Analysis of Unilever UK: Business Layout, Brand Matrix and Official Website Domain Name Protection Practices

As early as the 1930s, Unilever's predecessor, Lever Brothers, invested in and established the China Soap Co., Ltd. in Shanghai. Products such as "Lux" and "Umbrella" soaps became bestsellers in the Chinese market due to their superior quality. In 1986, Unilever returned to Shanghai, and its first joint venture, Shanghai Lever Co., Ltd., continued to produce "Lux" soap. Given the current living standards, young people viewed "Lux" soap as a symbol of openness and fashion. "Lux" became China's best-selling soap.

I. Introduction to Unilever, UK

Unilever is a multinational consumer goods company headquartered in London, UK. It originated on September 2, 1929, through the merger of Margarine Unie of the Netherlands and Lever Brothers of the UK. Unilever owns approximately 400 brands worldwide, covering a wide range of categories, including food, beverages, detergents, and personal care products.

Unilever's products include Vaseline, Ben & Jerry's, Continental, and Dove. In 1927, the two Dutch companies merged to form Margarine Unie NV in the Netherlands and Margarine Union Limited in the UK. In 1929, Lever Brothers and its affiliated companies joined the group, and the two companies were renamed Unilever. In 1963, Unilever acquired Rosella Foods of Australia. In 1986, Unilever acquired Chesebrough-Pond's, Inc., and other personal care product manufacturers. In early 1994, Shanghai Toothpaste Factory and Unilever Limited of the United Kingdom jointly established Shanghai Unilever Toothpaste Co., Ltd. In 2020, Unilever became a fully British company. In November 2023, Unilever Group's venture capital arm, in partnership with True Beauty Ventures, announced an investment in the Canadian fragrance brand The 7 Virtues. In December 2024, Unilever announced plans to invest €100 million to enhance its in-house fragrance design and creation capabilities.

II. Protection of Unilever's Official Website Brand Domain Name

Unilever has implemented various measures to protect its official website brand domain name:

Registering the primary domain name: Unilever registered the global official website domain name, https://www.unilever.com/, which matches its corporate name, and maintains and manages it over the long term, ensuring the brand's core identity online.

Protecting sub-brand domain names: Unilever protects the domain names of many of its sub-brands, such as the Omo brand, and takes legal action to protect its rights against potential infringements.

Defensive Registration: Unilever has registered generic URLs in both Chinese and English for all 12 of its sub-brands in the Chinese market. It has also registered similar domain names and commonly misspelled domain names related to its brands to prevent squatting or malicious impersonation.

Unilever is a British multinational consumer goods company formed through the merger of United Margarine (Dutch: United Margarine) and Lever Brothers (UK: Lever Brothers). Headquartered in Rotterdam, Netherlands, and London, UK, Unilever's products include food, beverages, detergents, and personal care products. In 2012, Unilever was the world's third-largest consumer goods company, after Procter & Gamble and Nestlé.

Unilever is the world's largest producer of spreadable foods, such as margarine. As one of the oldest multinational corporations, its products are sold in approximately 190 countries and regions.

From its inception until 2020, Unilever operated as a dual-headquartered company, with two companies registered in the UK and the Netherlands: Unilever plc (UK) and Unilever N.V. (Dutch). Effective November 30, 2020, Unilever will discontinue its dual-headquartered structure. The new Unilever global headquarters will be located in London, while the Food & Beverages division will remain headquartered in Rotterdam and the Home Care and Beauty & Personal Care divisions will be headquartered in the UK.

Company Name: Unilever UK.

Official Domain Name: unilever.com.

Domain Creation: April 9, 1995.

Country: United Kingdom.

Headquarters: London, United Kingdom.

Founded: September 2, 1929.

Founder: William Heisenberg Lever.