By Richa Naidu

LONDON (Reuters – Billionaire investor Nelson Peltz did not have to start a proxy war – Unilever, NYSE: welcomed Peltz onto its board of directors with minimal fuss.

Unilever has announced that Peltz will be a non-executive director starting in July. His Trian investment vehicle had built up 1.5% of the stake. The announcement came four months after reports first surfaced that Peltz was buying into this group.

When he takes up the role, Peltz will have had a hand in running three out of the world’s four biggest consumer goods companies, including Procter & Gamble (NYSE:) and Pepsico (NASDAQ:).

Trian has allowed the 79 year-old New Yorker to get into some of the largest names in the industry including Heinz and Oreo-maker Mondelez (NASDAQ :). He also built a reputation of pugnacity.

A former Heinz CSU executive who worked alongside Peltz during the proxy war with Peltz told Reuters that Peltz was ferocious in what proved to be very destructive proxy battle. It was very bruising.

Procter & Gamble also went up against Peltz in 2017 in what was then the most expensive proxy fight in U.S. history and won marginally, eventually adding him to its board “because the election results were so close”.

Nils Andersen (Unilever) welcomed Peltz’s resignation, stating that he had held “extensive discussions” with Peltz. Peltz expressed his excitement about “working together with management”.

Unilever as well as Trian refused to make any further comments beyond the initial statements.

Unilever shares dropped 35% since September 2019, when they were at their highest, and has been confronted by hostile shareholders in recent months.

The group, which makes Ben & Jerry’s ice cream and Knorr stock cubes, has been under pressure from investors to reform since the start of the year, criticized mostly for its underperforming margins and three failed bids for GlaxoSmithKline (NYSE:)’s consumer health business.

Jack Martin, an Oberon Investments fund manager for Unilever, stated that Unilever was one of the “crown jewels” of large-capitalization UK companies. However, Unilever’s recent performance left much to be desired.

A recent failure to purchase GSK’s Consumer Healthcare Unit and bizarre language around Hellmann’s Mayonnaise being a purpose have sparked discontent from large shareholders.

Peltz may be a welcomed addition to this group. According to his colleagues, what sets Peltz apart is his “intensity”, which drives change. He also has the ability to maintain company executives’ attention with meticulous research.

He’s extremely well-informed and very friendly with the media. “We were continually surprised that he knew all the details,” the ex-Heinz executive stated. He spoke to analysts and industry professionals, ex-Heinz employees, and he clearly did his research.

Peltz provided “energy and intensity” for the company, according to the source.

Since Peltz joined its board, P&G shares have spiked about 90% – and the company has undertaken the overhaul Peltz had repeatedly called for.

Unilever’s investors are hoping for similar results.

It has made some cost-saving moves, such as consolidating its London headquarters, getting rid some slow growing businesses, like Lipton tea, trimming jobs, and moving to London. For many investors this is not enough.

Ashish Sinha (portfolio manager at shareholder Gabelli) stated that the portfolio of shareholders needs to be more focused. They’ve done a lot of acquisitions that are not on the radar. However, if you add them all together, it is quite a large outlay in terms of total expenditures.

Sinha stated, “We would like to see more accountability in terms how some of these acquisitions are performing.” Sinha also cited Dollar Shave Club (which Unilever purchased for $1 billion in 2016) as an example of a business that had underperformed.

Peltz, who joins Unilever’s board of directors, will also be a part the compensation committee. This group has control over salaries.

“Have the acquisitions been worth their money?” Sinha asked. Sinha asked, “And does this reflect well on Alan Jope’s and the top management’s pay?”