Unilever and L’Oréal see strong e-commerce surge, with India leading growth
New Delhi: Global consumer goods giants Unilever and L’Oréal are reporting robust growth from e-commerce channels worldwide, with India standing out as one of their fastest-growing markets.
In their September-quarter earnings calls, both companies highlighted that sales in India have doubled, driven by the rapid expansion of hyper-local and quick-commerce delivery platforms.
L’Oréal CEO Nicolas Hieronimus, who recently visited India, described the country’s quick-commerce and traditional e-commerce platforms as “game changers,” enabling faster product launches and deeper market reach.
“Ten days ago, I was in India, and it’s clearly a game changer for us. Quick commerce and traditional platforms are allowing us to reach consumers across the country in ways we couldn’t before,” Hieronimus said.
Unilever CEO Fernando Fernandez said digital commerce now contributes 17 per cent of the company’s total revenue. “We’re growing Amazon by 15 per cent, Walmart.com by 25 per cent, Flipkart in India by 30 per cent, and TikTok globally by 70 per cent,” he noted.
Fernandez added that Unilever’s portfolio is now better positioned, following strategic exits from value brands and acquisitions in premium segments. “Digitally native brands are performing very well. In the US, we have our highest e-commerce exposure globally — but we’re seeing similar trends in markets like China and India. Our quick commerce business in India has more than doubled this year,” he said.
Hieronimus emphasized that e-commerce growth is significantly outpacing overall market trends. “While the global market is growing just above 3 per cent, e-commerce is expanding at more than twice that rate. Our e-commerce business alone is growing by 12 per cent,” he said.
He added that L’Oréal is “doubling down” on digital channels to reach new consumers across India, Saudi Arabia, the US, and China — where online sales now make up the largest part of its business.
Earlier this week, L’Oréal reported strong performance in India across both its consumer and professional product divisions for the nine months ended September 2025.
