Our business strategy
We have long believed that our company can only be successful in the long term by creating value for both our shareholders and society. We create value through a persistent focus on consumers, operational agility and executional excellence.
As a company, we continuously evolve our product offerings to meet consumer needs and excite consumer preferences. We strive for a balanced pursuit of financial growth through rapid innovation, operational efficiency and resource allocation. Our long-term strategy ensures we deliver consistent, sustainable success.
Good food, Good life is good business. We focus our energy and resources where unlocking the power of food can make the greatest difference to the lives of people and pets, protect and enhance the environment, and generate significant value for our shareholders and other stakeholders alike. Products that are right for consumers and right for the planet are increasingly desirable and make for good business. This helps us be a force for good.
Our value-creation model
We maintain a diversified portfolio, both in terms of geography and category. Our agility and cultivation of global, regional and local brands contribute to long-term financial performance. Our aim is to sustain a mid single-digit organic growth rate through rapid innovation, market share gains and portfolio management.
We fuel growth by managing our costs and constantly improving operational efficiency - at all levels of the business. By doing so, we are able to free up resources for reinvestment in product innovation, brand building, digitalization and sustainability initiatives, while creating value for our shareholders.
Our priorities are to invest in the long-term growth and development of our business, while increasing shareholder returns and creating shared value. Investing for the long term includes R&D investment, brand support and capital expenditure into our factories to support organic profitable growth.
Our strategy in action
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Our trusted brands We have more than 2,000 brands, from global icons to local favorites. Over 30 of our trusted brands, including Maggi, Milo and Nido, generate over CHF 1 billion each in annual sales at the retail level. We partner with customers across the retail landscape to adapt our product portfolio and channel strategies, leveraging our global brands to customize new products for local tastes and preferences.
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Innovation Building a pipeline of highly differentiated innovations, while rapidly testing and launching new ideas, fuels our growth. Our focus is on delivering tasty, nutritious, affordable and sustainable products by anticipating growing trends and meeting people's diverse evolving needs and preferences, while investing in solutions with an improved environmental footprint.
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Affordable, accessible nutrition Our offering of affordable, accessible products aims to provide lower-income consumers with high-quality food products that deliver nutritional value at an affordable cost and in an appropriate format. Most of our affordable and accessible products are fortified with at least one of the 'big four' micronutrients: iron, iodine, vitamin A and zinc. Sales of affordable, accessible products in emerging markets are growing, making up almost a fifth of sales there.
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Premium products Across our product categories, we bring distinctive and value-added innovations to market, fuelled by creative exploration, consumer insight, pioneering nutrition science and culinary excellence. These innovations help to reinforce the relevance of our brands and translate into opportunities for category growth. Our premium offerings represent around 30% of Group sales.
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Accelerated digitalization Data and technology are an essential source of competitive advantage. We are building a seamless consumer experience and channel-less commerce system, unlocking valuable data across geographies and categories. E-commerce is a priority, and we want to improve performance in all markets and categories. Artificial intelligence and remote assistance are allowing us to be more agile and flexible in our manufacturing sites and supply chains – increasingly important in today’s world.
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Creating Shared Value We build for the long term, act with focus and combine global resources with local know-how to create value for both society and our shareholders at a meaningful scale. We do so because we believe that business should act as a force for good. Our commitment to creating shared value is illustrated by our progress toward net zero greenhouse gas emissions, regenerative agriculture, 100% deforestation-free supply chains, sustainable packaging and improved nutrition in our portfolio.
We will continue to invest for future growth, investing behind our brands, delivering impactful innovation, leveraging digitalization and improving speed and agility. Creating shared value for stakeholders remains our focus, with Good for You, Good for the Planet at the heart of our strategy.
