Which Unilever Indonesia Products Are Popular?

Unilever Indonesia’s most popular products include Royco seasoning, Pepsodent toothpaste, Glow & Lovely beauty cream, and Sunlight dishwashing liquid. According to the Kantar Brand Footprint Indonesia 2024 report, Royco ranks fourth among the country’s top ten FMCG brands, purchased by 60% of Indonesian households—equivalent to 42 million families who buy it approximately 14 times annually.

Market Leadership Across Categories

Unilever Indonesia dominates 13 out of 15 product categories in which it operates. The company’s portfolio spans home and personal care products, which account for 73% of total sales, and foods and refreshment products, comprising the remaining 27%. This market leadership reflects decades of building brands that resonate with Indonesian consumers’ daily needs.

The company’s distribution network reaches over one million retail outlets across Indonesia’s archipelago, ensuring its products are accessible from urban centers to remote islands. Nearly every Indonesian household uses at least one Unilever product, making the company’s brands a fundamental part of the country’s consumer landscape.

Personal Care Champions

Pepsodent stands as Indonesia’s most chosen personal care brand, according to the 2024 Kantar report. The toothpaste brand has built its reputation on cavity prevention, with its flagship variant claiming to be ten times more effective at strengthening teeth. The brand’s longevity in the Indonesian market has made it synonymous with oral care for multiple generations.

Glow & Lovely secured the title of Most Chosen Beauty Brand in 2024. The skincare line has become Indonesia’s number one face moisturizer by volume, with its body wash variant demonstrating particularly strong performance. Beyond product sales, the brand runs the “Glow & Lovely Bintang Beasiswa” program, which has provided scholarship opportunities to 450 Indonesian women since 2017 and reached 35 million women through mentoring programs.

Dove maintains a strong position in the personal care segment, ranking ninth in YouGov’s 2021 FMCG rankings with a brand health score of 21.7. The brand’s premium positioning appeals to Indonesian consumers seeking quality skincare and body care products. Other significant personal care brands include Lifebuoy soap, Sunsilk and Clear shampoos, Rexona deodorants, and Vaseline body lotions.

Household Care Dominance

Sunlight earned recognition as Indonesia’s Most Chosen Household Care Brand in 2024. The dishwashing liquid topped YouGov’s 2021 household care category with a brand health score of 52.9, demonstrating its widespread acceptance among Indonesian consumers. The brand operates the “Agent 1000 Sunlight” program, which has recruited 1,072 agents and reached 78,000 new consumers while helping women microentrepreneurs develop business skills.

Rinso detergent ranks second in the household care category with a YouGov score of 42.3. The brand recently introduced a new pack size priced at IDR 500 to make quality laundry care more accessible to value-conscious consumers. This pricing strategy addresses the Indonesian market’s strong demand for affordable household products.

Molto fabric softener completes Unilever’s household care trio, securing third place with a YouGov score of 40.1. Together, these three brands form a comprehensive household cleaning portfolio that Indonesian families rely on daily. The company has also expanded its household care offerings with products like Lifebuoy Dishwash, successfully extending trusted brand names into new categories.

Food and Beverage Favorites

Royco seasoning represents Unilever Indonesia’s strongest food brand, maintaining its position as the only Unilever product in Indonesia’s top ten FMCG brands as of 2023. Each of the 42 million households that purchase Royco does so an average of 14 times per year, indicating high usage frequency. The brand’s Nutrimenu program promotes balanced nutrition and healthy eating, collaborating with government agencies and NGOs to educate mothers through community activities.

Bango sweet soy sauce has established itself as one of Indonesia’s premier kecap manis brands. The product uses high-quality Malika soybeans from Central Java, creating a distinctive sweet and savory flavor profile that Indonesian cuisine demands. The brand’s “Program Saraswati” has empowered 3,250 female farmers since 2001, demonstrating Unilever’s commitment to sustainable sourcing.

Buavita fruit juice, present in Indonesia since 1971, pioneered hygienic, ready-to-drink fruit beverages in the country. The brand uses real fruit without artificial sweeteners or preservatives, appealing to health-conscious consumers. In YouGov’s 2021 beverage rankings, Buavita scored 24.7, securing a position among Indonesia’s top beverage brands.

Ice Cream Market Position

Wall’s ice cream maintains significant market presence in Indonesia despite recent challenges. Historical data from 2008 showed Wall’s commanding 51.2% market share, though competition has intensified from brands like Aice and Campina. The company has divested its ice cream business as part of a strategic transformation to focus on core categories.

Popular Wall’s products include Paddle Pop, Cornetto, Magnum, and Feast. The brand has launched localized flavors such as Wall’s Melon Kelapa (coconut melon) priced at IDR 3,000 and Wall’s Populaire Fruity Mango at IDR 5,000, targeting affordability-conscious consumers. Premium offerings like Cornetto Love Rose, featuring a patented rose-shaped nozzle, cater to Instagram-conscious younger consumers.

The average Indonesian consumed approximately 12 bowls of ice cream in 2023, a modest increase from 11 bowls five years earlier. Wall’s continues to innovate with products like Twister Grape Lychee and Cornetto Crunch Milk Berry to maintain consumer interest across different price points and flavor preferences.

Market Challenges and Adaptation

Unilever Indonesia faces significant headwinds. Market share declined from 38.5% in Q3 2023 to 34.9% by Q3 2024, with quarterly underlying sales dropping 18.2% in late 2023. The company confronts intense competition from local manufacturers like Wings Group and Mayora Indah, which offer products priced 7-20% lower than Unilever equivalents.

Wings’ Nuvo liquid soap sells for approximately 20% less than Lifebuoy, while SoKlin detergent costs about 7% less than Rinso. This price sensitivity has become more pronounced as Indonesia’s middle class faces economic pressures. Local competitors have captured market share by understanding price-conscious consumer behavior and expanding distribution through traditional retail channels.

The company has responded with pricing adjustments and portfolio optimization. Recent launches include value-segment products like the IDR 500 Rinso pack and Glow & Lovely DermaGlow Multivitamin Cream in smaller sizes. These initiatives aim to maintain brand accessibility while preserving product quality that justifies premium positioning.

Recent Product Innovations

Unilever Indonesia relaunched major brands in Q1 2025 using a “6P strategy” focusing on Product, Price, Place, Promotion, Propositions, and Pack. Clear shampoo, Sunlight dishwashing liquid, and Royco seasoning received comprehensive renovations to sharpen their competitive positioning and deliver superior consumer benefits.

The company introduced 46 innovations in 2024 to strengthen its brand portfolio across segments. Glow & Lovely DermaGlow Multivitamin Cream now claims 40 times improved skin-brightening efficacy compared to previous formulations. These scientific improvements support premium pricing in a market increasingly attracted to efficacy claims.

Digital transformation has become central to distribution strategy. The “Sahabat Warung” sales application contributed 22% more to overall Distributive Trade sales following its Q3 2024 relaunch, demonstrating how technology enhances reach to Indonesia’s fragmented retail landscape.

Brand Programs and Social Impact

Unilever Indonesia’s popular brands drive social programs that extend beyond commercial transactions. The Sekolah Sehat initiative has educated 15 million children about hygiene and nutrition since 2016. Royco’s Nutrimenu program has provided over 100 million balanced meals since 2019, working with government health agencies to improve family nutrition.

The Sariwangi tea brand promotes healthy lifestyles and cholesterol management through partnerships with Yayasan Jantung Indonesia and Alodokter. These health-focused initiatives align product marketing with genuine public health needs, building brand trust while addressing societal challenges.

Rexona’s #GerakTakTerbatas campaign encourages physical movement through the “Gerak by Rexona” app, including features for people with disabilities. These programs demonstrate how Unilever’s popular brands serve as platforms for social engagement beyond product functionality.

Distribution and Accessibility

Unilever Indonesia operates through more than 800 independent distributors serving hundreds of thousands of stores. The company directly covers over half of its one million retail outlets, ensuring product availability from modern trade supermarkets to traditional warungs (small shops) in rural areas.

The Mega Distribution Centre in Cibitung, West Java, opened in 2012 as Indonesia’s largest FMCG warehouse, covering approximately 80,000 square meters. This facility represents the largest Unilever warehouse globally, reflecting Indonesia’s strategic importance to the company’s operations.

Manufacturing takes place across nine factories, primarily in the Jababeka Industrial Zone near Jakarta and in Rungkut, Surabaya. All factories and products carry halal certification from Majelis Ulama Indonesia (MUI), essential for serving Indonesia’s predominantly Muslim population. The company employs over 4,000 people who support production and distribution operations.

The popularity of Unilever Indonesia’s products stems from decades of market presence, consistent quality, and adaptation to local preferences. While facing competitive pressures and shifting consumer economics, brands like Royco, Pepsodent, Glow & Lovely, and Sunlight maintain strong household penetration through strategic pricing, continuous innovation, and meaningful community programs. The company’s ability to balance affordability with quality determines which products sustain popularity in Indonesia’s dynamic FMCG market.