Last September the company announced the sale of a majority stake in its Body Care portfolio to Unilever for €1.275bn ($1.75bn), together with the sale of its Air Care business to P&G, which gave a combined sale price of €1.59bn.
The binding offers from the two companies are expected to be finalized by regulatory authorities in the next few months, but in the meantime the company is still in negotiations to sell the remainder of the HBC portfolio.
Divest HBC brands to concentrate on food and beverage
The strategy will see the company completely exit the HBC category, allowing it to concentrate its business on its more profitable food and beverage operations.
The unit that is to be sold to Unilever holds a number of leading body care brands, including Sanex, Radox and Duschadas, which are predicted to achieve combined global sales of approximately €750m in 2009.
The remaining brands to be sold are mainly in the household care arena, including the Kiwi shoe care, Ridsect insecticides and White King bleach brands.
Proceeds to refinance Sara Lee business
The proceeds from the sale of the HBC brands will be used to refinance the Sara Lee business in an effort to increase investment in growth and shareholder earning potential.
Likewise the company has announced a $2bn additional share repurchase scheme and is anticipating revenues between $2.5bn and $3bn in share buybacks within the course of the next three years.
With the proceeds of the sale of the HBC business to Unilever and P&G, Sara Lee says it will use the funds to implement part of its share repurchase plans.
Sara Lee