moving consumer goods in Asia, Africa, Europe, and Latin America. The company offers savoury, dressings, and spreads products, including soups, bouillons, sauces, snacks, mayonnaise, salad dressings, margarines, spreads, as well as cooking products comprising liquid margarines and certain frozen foods under the Knorr, Hellmann?s, Becel/Flora, Rama/Blue Band, Calve, Wish-Bone, Amora, Ragu, and Bertolli brands. It also provides ice creams under the Cornetto, Magnum, Carte d?Or and Solero, Wall?s, Kibon, Algida, Ola, Ben & Jerry?s, Breyers, Klondike, and Popsicle brands; tea-based beverages under the Lipton, Brooke Bond, and PG Tips brands; weight management products under the Slim Fast brand; and nutritionally enhanced products under Annapurna and AdeS brands. In addition, it provides personal care products consisting of deodorants, skin care, and hair care products under Dove, Lux, Rexona, Sunsilk, Axe/Lynx, Pond?s, Suave, Clear, Lifebuoy, and Vaseline brands, as well as oral care products under Signal and Close Up brands. Further, the company offers a range of home care products comprising laundry products, such as tablets, powders, liquids, and soap bars under the Omo, Surf, Comfort, Radiant, and Skip brands; and household care products, including surface cleaners and bleach under the Cif, Domestos, and Sun/Sunlight brands. Additionally, it provides solutions for professional chefs and caterers. Unilever PLC sells its products directly, as well as through independent brokers, agents, and distributors to chain, wholesale, co-operative and independent grocery accounts, food service distributors, and institutions; and through a network of distribution centers, satellite warehouses, company-operated and public storage facilities, depots, and other facilities.
