Harish Manwani, Chairman, Hindustan Unilever Ltd (HUL), while addressing shareholders at the company’s 82nd Annual General Meeting held in Mumbai, spoke about the imperative for companies such as HUL to adopt an inclusive approach to serve and thrive in a country as diverse as India. He underlined the need for corporate India to be a part of the solution for the many challenges that lie ahead to reap the rewards of the India opportunity.
In his speech titled ‘Serving Many Indias’, Manwani spoke about how HUL participated in India’s growth agenda over the years with the firm belief that ‘what is good for India is good for HUL’.
He spoke about how HUL’s growth and evolution has reflected the needs and development of India. He elaborated on how the company took the lead at critical junctures when the country needed the support of businesses to contribute to the national cause, be it its pioneering initiatives towards integrated rural development or manufacturing investments in backward areas as well as its renowned leadership and skills development programmes.
“At HUL, we have a simple model to ensure that we leverage the full opportunity that India presents by serving the many Indias within the country. This is essential for the long term growth of the Company and more importantly it also fulfils our commitment to contribute to India’s growth and development in an inclusive and sustainable manner,” said Manwani.
Serving many Indias
Manwani said that serving many Indias essentially requires having a portfolio of brands that reach out to a wide section and ensuring that everyone has access to its brands - rich or poor. “Through our operations, we create a virtuous circle which benefits every geography of India, and we build talent both in terms of leadership as well as skills across the value chain of our operations,” he said.
Speaking about the need to serve diverse consumers, he said, “Our approach of developing innovations with consumer price as the starting point is at the heart of our inclusive innovation strategy.” He also spoke about how HUL’s extensive sales and distribution network helps the company reach diverse markets in India making its brands available in every single town and most villages in India. He spoke about how the company was leveraging technology to reach out to consumers in the most remote and media dark villages but at the same time engaging with the digital media savvy urban youth who are increasingly making their buying decisions online.