Unilever exits Russia after sustained criticism for 'sponsoring Kremlin's war'

Unilever has sold off its Russian operations to a local manufacturing group after pressure from campaigners who said the presence of the Dove and Ben & Jerry's owner in the country was supporting the war in Ukraine.

- Sarah Butler

Arnest Group, a Russian manufacturer of perfume, cosmetics and household products, will take control of Unilever Rus, which includes four factories, as well as the group's interests in Belarus. Arnest is owned by the businessman Alexey Sagal and bought the brewer Heineken's business in the country last summer.

Unilever Rus, which employs about 3,000 people, owns the local rights to brands including Knorr stock cubes, Dove washing and beauty products, Domestos cleaning fluids and Axe - known as Lynx in the UK.

Unilever has faced sustained pressure to sell the subsidiary since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, after it failed to follow an initial stampede of British multinationals out of the country.

The terms of the deal, which must be approved by the Russian government, were not disclosed. However, it has been reported that the sale could be worth more than €500m (£418m) to Unilever.