Are HUL's best days behind it?
From Two by Two (Private) by The Ken
April 15, 2026 · 1h 6m · Episode 85
About this episode
The episode explores whether Hindustan Unilever's best days are behind it amidst rising competition from D2C brands.
What happened to the company that once understood India better than anyone else? For decades Hindustan Unilever has dominated kitchen pantries and bathroom cabinets across the country: Surf Excel in the laundry, Brooke Bond in the kitchen, Clinic Plus in the bathroom. It was the undisputed gold standard of brand building in this country. Well, until it wasn’t. Case in point: a couple of weeks ago, a journalist shared a chart from an HSBC report on social media.The chart listed some of HUL's biggest brands — Ponds, Lux, Rin, Lifebuoy, Kissan, Surf, Glow & Lovely, Vim, Bru — and showed where each of them stood ten years ago versus today. Turns out, most of them have barely grown, if at all. Something has shifted at the company that was once India's consumption barometer. The brands that generate genuine excitement today aren't HUL brands. More often than not, they are scrappy D2C upstarts that, on paper, shouldn't stand a chance against a behemoth like HUL. In the latest episode of Two By Two, we try to answer one simple question: Are HUL's best days behind it? Two By Two hosts Praveen Gopal Krishnan and Rahel Philipose are joined by Seetharaman G, Deputy Editor at The Ken and…
People in this episode
Hosts: Praveen Gopal Krishnan, Rahel Philipose
Guests: Seetharaman G, Sandeep Nair
Topics covered
- Hindustan Unilever
- brand performance
- FMCG industry
- market competition
- D2C brands
Keywords
- Hindustan Unilever
- FMCG
- D2C brands
- market analysis
- brand growth
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Hindustan Unilever, HSBC
Products: Surf Excel, Brooke Bond, Clinic Plus, Ponds, Lux, Rin, Lifebuoy, Kissan, Surf, Glow & Lovely
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