Brexit row intensifies
Tesco has stopped selling dozens of household brands to its online shoppers including marmite after a row with Unilever over prices.
Brands including PG Tips, Ben & Jerry’s ice cream and Persil have been pulled from Tesco after the supplier said it will increase prices by 10 per cent due to the fall in pound.
A spokesperson for Tesco said: “We are currently experiencing availability issues on a number of Unilever products. We hope to have this issue resolved soon.”
Prof Andrew Fearne, of the University of East Anglia’s Norwich Business School, says this is the first of many stand-offs that could happen as a result of Brexit.
“This is the first of many stand-offs that are inevitable as the implications of Brexit kick in and companies try to navigate a sustainable way forward. The problem is that some companies will use the exchange rate as a vehicle for negotiating price rises that are a) avoidable and b) could leave some of their customers un-competitive, if they agree to pay more when others refuse.
“We don’t have the details of the conversations between the respective buyers and account managers but a blanket call for price hikes sounds unreasonable without the evidence to back up the implications of input cost increases for specific products – the impact of a declining pound on the cost of producing coffee will not be the same as the impact on washing powder or shampoo.
“We have seen these stand-offs before and there is always an element of ‘bluff’ as the retailer tests their shoppers’ loyalty to specific brands looks to exploit the opportunity to encourage brand switching. Tesco are the biggest retailer so their actions always make the news but what we are seeing here is the thin edge of a very long wedge in the world of fast moving consumer goods.”
Food products pulled from Tesco:
Alsa, Amino, Amora, Annapurna, Aromat, Becel, Ben & Jerry’s, Best Foods, Bertolli, Blue Band, Bovril, Breyers, Brooke Bond, Bru, Brummel & Brown, Buavita, Bushell’s, Calvé, Chicken Tonight, Choysa, Colman’s, Conimex, Continental, Country Crock, Darko, Delma, Du Darfst, Elmlea, Fanacoa, Flora, Fruco, Fudgsicle, Grom, Heartbrand, Hellmann’s, I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter, Imperial Margarine, Jif, Joko, Kasia, Kecap Bango, Kissan, Klondike, Knorr, Lady’s Choice, Lan-Choo, Lao Cai, Lipton, Lipton Ice Tea, Lizano Sauce, Lyons, Maille, Maizena, Marmite, McCollins, Motions, Mrs. Filbert’s, Paddle pop, Pfanni, PG Tips, Phase, Planta, Popsicle, Pot Noodle, Promise, Rama, Rani, Red Rose Tea, Robertsons, Royco, Saga, Sana, Sariwangi, Scottish Blend, Sealtest, Slotts, Stork, Streets, Sunce, T2, Telma, Tortex, Tulipan, Turun sinappi, Unilever Food Solutions, Unox, Vaqueiro
Home and personal care products pulled from Tesco:
All, Ala, Andrelon, Aviance Cosmetics, Axe, Ayush, Baba, Badedas, Biotex, Block & White, Breeze, Brilhante, Brisk, Brylcreem, Caress, Cif, Citra, Clear, Clinic, Close-Up, Coccolino, Comfort, Cream Silk, Degree, DERO, Dimension, Dollar Shave Club, Domestos, Dove, Dove Spa, Dusch Das, Elidor, Eskinol, Fair & Lovely, FDS, Gessy, Glorix, Good Morning, Impulse, Ioma, Lakmé, Lever 2000, Lifebuoy, Linic, Lux, Lynx, Lysoform, Master, Matey, Minerva, Mist, Neutral, Noxzema, Omo, Origins, Organics, Pears Transparent Soap, Pepsodent, Persil, Pond’s, Prodent, Quix, Q-Tips, Radox, Rexona, Rinso, Robijn, Sedal, Shield, Signal, Simple, Skip, SR, St Ives, Suave, Sun, Sunlight, Sunsilk, Sure deodorant, Surf, Swan Soap, Thermasilk, Tholl, TIGI, Timotei, Toni & Guy, TRESemmé, Ultrex, Vaseline, Vibrance, Vim, Vinólia, Viso, Wheel, White Beauty, Williams, VO5, Xedex, zendium, Zhonghua, Zwitsal
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