Consumer goods giant Unilever finally leaves Russia

British consumer goods giant Unilever completed the sale of Unilever Russia on Thursday, finally joining other multinationals in exiting the country following its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

Unilever said in a statement that it had sold the subsidiary to Arnest Group, a Russian maker of perfumes, cosmetics and household products, for an undisclosed amount.

Unilever said its business in Belarus, a close ally of Russia, was included in the sale.

“The completion of the sale ends Unilever Russia's presence in the country,” Unilever CEO Hein Schumacher said in Thursday's statement.

He added that the sale “includes all of Unilever's business in Russia and its four factories in the country.”

While strongly condemning Moscow's invasion of Ukraine, Unilever joined other multinationals in deciding to maintain operations in Russia, sparking widespread criticism.

kyiv's response was to place Unilever on Ukraine's list of “international war sponsors.”

While many other foreign companies left Russia, Unilever insisted on the need to continue supplying Russian consumers with domestically made food and hygiene products.

One consequence of the war was to trigger inflation, raising the prices of basic goods such as food for consumers around the world, triggering a cost of living crisis that many still feel.

Companies including Unilever were accused of raising prices on some products much higher than necessary. Producers responded, insisting that they were actually trying to limit the pace of price increases while facing their own spiraling costs.