text: Charles B. Strauss, president and CEO of Unilever United States, Inc., in November. 
  
  We’re well-positioned for growth in 2002. On Jan. 1 we renewed our relationship with 
  
  AARP by signing a new eight-year contract to market auto and homeowner’s insurance to 
  
  its 35 million members. Our small-business property-casualty operation continues to 
  
  grow—premiums surpassed $1.2 billion in annual sales in 2001. 
  
  We’re also in a leading position to take advantage of demographic shifts and to provide 
  
  estate planning and investment and insurance products to baby boomers. We are very excited, 
  
  too, about our new SMART 529™ college savings program, which offers ﬂexible features and 
  
  numerous tax advantages. And the growing small-business market segment is a key target for 
  
  our 401(k) and group-beneﬁts businesses. In fact, with $2 billion in fully insured premiums and 
  
  $106 million in net income, the Group Beneﬁts Division (GBD) had its best year ever. 
  
  As our markets continue to grow and evolve, we stay intensely focused on the key 
  
  strategies in all our businesses. 