UNILEVER SELLS SARIWANGI TEA BRAND TO DJARUM-AFFILIATED SAVORIA IN IDR 1.5 TRILLION DEAL

Unilever will divest its long-standing Indonesian tea brand SariWangi to Savoria Kreasi Rasa, part of the Djarum Group, for around IDR 1.5 trillion. The sale aligns with Unilever’s strategy to streamline its portfolio and focus on faster-growing categories, as tea now contributes only a small share to its Indonesian business.  

Unilever has agreed to sell its long-standing Indonesian tea brand SariWangi to Savoria Kreasi Rasa, an affiliate of the Djarum Group, in a deal valued at roughly IDR 1.5 trillion (US$89 million), marking the latest move in the consumer goods giant’s drive to streamline its portfolio and focus on higher-growth categories. The transaction will transfer one of Indonesia’s most recognisable packaged tea names to a local food and beverage group that has been expanding its footprint across consumer categories.

For Unilever, the divestment underscores a strategic rethink that has been years in the making. The company has been trimming brands that lack scale or no longer fit its long-term priorities, while concentrating resources on platforms with stronger global potential. Management has repeatedly signalled the intent to simplify its sprawling portfolio and “do fewer things better,” prioritising categories that deliver faster growth and stronger margins.

SariWangi, meanwhile, occupies an important place in Indonesia’s beverage landscape. First launched decades ago and acquired by Unilever in 1989, the brand introduced bagged tea to a mainstream audience and helped cement it as a daily household habit. Its distinctive blue packaging became familiar in family kitchens, warungs and supermarket shelves across the country. But cultural relevance has not translated into strategic importance for Unilever in recent years. Tea now represents only a small portion of Unilever Indonesia’s revenue and profit, making the business harder to justify in a portfolio increasingly steered toward beauty, personal care, home care and select food platforms with higher returns.

For Savoria Kreasi Rasa, the acquisition signals confidence in the domestic food and beverage market and the enduring value of legacy Indonesian brands. The company, backed by the diversified Djarum Group, has been building a stable of consumer products and may see room to rejuvenate SariWangi or integrate it into a broader beverage ecosystem. Local ownership could open new avenues for distribution, pricing and product development attuned to Indonesian tastes.

Industry observers see the deal as part of a wider recalibration in the packaged tea segment, where competition has intensified and consumer preferences are fragmenting toward ready-to-drink formats, functional beverages and artisanal blends. While traditional tea remains deeply ingrained in daily life, the category’s pace of innovation has been uneven and margins comparatively thin—an increasingly tough fit for multinational portfolios that prize scale and premiumisation.

The sale allows Unilever to reallocate capital to categories it believes can deliver stronger future growth, while Savoria gains a brand with heritage and national familiarity. As the transaction progresses through regulatory and integration steps, the outcome may offer a case study in how legacy local brands can find new life under owners with different strategic priorities—and how global firms are reshaping themselves to stay competitive in a more focused, margin-driven era.