Two fast-moving consumer goods manufacturers, Unilever Nigeria Plc and Cadbury Nigeria Plc, have reported N41bn in revenue in their unaudited financial statements for the first quarter that ended March 31, 2023.
While Unilever Nigeria reported N24. 60bn as revenue for the first quarter, Cadbury Nigeria Plc posted N16.56bn, a 30 per cent increase over N12.78bn for the same period in 2022.
For Cadbury, profit before tax posted for the first quarter of the year was N4.933bn, compared to N2.202bn reported in the same financial period of 2022. Its profit after tax stood at N3.453bn, 124 per cent up from N1.541bn in the same quarter in 2022.
Based on business segments, Cadbury’s refreshment beverages consisting of two products earned the highest revenue for the quarter of N11.64bn, followed by confectionery which posted N3.92bn, biscuit brought in N606m and its intermediate cocoa products brought in the lowest revenue for the quarter; N393m.
In its 2022 financial reports, Cadbury revealed that its 2022 revenue grew by 30 per cent from N42.37bn in 2021 to N55.21bn in 2022.
The company said this was achieved despite rising inflation and the continued depreciation of the naira.
At Unilever, the profit before tax was N4.34bn, up from N2.34bn recorded in the same period in 2022. Its profit for the period also appreciated from N1.79bn in 2022 to N2.67bn reported in 2023.
For its business segments; Food Products and Home & Personal Care Products, the multinational reported higher revenue from the food products segment.
While its food product business segment reported N13.32bn in the quarter, its HPC segment reported N11.27bn in revenue.
In March, Unilever Plc revealed plans to exit the home care and skin cleansing markets to reposition its business for sustained profitability.
The company said that it was changing its business model to accelerate the growth of the company and meet the needs of consumers, shareholders, and employees better.
Part of the statement read, “This will involve repurposing the portfolio by exiting the home care and skin cleansing categories to concentrate on higher growth opportunities.”
SOURCE: THE PUNCH
