For decades, some of Unilever’s most iconic breakthroughs have been rooted in the United States. From early formulations that redefined everyday products to category-shaping innovation, the U.S. has long been a place where ideas take shape – and scale. This is why the U.S. market is one of the key growth engines for the company globally.
Today, that impact is felt in homes across the country, with Unilever products found in 95% of American households – a reflection of the company’s deep connection to people in the U.S. and its role in shaping everyday experiences.
Now, Unilever is building on that legacy with a bold next step.
Unilever has unveiled plans to develop a new Global Innovation Center in New Haven, Connecticut – a $270 million investment that reinforces the U.S. as a true center of gravity for Unilever’s future growth. The state-of-the-art hub brings together research and development across beauty, wellbeing and personal care, accelerating how new products are imagined, developed, and brought to market.
At the heart of the center is a simple but powerful ambition: to connect science, technology, and culture in entirely new ways. By bringing together experts across formulation, fragrance, packaging, and consumer insights under one roof, Unilever is designing a more integrated approach to innovation.
The center itself is designed with speed and scale in mind. As a digital-first, AI-powered facility, it will enable teams to generate insights faster, test ideas more efficiently, and accelerate product development in ways that weren’t possible before. Emerging technologies will further expand what’s possible – unlocking new approaches to materials discovery and helping to bring breakthrough ideas to life more quickly.
But innovation at Unilever is not just about product performance – it’s also about desirability. The center will bring together disciplines that shape the full consumer experience, from science and formulation to design and fragrance, ensuring products deliver not only superior results but meaningful sensory and emotional connections.
To support this vision, the center houses a unique set of capabilities, including a global hub for skin care and cleansing, a polycultural center of excellence, a human performance lab, an in-house fragrance house, and a packaging innovation studio. Together, these capabilities will enable the creation of next-generation products designed to meet the evolving expectations of consumers – and to scale globally.
As Unilever looks ahead, the Global Innovation Center will play a central role in shaping the future of CPG. It will be a place where ideas move faster, collaboration runs deeper, and innovation sets a new standard.