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    Guillaume Delmas • UBS Group AG

    Guillaume Delmas's questions to Haleon PLC (HLN) leadership

    Guillaume Delmas's questions to Haleon PLC (HLN) leadership • H1 2025

    Question

    Guillaume Delmas of UBS Group AG questioned the underperformance of Haleon's North America segment in Q2, asking for an analysis of its causes, such as category growth, sell-in versus sell-out discrepancies, or market share erosion, and its prospects for recovery. He also inquired about the significant increase in Advertising and Promotion (A&P) spending, its specific investment areas, the return on investment, and the outlook for future spend.

    Answer

    CEO Brian McNamara acknowledged the challenges in North America, attributing them to a difficult consumer environment, a channel shift to value and e-commerce, and retailer inventory pressures. He noted that while overall consumption is slightly up, performance in pain relief (Advil) and VMS (Centrum) was mixed, and outlined corrective plans. CFO Dawn Allen explained that the 130 basis point increase in A&P spend was enabled by supply chain productivity and is being invested to support innovation, key growth markets, and expert recommendations, with a similar level of investment expected in the second half.

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    Guillaume Delmas's questions to Haleon PLC (HLN) leadership • H1 2025

    Question

    Guillaume Delmas asked about the underperformance of Haleon's North America segment in Q2, questioning if it was due to lower category growth, sell-in vs. sell-out discrepancies, or share erosion, and its prospects for recovery. He also inquired about the significant increase in A&P spending, its focus areas, and the outlook for future investment.

    Answer

    CEO Brian McNamara acknowledged North America's challenges, citing a tough consumer environment, a shift to value channels, and retailer inventory pressures, while noting consumption is slightly ahead of a down market. He detailed specific actions for Advil and Centrum. CFO Dawn Allen explained that the A&P increase was funded by supply chain productivity and focused on supporting innovation, key growth markets, and expert recommendations, with a similar investment level expected in H2.

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    Guillaume Delmas's questions to Haleon PLC (HLN) leadership • H1 2025

    Question

    Guillaume Delmas from UBS Group AG inquired about the underperformance of Haleon's North America segment in Q2, seeking to understand the drivers such as category growth, inventory, and market share, and its future outlook. He also asked about the significant increase in A&P spending, its allocation, and expected future trends.

    Answer

    CEO Brian McNamara addressed the North America challenges, citing a tough consumer environment, a shift to value channels, and retailer inventory pressures. He noted consumption is slightly ahead of a down market but acknowledged mixed performance in pain relief (Advil) and VMS (Centrum). CFO Dawn Allen explained that increased A&P spend, funded by supply chain productivity, is focused on innovation support, key growth markets like India, and expert recommendations, with an improved ROI of 4%. She expects a similar investment shape in H2.

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    Guillaume Delmas's questions to Unilever PLC (UL) leadership

    Guillaume Delmas's questions to Unilever PLC (UL) leadership • H1 2025

    Question

    Guillaume Delmas of UBS Group AG asked about the sustainability of current Brand and Marketing Investment (BMI) levels and the innovation strategy. He also questioned if the Foods division is now a key margin improvement engine for the company.

    Answer

    CEO Fernando Fernandez stated that the current BMI level of 15-16% is competitive and sustainable, with a focus on 'fewer, bigger, better' innovations on power brands. Regarding the Foods division, he expressed satisfaction with its strong performance, high margins, and cash generation, driven by the strength of Hellmann's and Knorr, positioning it as a highly competitive and valuable part of the portfolio.

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