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Unilever has shelved plans to run a sales process intended to find a private equity buyer for its €15bn ice cream division and will instead focus on a push to spin off the unit in an independent listing.
The consumer goods group announced in March that it would split off its ice cream business, and it attempted to drum up interest from buyout groups for the division, which includes brands such as Ben & Jerry’s, Magnum and Wall’s.
However, the division’s large size and complicated supply chain were among factors that led private equity firms to cool their interest on a potential deal, according to people familiar with the matter. The people cautioned that a bidder could still emerge.
The FTSE 100 group had decided to separate the ice cream business — which accounts for about 16 per cent of overall sales — as part of chief executive Hein Schumacher’s turnaround plan, which also includes cutting 7,500 jobs, predominantly in Europe.
People familiar with the process said the size and complexity of a potential deal was a major obstacle. The business could be worth about €10bn to €15bn in any deal, other people previously told the Financial Times.
Other challenges included the ice cream business’s performance, complicated logistics, and even the outspoken political stances of the Ben & Jerry’s brand.
“What’s very specific about ice cream is the supply chain,” said an executive at one private equity firm that had explored a potential deal with Unilever, adding it was not clear how a buyout group could approach the business “differently to the current management”.
They said that it would be difficult to make ice cream less of a seasonal product in Europe.
Last week Ben & Jerry’s filed a legal complaint against its parent company in New York, alleging that Unilever had threatened to dismantle its independent board and “silenced” the brand over its support for Palestinian refugees.
At the group’s third-quarter trading update last month, Unilever said sales of its ice cream brands soared 9.8 per cent compared with the same period last year, well above the 4.3 per cent growth expected by analysts.
Schumacher has said repeatedly that a demerger is the most likely route, but that the company would explore all options that created value for shareholders. Last month he said the separation would be complete by the end of next year.
Unilever has previously sold assets to private equity groups, with KKR acquiring its spreads business in a €7bn deal in 2017 and CVC buying its tea business for €4.5bn in 2021.
A person with knowledge of the process said the recent election of Donald Trump to the White House could have a “positive” impact on Unilever’s plans to list the business “because the IPO market is stronger now”.
Unilever declined to comment.
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