Unilever receives Alberto Culver shareholder approval for buyout

Unilever has announced that the shareholders of personal care firm Alberto Culver have approved its proposed takeover of the company.

Owners of stakes in Alberto Culver have voted in favour of Unilever's planned $3.7 billion (2.4 billion pounds) acquisition deal, which was announced in September 2010 and will give Unilever control of brands such as TRESemme, St Ives and Simple.

Unilever is currently seeking to secure regulatory approval of the merger and will be sending relevant information to the US Department of Justice as part of this.

The firm believes that the deal is complementary to its existing operations in the personal care sector, where it operates leading brands including Dove, Clear, Vaseline and Sunsilk.

Paul Polman, chief executive officer of Unilever, explained in September: "Personal care is a strategic category for Unilever and growing rapidly. Ten years ago it represented 20 percent of our turnover – strong organic growth has driven it to now reach over 30 percent."

The deal is now expected to be completed "in due course".