Tuesday, December 29, 2009

Journey of HUL-

Journey of HUL- One of the most successful company of India. In the summer of 1888, visitors to the Kolkata harbour noticed crates full of Sunlight soap bars, embossed with the words "Made in England by Lever Brothers". With it, began an era of marketing branded Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) 1895- Lifebuoy launched. 1918- Pears, Lux and Vim. 1937- Dalda brand came to the market 1956- Unilever set up its first Indian subsidiary, Hindustan Vanaspati Manufacturing Company in 1931, followed by Lever Brothers India Limited (1933) and United Traders Limited (1935). These three companies merged to form HUL in November 1956. 1972- Unilever acquired Lipton 1984- Brooke Bond joined the Unilever fold 1986- It joined the Unilever fold through an international acquisition of Chesebrough Pond's USA 1993- Tata Oil Mills Company (TOMCO) merged with HUL. It acquired the Kissan business from the UB Group and the Dollops Icecream business from Cadbury India 1998- Lakme sold brands to HUL. 2000- In a historic step, the government decided to award 74 per cent equity in Modern Foods to HUL, thereby beginning the divestment of government equity in public sector undertakings (PSU) to private sector partners. HUL's entry into Bread is a strategic extension of the company's wheat business. In 2002, HUL acquired the government's remaining stake in Modern Foods. 2001- “Project Shakti”. It is a rural initiative that targets small villages populated by less than 5000 individuals. It is a unique win-win initiative that catalyses rural affluence even as it benefits business. Currently, there are over 45,000 Shakti entrepreneurs covering over 100,000 villages across 15 states and reaching to over 3 million homes 2002-HUL made its foray into Ayurvedic health & beauty centre category with the Ayush product range and Ayush Therapy Centres. 2004- ‘Pureit’ water purifier launched. 2007- Company name was formally changed to Hindustan Unilever Limited from Hindustan Lever Limited 2008 - HUL completed 75 years of corporate existence in India

Thursday, December 17, 2009

Progeria

Progeria, is one of the most discussed disease these days due to release of “Paa”, where Amitabh Bacchan plays character of “AURO”- a 13 year old kid suffering from Progeria. The word "Progeria" comes from the Greek progeros meaning 'prematurely old'. The Greek word pro means 'before', while the word geras means 'old age'. Progeria was first described in an academic journal by Dr. Jonathan Hutchinson in 1886, and Dr. Hastings Gilford in 1897 - both in England. Therefore, it is also called HGPS (Hutchinson-Gilford Progeria Syndrome). Progeria is an extremely rare, fatal genetic condition. Progeria affects children and gives them an appearance of accelerated aging. Although they may come from varying ethnic backgrounds, children with Progeria have a surprisingly similar appearance. Progeria patients generally die between the ages of 8 and 21 - with the average age being 13. Scientists are particularly interested in progeria because it might reveal clues about the normal process of aging.