How the US became a growth leader for Unilever globally

Our US strategy has turned this market into a powerhouse for the business globally and it’s showing up in results: strong volume growth through brands that connect deeply with American consumers.

This performance is driven by innovation, premiumisation and cross-category leadership. In the US, Unilever’s products are setting the standard for superiority, with our R&D teams earning hundreds of US patents. This is leading the way for the future of the care and wellbeing sectors in particular.

We spoke to Herrish Patel, President, Unilever USA and CEO of Personal Care North America, to find out more.

Firstly, Herrish, why do our brands resonate so well with US consumers?

We’ve built a portfolio of brands and products that consumers truly desire and that spans socio-economic and generational lines. US consumers seek value for their dollar, regardless of the price point. So we’re doubling down on superior products at every level, delivering affordability without compromising desirability.

What makes us unique is that 98% of American households have purchased a Unilever product in the last year. We serve the many, and that requires us to meet the needs of many segments of consumers. In my view, we have the best portfolio in the US market today.

What’s at the heart of your growth strategy?

We’re in a new era of growth for Unilever US: one that’s faster, simpler and more focused.

We’re getting there by delivering against our strategy with superior science, market-making innovation, stand-out packaging and being at the centre of culture. By knowing the US consumer deeply, drawing on advanced market and shopper insights and creating products they crave, we’re delivering Unilever’s ‘Desire at Scale’ model in a distinctly American way. Which is why Unilever is now one of the fastest-growing consumer goods companies in the US.

How is the ‘US for US’ model fuelling market leadership?

This model means we’re fully focused on US consumers, delivering science and marketing that’s developed here – backed by our world-class R&D capabilities – and that we deploy at pace. We act locally but are powered by Unilever’s global scale and technology.

It’s about being in market every day serving consumers and customers, and building categories, and it allows us to stay three steps ahead on new and emerging trends.

We also have an exceptional supply chain team that’s positioned to handle future growth, and we’re working arm-in-arm with our retail customers as true partners with customised plans.

In essence, we’re pioneering a blueprint for the rest of Unilever to follow.

How are you leading and expanding product categories to drive growth?

We’re obsessed with being market makers in the categories where we play. What do I mean by ‘market maker’? As well as having the best products in a specific category, we’re growing and expanding the entire category with pioneering innovations that add value for consumers that didn’t exist before. We’re also adding brands that have category expansion at their heart, like Dr. Squatch, which is reshaping men’s grooming.

To lead in a category, you need to predict where it’s going to be in three to five years, then innovate and reimagine to meet those needs. In Personal Care, for example, whole-body deodorants is a new segment that’s growing fast and has the potential to expand. It’s our largest cross-brand, cross-market innovation launch in Personal Care ever.

The next frontier is reinventing skin cleansing with serum technology. Take the Dove serum shower collection. The line uses ingredients more often found in high-end facial skincare products but in a body-wash format.

What are the key growth opportunities in the US market?

This goes back to delivering exceptional value, regardless of the price point. Lower-income households are trading up. For instance, one in three are buying super-premium personal care products. This proves that value and premium can co-exist for volume and margin growth.

Growth is being fuelled by single and small households, digitally savvy ageing consumers and the rise of ‘affordable luxury’. Our premium mini-formats and wellness innovations position us to capture incremental share in these expanding segments.

How are we embedding brands in culture to drive Desire at Scale?

In the past, we chased culture. Now we’re immersed in it.

A prime example is our always-on, year-round sports marketing. Here, we’ve nearly doubled our investments, building a marketing machine that puts us at the centre of fandom. We bring this to life with our biggest brands – Dove and Hellmann’s – having repeat appearances on football’s biggest stage, our presence during the NCAA college sports championships, our sponsorship of the Gotham FC women’s soccer team and Dove’s best-in-class campaigns during the US Open, to name just a few. Now we’re building up to go big in soccer in 2026.

Outside sports, we can look at Dove at the Coachella music festival in California. A viral TikTok with 23 million plus views sparked a body odour conversation and asked Dove for help. Within three days, we had a plane flying over the site trailing a banner that read ‘Smells like you need us – Dove Deo’, influencer activations and on-the-ground sampling.

Dove is also reaching different segments of fandoms with fun and attention-grabbing collaborations like Crumbl and the new Bridgerton line.

Our powerhouse Beauty brands teamed up to wow crowds at the BravoCon convention, with TRESemmé, Dove, Nexxus, Vaseline and SheaMoisture delivering an immersive and deeply authentic fan experience.

TRESemmé has also been a partner with New York Fashion Week for 15 plus years, but last year took a new social-first approach by working with influencers to create unique experiences that showcased the brand to highly relevant audiences, reaching millions on social.

How will the US become a strategic ‘centre of gravity’ for Unilever?

With Unilever doubling down in the US, it’s time to show that we can grow volume consistently quarter after quarter.

We have a winning portfolio with Personal Care and Beauty & Wellbeing now making up 80% of our sales. We are where the trends are. We are where the growth is. We’re reinventing the consumer goods industry in the US and standing at the forefront of category thinking with world-class customer partnerships. We will be the epicentre of what this company will stand for globally.