For the first time since the tariff saga began, the consumer goods giants have updated the market, revealing not only their business performance but also their advertising plans for the remainder of 2025.
Unilever & P&G on marketing spend in 2025
WPP, IPG, Omnicom, Havas and Publicis have all used their recent updates to reassure the market that all was stable during a period defined by global economic uncertainty as companies grapple with the tariffs imposed (and paused) by President Trump. Their key takeaway: clients aren’t cutting budgets – yet.
It seems for some of the industry’s biggest ad spenders, that’s true. In an update this week (April 24) Unilever said it would potentially up its brand and marketing spend to as much as 16% of sales while P&G said its ad investments were flat for the year but would flex depending on the “innovation pipeline.”
Here are the key takeaways.
This was the first time new chief executive Fernando Fernandez had addressed analysts since taking the top job earlier this year. Previous CEO Hein Schumacher stepped down in January after less than two years in the role amid reports that shareholders wanted a more decisive and accelerated pace of change.
Fernandez now faces the challenge of delivering that in an increasingly complex trading environment.
“We currently assess that the impact of tariffs on our value chain will be limited and manageable, driven by the localized and flexible nature of our supply chain. We are evaluating all options, including further localization and changes to material specifications, to minimize the impact. If necessary, we will also resort to price increases,” said Fernandez.
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As for budgets, Unilever increased its brand and marketing investment by €900m in 2024 and is committed to spending between 15% to 16% of sales “behind the right innovations” for the year ahead. Though Fernandez stressed it would shift where that spend goes “depending on where we have momentum versus where there could be less momentum in this current macroeconomic context.”
The new CEO has made no secret of his plans to put half of the company's budget into social media and influencer marketing versus traditional media. He said he wants to “cover every zip code with influencers and other people talking about our brands.”
“In the last few weeks, I have spent a lot of time with my top marketeers defining what we call the 4V model of social media – variety of creators, volume, virality and velocity of content,” he said.
“I’m really focused on that because the next stage in the transformation of Unilever is about creating a machine of demand creation both in marketing and sales.”
P&G said it expects to take a £1.5bn hit from the tariff situation (it imports 10% of its raw materials from China, where current tariffs stand at 145%) and planned to increase prices on some products to absorb some of the impact.
Chief financial officer Andre Shulten said global economic uncertainty was impacting on consumer sentiment and spending, which has meant consumption levels over the past two months are down in both Europe and the US.
It said it would “pull every lever” in its arsenal to mitigate against the impact. This might mean advertising spend is pulled down the line, but for now, it remains stable.
P&G spent roughly $12.7bn on worldwide marketing for the year ending June 2024.
“But the one thing that is very clear to us is that we continue to be committed to fully supporting innovation. That innovation is best supported with strong communication. So, media and advertising to our consumers is the primary vehicle of investment,” said Shulten.
“Investment levels specifically on media and advertising are flat in terms of percentage of sales. But we have a very strong innovation pipeline in the balance of the year, which we intend to focus all investments on. What exactly is dollar spending? We’ll adjust as we see the plans unfold.”
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One point it did address was whether it would adjust its communication to reflect any “anti-American” sentiment growing among consumers in regions that have been targeted by Trump, including China and Canada.
Shulten said it was “paying very close attention to social media or trade activation” to monitor consumer behaviour. While it has seen some “noise in markets like Canada” it hasn’t impacted sales.
“I would argue in most of our markets, our brands have been present for 10, 20 or 30 years. And if you ask consumers, they view them as local brands that they grew up with, not as a US brand that is foreign to them,” he added.
“That’s the case in Europe; that’s the case in China. And even in Canada, where the noise level is probably the highest. Consumption has held steady.”
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