Unilever announced plans for a $270 million global innovation center in New Haven, Connecticut, that will serve as the research and development hub for its personal care, beauty, and wellbeing brands.
When fully staffed, the downtown New Haven site at 2 Church St. is projected to support a workforce of approximately 300 people, according to the company. A groundbreaking is anticipated before the end of this year, and the center is slated to be operational by spring 2029. It takes the place of a Trumbull, Connecticut research campus that Unilever has run since 1972, the Hartford Business Journal reported.
The $270 million investment includes $50 million in capital expenditure, which Unilever described as its largest R&D capital spending in the U.S. in 40 years. Combined public and private investment in the center will exceed $300 million, the company said. A footprint of roughly 100,000 square feet spread across two floors has been carved out for Unilever within the new structure, the Hartford Business Journal reported.
Under a single roof, the facility is designed to consolidate disciplines including consumer insights, packaging design, fragrance creation, and product formulation, the company said. Planned facilities include a global center for skin care and cleansing, a polycultural skin and hair care center of excellence, a human performance lab, a fragrance house, and a packaging innovation studio. AI tools and nascent quantum computing technologies are expected to play a role in driving materials research and accelerating other development work at the center, Unilever said.
"This new centre is where we'll innovate at the intersection of science, technology and culture," Herrish Patel, president of Unilever USA and CEO of personal care North America, said in a statement. "As the U.S. becomes a centre of gravity for Unilever, we're harnessing the best of American innovation to match our growth ambition here in the U.S. and around the world."
Part of the rationale for selecting New Haven was its emergence as a magnet for biotechnology investment, drawing in Yale University spinoffs and academic research institutions as part of a rapidly expanding life sciences corridor, the company said. The company currently holds more than 500 U.S. patents, it said.
Thursday's announcement builds on a decade of U.S. spending by the company that has totaled close to $15 billion across acquisitions and capital projects. Unilever has set a target of having its beauty, wellbeing, and personal care segment grow to account for two-thirds of overall revenues, compared with 51% at present. Brands in that portfolio include Dove, Nexxus, and Olly.
In a statement, Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont said the project would reinforce the state's reputation for innovation and called the new facility a cornerstone of a growing regional hub.