London, May 9, 2026, 21:10 BST
Kris Licht, CEO of Reckitt Benckiser Group plc, is framing China’s rapid shift to video-driven ecommerce as a key trial for the company’s broader strategy overhaul. Calling it “the most profound channel shift” he’s witnessed, Licht said Reckitt “pivoted hard” as shoppers left physical stores for their phones. The numbers are stark: ecommerce and social commerce — mostly through video and social apps — now account for roughly 80% of Reckitt’s sales in China, a steep climb from 30% six years back. China revenue is approaching £1 billion, with 11 consecutive quarters of double-digit gains, Licht told Semafor in an interview. Semafor
Timing’s key here. Reckitt is out to convince investors that digital sales, quicker product cycles, and artificial intelligence aren’t just headline fodder. The company’s had a rough stretch this year—soft cold-and-flu demand, climbing oil-driven costs, and challenges in Russia have all weighed on the numbers.
Reckitt has scheduled its “Focus On: Digital Science” virtual investor event for May 14, where digital and R&D leaders will outline how digital and AI tools are driving innovation and ramping up category growth. For CEO Licht, it’s a timely stage to reposition the China narrative as part of a bigger strategy. Reckitt
Reckitt kept up its capital returns. According to a May 8 regulatory filing, the company snapped up 190,500 ordinary shares on May 7 via Deutsche Bank, paying a volume-weighted average of 4,716.21 pence apiece—that’s about £9.0 million spent. The shares are heading to treasury. The document listed Reckitt with 639.8 million voting rights following the buyback.
Reckitt’s buyback isn’t large, but it comes at a tricky moment for the shares. The company missed first-quarter like-for-like revenue expectations back in April — excluding currency swings and portfolio shifts — and signaled that first-half margins would be about 200 basis points below last year. (One basis point equals one-hundredth of a percentage point.) Harsharan Mann of Aviva Investors summed up the quarter as “broad-based muted growth.” JPMorgan’s Celine Pannuti, meanwhile, pointed to the emerging-markets picture in Q2, saying it now clouds confidence in Reckitt’s full-year targets. Reuters
The squeeze isn’t letting up. Unilever plans to lift prices in “small doses” as it grapples with rising costs, while competitors like Nestlé and Procter & Gamble have sounded similar alarms over cost pressures from the Iran war. Reckitt, too, is warning about margin pain. That leaves Reckitt’s China-driven channel pivot caught in the same challenge dogging the bigger consumer staples names: hanging onto customers without pricing them out. Reuters
There’s a catch. Rising energy and commodity costs could still drive prices higher across the industry, which might push customers to opt for lower-priced private-label goods. Back in late April, Reuters flagged that Reckitt was already seeing some shoppers move away from its branded health and hygiene lines. Zavier Wong, a market analyst at eToro, noted that companies that hedged early and face fewer direct substitutes are in a stronger spot to absorb these pressures.
Russia remains a drag. Reckitt’s local arm is working on new products and filing for fresh intellectual property, scrambling to fill gaps in its hygiene lineup after stricter EU sanctions sidelined key household and germ-protection items, the company told Reuters last month. Bernstein’s Callum Elliot flagged that the Russia setback leaves investors questioning whether Reckitt can still deliver on full-year sales targets.
Licht says moving faster could help soften the blow. After unloading its Essential Home business for $4.8 billion, the company is putting its energy into mainstays like Durex, Lysol, and Mucinex. Mead Johnson, the baby-formula arm, remains under review as it deals with litigation. For investors, though, the real test is whether the digital strategy can actually drive sales outside China—pretty slides won’t cut it.
