The price spat between Unilever and Tesco, which has seen stocks of Marmite running low at the UK’s biggest supermarket, is still capturing the imagination of the papers.

“Marmite-gate is over”, writes The Telegraph after Unilever resolved its dispute with Tesco over price rises after a 24-hour stand-off that saw Marmite and Domestos bleach pulled from the supermarket’s online store.

Unilever had wanted to raise its prices by about 10% to compensate for the steep drop in the value of the pound, but Unilever had to give some ground, according to the BBC. However, executives at other supermarkets told The Financial Times (£) on Thursday night that they had yet to strike a deal with the manufacturer.

Surveying the post-Marmite war landscape, The Guardian’s Nils Pratley writes: “Tesco played a blinder against Unilever in Marmite price row”. “We will never be told details of the settlement but it’s clear Unilever was ill-prepared for a dirty public spat over prices”. (The Guardian)

Similarly, The Telegraph’s Allister Heath calls the saga a PR coup for the supermarket. “Tesco is playing a clever PR hand: it has turned itself into a neutral advocate of consumer interests – a campaigner for lower prices. This is an astonishing transformation by Dave Lewis, who has slowly been rescuing Tesco.” (The Telegraph)

Looking at Unilever’s third quarter update, The Financial Times (£) writes that the strategy of charging higher prices to compensate for weak consumer demand was underscored on Thursday by Unilever, the producer of Dove soap and Magnum ice cream, which eked out an increase in sales driven entirely by price rises.

Unilever reported a better than expected performance in the third quarter as it dismissed a 24-hour dispute with Tesco over the pricing of goods as a “currency devaluation-led” issue (The Times £). Price rises helped household products giant Unilever unveil better than expected trading today even as they have sparked a row with supermarket giant Tesco. (The Daily Mail).

Graeme Pitkethly, chief financial officer, said that in the UK, which accounts for 5% of sales, “prices should start increasing to reflect the higher import costs from sterling, subject to customer affordability” (The Telegraph). He insisted on Thursday morning that price increases to offset rising costs were a normal part of doing business. “We are taking price increases in the UK. That is a normal devaluation-led cycle,” he said. (The Guardian)

The FT’s Lex column puts the focus on the UK spat in perspective. “Unilever chief executive Paul Polman has an aspiration to sell 80 per cent to emerging markets. Despite recent appearances, UK sales do not count, and the company’s pricing squabbles are a distraction given that the UK is 5 per cent of group sales. Progress to that emerging markets goal matters far more.” (The Financial Times £)

Meanwhile, Unilever may have resolved its dispute with Tesco over the price of Marmite but it has become embroiled in another row over price increases with SuperValu, a big Irish supermarket chain. SuperValu said on Thursday it had refused to accept “an unjustified price increase” demand from Unilever for items supplied by the the global consumer goods company and that as a result its stores “may experience some supply issues on certain Unilever products.” (The Financial Times £)

The Guardian has looked at how sterling swings will affect prices of everyday items including clothing, wine, bread and fruit, which are expected to come under increasing pressure as Brexit nears. (The Guardian)

The Telegraph’s Ashley Armstrong also suggests the price row between Tesco and Unilever could be just the start of a wave of tense negotiations between suppliers and retailers as the plunge in the value of the pound increases the prices of goods that have to be imported from abroad. (The Telegraph)

Elsewhere, air passengers push sales at WH Smith to 14-year high, writes The Times (£). The Daily Mail suggests YouTube sensation Zoella helped a transformed WH Smith hit its best sales in 14 years after the retailer transformed its travel and high street businesses to attract more customers. However, like-for-like sales at its high street outlets fell 2% in the year as demand for adult colouring books, known as colour therapy, was slowing (The Financial Times £).

The pensions lifeboat has refused to disclose details of its spending on external legal advice over the collapse of BHS, despite the Pensions Regulator releasing its own payments. (The Times £)

Finally, The FT’s Lombard column suggests Marmite-gate might just be the start of our post-Brexit worries. A dispatch from its correspondent in “Somewhere in England, October 13 2019, reads: “Dear Friend, This is the last time you will hear from me. My pursuers are very close to the derelict Tesco Express where I am hiding. They will find and kill me. Not for gold, petrol or bread, but for something now infinitely more precious: a small pot of Marmite.” (The Financial Times £)

Topics