HUL hits highest-ever home care share as India growth accelerates

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TL;DR:

HUL has reached its highest-ever Home Care market share in India, backed by double-digit category growth, strong volumes and rising liquids adoption. The gain matters because India is Unilever’s largest Home Care market and a key test of premiumisation without losing affordability.

Article:

Hindustan Unilever has reached its highest-ever Home Care market share in India, according to Unilever’s first-half 2026 results, after double-digit category growth and volume-led gains. The milestone matters because India is Unilever’s largest Home Care market, accounting for 20% of the business’s 2025 turnover, and because the gains are coming from both scale and format change.

Unilever reported Home Care underlying sales growth of 7.6% in the first half, with 7.4% volume growth and just 0.2% from price. India overall grew 8%, with 6% volume growth, then accelerated to 10% in the second quarter; Home Care and hair care both reached record market shares.

HUL’s FY26 Home Care performance highlights show ₹23,672 crore in revenue, a 37% contribution to HUL, and more than ₹4,000 crore from its liquids portfolio. HUL says liquids grew at a strong double-digit rate as it pushed format upgrades, broader price points and sharper channel execution, including modern trade and quick commerce.

Vandana Suri, HUL’s Executive Director for Home Care, said, “Home Care’s growth strategy is rooted in building category value through format upgradation and premiumisation.” The commercial logic is clear: move consumers toward higher-value liquids without surrendering affordability in powders, bars and access packs.

That creates a tougher competitive equation for India’s FMCG market. Rivals must defend mass-market price points while investing in liquids, premium formats and channel-specific availability. HUL’s liquids portfolio rose from more than ₹3,500 crore in FY25 to over ₹4,000 crore in FY26, suggesting the shift is already commercially material.

The next test is pricing. As commodity costs rise and calibrated price increases filter through, the durability of HUL’s home care share gains will depend on whether volume growth holds and consumers continue moving toward liquids.