Scaling fast, winning big – how Reckitt is gaining ground in Emerging Markets

Encompassing 67 countries over 6 regions, Emerging Markets is the largest of Core Reckitt’s three geographical areas. It’s also one of the most exciting in terms of growth opportunity. Already contributing over 40% of Core Reckitt’s net revenues, with our portfolio of market-leading ‘Powerbrands’, Emerging Markets look set to continue growing sustainably. Three of our top ten markets are now in this area (China, India and Brazil) and penetration along with performance continues to deliver across many regions, from Colombia to Vietnam.

As a classification, “Emerging Markets” is something of a misnomer as many of the regions under the umbrella have already emerged and some, such as China, are amongst the most advanced markets in the world. Recognising this diversity, we’ve developed an adaptable, consumer-first approach and a scalable playbook that have allowed us to optimise our offering for each individual market and drive a strong track record of accelerating growth. The depth of our experience and local know-how has been integral to Reckitt’s success.

Reckitt also has history here; we’ve been operating in Emerging Markets for more than 100 years. Our first distribution beyond Europe and North America took place in 1899, while our first factory in Brazil was established in 1933. The longevity of our presence in Emerging Markets has allowed us to build brands that now have tremendous heritage, and that are trusted and loved all around the world. “We are not new to Emerging Markets,” explains Reckitt CEO Kris Licht. “Reckitt has a deep consumer knowledge, built over decades, enabling category creation and premiumisation.”

By partnering with manufacturers and healthcare professionals, as well as reaching consumers on the right channels at the right time, Reckitt has achieved stand out market penetration. Last year, our products were available in over 10 million stores; we shipped 125 million online orders and we engaged directly with 150,000 healthcare professionals – an expansion that has translated into accelerated growth across the area. “From 2015 to 2019, Emerging Markets was growing at an average of 5%,” explains Nitish; “at 8% from 2019 to 2024, and we have seen strong double-digit growth at almost 14% for the first nine months of this year.”

Reckitt’s strength across Emerging Markets is anchored in our brand portfolio, with 10 of our 11 global Powerbrands activated. These have grown successfully across the territories and collectively make up 70% of regional net revenue. At the recent Reckitt Focus On: Emerging Markets event, the leadership team shared some powerful case studies from across the globe.  Here are a few highlights: 

• Dettol - This century-old brand has garnered a wealth of accolades. It’s the #1 trusted healthcare brand or the #1 germ protection brand across multiple regions, from Saudia Arabia to South Africa. Introduced as an antiseptic liquid almost 100 years ago, it’s now used over a billion times a year. With recent innovation, we’ve also stretched the brand into new margin-expanding categories (personal care, surface cleaners and, most recently, washing-machine santiser in China) which now make up a large proportion of the brand’s business. 

• Harpic – By partnering with local government and inspiring behavioural change, we’ve transformed this brand from a niche toilet cleaner to a mainstream essential and achieved great results: More than doubling penetration since 2015 and driving double digit growth in annual sales.

• Durex – This leading intimate wellness brand has seen strong growth in China, across LATAM and in Nigeria, where a combination of a lower price point pack and higher store penetration has driven a significant increase in brand awareness. “26 million consumers were aware of Durex in 2022,” explains Ryan. “By 2025, the figure was 68 million.” 

To ensure sustainable growth, we’ve developed a fine-tuned and scalable growth strategy, built around three pillars:

1. Continuing penetration in mature categories – an always-on drive for growth in our long-established categories. 
2. Developing nascent categories – unlocking the potential of underdeveloped but high-potential sectors, such as self-care, vitamins, dishwashing and indigestion relief.
3. Scaling up next tier countries – prioritising areas where we see the strongest growth potential: Malaysia, Vietnam, Indonesia and clusters of countries centred around Colombia, Nigeria and Kenya. As an example of our ambition, the aim is to triple net revenues in Vietnam by 2030. 

To capture every growth opportunity in Emerging Markets, we want to ensure we can reach consumers wherever they are. Using data, technology and collaboration with healthcare professionals, we’ve developed models for go-to-market excellence that can be replicated across the network.    

• Offline: Our centre of excellence is in India. Using data and AI, we’ve enabled precise distribution across the country’s 11 million stores and lifted sales rep productivity to 92%. 

• Online and social commerce: With 50 per cent of the world's e-commerce, China is the home of our centre of excellence for online. As consumer shopping habits have rapidly evolved, our digital hub in China drives our global model in this exciting space, delivering over 1 million short videos in 2025, reaching 15 billion views and gaining share across every category we play in. 

• Over-the-counter for OTC: The LATAM region is Reckitt’s North Star. Using a ‘health pyramid’ approach to collaborate with professionals at every level of the healthcare sector (government, health authorities, pharmacists), we’ve been able to showcase the efficacy of our products while accelerating brand adoption and recommendation. Strepsils in Colombia, for example, has multiplied its market share by eight in the last five years. 

The demographics and macroeconomic outlook are set to drive continued growth opportunities for Reckitt in the region. Emerging Markets are on track to account for 50% of global GDP by 2030, and the E7 economies are growing twice as fast as the G7. Vietnam, for example, experienced GDP growth of over 8% last year, making it ASEAN’s fastest growing economy. Most importantly, the number of households with $25,000+ in disposable income in Emerging Markets has now surpassed the EU and North America combined.

“There are rising incomes and new consumption habits everywhere in Emerging Markets,” says Nitish. “We believe that we, more than anybody else, have the right portfolio for these evolving consumer needs.”

Find out more about the Reckitt Focus On: Emerging Markets event