No India impact as Unilever plans to review tea business globally: Experts

Sector experts tracking Hindustan Unilever (HUL) say there is no impact on the India tea business with Unilever deciding to review the business globally. The Indian tea portfolio includes brands such as Brooke Bond Red Label, 3 Roses, Taaza, Taj Mahal and Lipton green tea. 

These brands along with coffee (Bru), packaged foods (Kissan, Knorr and Annapurna), ice creams and frozen desserts (Kwality Walls and Magnum) make up the integrated foods and refreshment business of HUL, whose topline at the end of FY19 was Rs 7,131 crore. 
 

The business contributed 19 per cent to the company's FY19 overall topline and 15 per cent to its bottomline. The merger of GSK Consumer into HUL is also nearing completion, said experts, with the combined turnover estimated to cross Rs 10,000 crore (following completion of the merger).

 "We do not expect HUL to evaluate selling its tea business in India given it is the market leader and has gained share over the past few years. The strategic review of the global tea business by Unilever is for some of its mature markets and for brands like PG Tips," said Abneesh Roy, executive vice president, research, institutional equities, Edelweiss.