Chanel Appoints Leena Nair As Global CEO

Leena Nair, Unilever’s first female and youngest-ever Chief Human Resources Officer, has stepped down to become the Global Chief Executive of French luxury brand Chanel.

#LeenaNair, the first female and youngest-ever Chief Human Resources Officer of Anglo-Dutch FMCG major #Unilever has stepped down to join French luxury group #Chanel as its Global Chief Executive.

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— CNBC-TV18 (@CNBCTV18Live) December 14, 2021

She was a member of Unilever’s Leadership Executive (ULE), which is in charge of the company’s commercial and financial results.

“Chief Human Resources Officer Leena Nair has opted to depart the firm in January 2022 to explore a new career opportunity as Global Chief Executive Officer, Chanel Ltd”, Unilever stated in a statement.

It has been reported that Nair will be based in London because of her new position with Chanel.

Alain Wertheimer, a French billionaire who owns Chanel with his brother Gerard Wertheimer, will take over as worldwide executive chairman, according to the company.

From 2007 through 2016, Maureen Chiquet was the CEO of Chanel. She reportedly left Chanel in 2016 because of differences of opinion regarding the company’s strategic direction. Until now, the CEO position has remained vacant.

“I would like to thank Leena for her outstanding contribution over the last three decades. Leena has been a pioneer throughout her career at Unilever, but no more so than in her role as CHRO, where she has been a driving force on our equity, diversity and inclusion agenda, on the transformation of our leadership development, and our preparedness for the future of work”, Unilever CEO Alan Jope said.

As a result of her work, we have built a purpose-driven, future-fit organization, which is now the employer of choice in over 50 countries around the world.

Nair, a 1992 graduate of XLRI Jamshedpur, worked for HUL, Unilever’s Indian division, for 30 years.