GENEVA (BLOOMBERG) - Unilever, which is trying to make a splash in the Asian cosmetics market, came to a surprising realisation after it developed a new shower gel for China.

The initials of the KJU Perfumed by Lux label matched those of the supreme leader of North Korea - Kim Jong Un.

The Anglo-Dutch company, which just snapped up cosmetics maker Carver Korea for US$2.7 billion (S$3.7 billion), created the KJU label with a Korean designer. But it insists that the name has nothing to do with Mr Kim.

"It was only after we trademarked it that I realised that it also stood for Kim Jong Un, but never mind," Mr Alan Jope, the company's head of personal care, said at a meeting with investors on Thursday.

KJU is designed for urban millennials and is available in fragrances such as "Romancy Rosy". Unilever is introducing it in China six months after starting work on it, Mr Jope said.