Our interactive timeline shows key dates and landmarks from 1871 to today.
Unilever Art, Archives and Record Management
Located in Port Sunlight, the historic home of Unilever in the UK, the Unilever Art, Archives and Records Management team look after one of the most important collections of business records in the world.
The team are responsible for the collection and management of Unilever’s archives which span several centuries – in fact, our oldest document dates from 1292.
The collections contain original documents, printed sources, images and films, for example, we hold the first advert that was ever aired on television for S. R Gibbs toothpaste.
There are minute books reporting on company board meetings, financial records, a wealth of advertising and examples of packaging, as well as architectural plans and maps of current and former Unilever sites.
Well-known brands, such as Colman’s, Wall’s, Lipton, Persil, Pears Soap, Lux, PG Tips and Marmite, all feature.
Access our collections
For the safety and wellbeing of visitors and staff in response to the ongoing pandemic, we’ve taken the decision to close the Unilever Art, Archive and Records Management searchroom and library in Port Sunlight until further notice.
We are currently not able to say when we will re-open however we continue to monitor the situation closely. Any updates to our services will be posted on this page.
Enquiries
Staff of Unilever Art, Archives and Records Management remain working mostly from home but still welcome your enquiries. Please be aware that as we are unable to access the collections as normal there may be a delay in our response.
Researchers
We are not accepting any Research Visit Requests at this time. Researchers may continue to submit their enquiries to us via email, but are advised that access to our collections is currently limited.
I need to...
We have a collection of in-house magazines, many of which include articles on long service awards, marriages and obituaries. We hold information cards on Directors and Board members detailing their working career with us. Unfortunately, records of staff for many small subsidiary companies have not survived.
To start your search, check our online catalogue to see if any records relate to your enquiry.
To have the best chance of identifying the person you are looking for, email archives@unilever.com with as much of the information below as possible:
employees full name
dates of employment
name of the company they worked for (Unilever or a subsidiary)
work location
any details of their position.
We have a search room and library in our offices in Port Sunlight that can be used for research.
Please note that visits are by appointment only (between 10.00 to 16.00 Monday to Friday, excluding bank and public holidays) and are dependent on staff being available on site to assist.
To request an appointment for research at the archives, please download and complete the Research Request Form below, and email it to archives@unilever.com
We also hold a series of Annual Reports and Accounts that cover the whole of Unilever’s history from 1891 to the present day.
If you can’t find what you are looking for online, please contact us at archives@unilever.com.
If you are interested in finding out about a career in Archives and Records Management, or if you’d like to learn new skills and gain work experience, we are offering virtual work experience placements. We welcome applications from people from all backgrounds and skill levels. Full induction, support and supervision is provided.
Recently our virtual volunteers have been involved in cataloguing business correspondence from one of our most popular collections. Our placements run for one day per week over an 8 week period.
Due to popular demand we are currently running a waiting list, however, If you are interested, please email archives@unilever.com to find out more.
We welcome donations of artefacts or records from members of the public. If you have an item or collection you wish to donate, please email archives@unilever.com with details of the item you hold.
The Lever-half of the Unilever name has its roots with one of the founding fathers, William Hesketh Lever. He was one of the great pioneers of modern consumerism. He understood the need for innovation, diversification, and adding value through marketing. Many of the values he stood for still have resonance for us as a business today.
We are proud that we can allow William Lever’s voice to be heard once more by conserving and digitising 39 of his published speeches.
If you have general query relating to Unilever, careers or current products and services, contact the Unilever helpdesk using Unilever contact form.
Designated status
The high standard of the service has been recognised by The National Archives (TNA), and the collections have been recognised as being of international significance through the award of ‘Designated Status’ by the Arts Council England for both the Unilever and United Africa Company collections.
