New strategic supplier partnerships for Unilever, winners acknowledged

The signing took place against the backdrop of the second annual 'Partner to Win Supplier Summit' in London, where the group invited 160 strategic suppliers to meet senior managers from across the organisation, gain a deeper understanding of the company's strategic priorities and to share latest innovations.

The partnerships now cover more than €3billion of annual spend and support investment in growth, more sustainable practices and bigger and better innovations.

"Unilever has a bold ambition to double the size of its business, whilst halving the environmental impact of its products. The recent financial results and update on its Sustainable Living Plan shows it is making good progress in both areas. However to achieve our ambition, it is vital that we work in closer partnership with our strategic suppliers to ensure faster innovations and invest sustainably throughout our value chain. In 2011, our suppliers invested an estimated €1.3 billion in additional industrial capacity to support our growth," says Pier Luigi Sigismondi, chief supply chain officer Unilever.

"It's a similar story when it comes working closely together on innovation. Half of Unilever's innovation pipeline now comes from our suppliers. From last year's 'Partner to Win Supplier Summit' alone, more than 250 innovation ideas were taken into joint development programmes. This demonstrates the strength and commitment of our partnerships and the progress we are making."

Joint Business Development Plans

Joint Business Development Plans (JBDP) are a key element of the 'Partner to Win' programme. Each JBDP sets out Unilever's strategic business plans and provides a clear framework of how the two organisations will work together to deliver them over the long term. The plans cover all areas of procurement including packaging, chemicals, commodities and services.

'Partner to Win' Awards

To celebrate and recognise suppliers that made a significant contribution in the categories of Innovation, Sustainability, Business Integration, World Class Enterprise Support and Capacity and Capability Development, Unilever hosted the 'Partner to Win Awards'.

Sigismondi commented, "This event presented us with an opportunity to recognise some outstanding examples of excellence in our suppliers, who are leaders in their fields."

Winning through Innovation:

• Barry Callebaut - partner in cocoa - support in this year's launch of Magnum Infinity
  
• Givaudan - partner in fragrances - fragrance encapsulation in laundry
  
• The Dow Chemical Company - partner in plastics - innovative packaging solutions for the personal care portfolio

Winning through Sustainability:

• Kenya Tea Development Agency - partner in tea - sustainable agriculture practices
  
• Mestä Board Corporation - partner in board - sustainable lightweight packaging
  
• Agraz - partner in tomatoes - embracing sustainability throughout its business

Winning through Capacity and Capability Development:

• FM LOGISTIC - partner in logistics - implementation of Distribution Centre in Europe
  
• McLeod Russel India Ltd - partner in tea - assisted with its 'just-in-time' deliveries
  
• BASF - partner in chemicals - capacity alignment in D&E markets

Winning through Business Integration:

• ALPLA - partner in process management - integrated their operations with Unilever from development through to supply
  
• Kerry Ingredients - partner in ingredients - support to the newly established North American Supplier Collaboration council
  
• CCL Label - partner in R&D - simplify partner inventory management and increase speed to market

Winning through World Class Enterprise Support:

• Accenture - partner in process management - enabled group's One Supply Chain model across Asia, Africa, the Middle East and Russia
  
• Ernst and Young - partner in finance - support for making group more agile and innovative in the area of financial controls and reporting
  
• SAP & Accenture - partner in financial process management - supporting group to process millions of transactions annually, with each transaction taking just a few seconds each

Special Contribution

Linfox Logistics - During the worst floods in Bangkok for 50 years, the company demonstrated an unprecedented level of support and service to the group's business

For further information, go to www.unilever.com/aboutus/supplier/