Unilever’s new chief executive said that the idea of corporate purpose could be an “unwelcome distraction” for some brands as he laid out a plan to drive growth following years of disappointing performance at the maker of Magnum and Marmite (Financial Times £). The new boss of Unilever said the consumer goods group would stop “force-fitting” social justice messaging onto brands as he unveiled plans for a turnaround to improve performance (The Times £). Unilever will no longer seek to “force-fit” all of its brands with a social purpose, its new chief executive said, following a backlash over the company’s “virtue-signalling (Telegraph). Unilever has given the clearest hint yet that it will dial down its ‘woke’ agenda as its unveiling of a turnaround plan underwhelmed investors (Daily Mail).

Workers returning to the office and socialising after pandemic lockdowns helped lead to a 15% surge in sales of deodorants, according to the maker of Dove, Rexona and Impulse (The Guardian). Sales of ice cream fell sharply this summer in part due to bad weather, says the maker of Ben & Jerry’s and Magnum (BBC).

The boss who steered Aldi’s assault on Britain’s traditional supermarkets has been hired by Tesco to lead its domestic operations as it battles the rise of the discounters (The Times £). Tesco has hired the former boss of Aldi to lead its UK business as traditional supermarkets fight back against the rise of the discounters (Telegraph £).

The chief executive of Tesco UK is to step down after six years leading Britain’s biggest supermarket chain. (Sky News)

Wilko stores are to return to high streets across the UK before Christmas under fresh plans set out by the brand’s new owner. (The Times £)

The owner of PizzaExpress is weighing a possible rival offer for Wagamama owner The Restaurant Group, weeks after private equity group Apollo agreed a surprise deal to take the casual-dining operator private (Financial Times £). The Restaurant Group has said that the owner of PizzaExpress could make a takeover offer, starting a bidding war with Apollo Global Management (The Times £). A takeover battle for Wagamama’s parent company could be on the horizon after Pizza Express’s owner expressed an interest (Daily Mail).

French food retailer Casino cut its annual earnings outlook as a poor performance from its large format hyper and supermarket stores dragged on the indebted group. (Financial Times £)

Online retail sales have contracted at the sharpest pace on record this month, dragged lower by people cutting back on their spending because of higher interest rates and an uncertain economic outlook. (The Times £)

Almost nine in ten Britons would support an import ban on foie gras, according to a study. (The Times £)

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