Unilever announces Board member Hein Schumacher as next CEO

– UK, London –  Unilever PLC (LON: ULVR | NYSE: UL) today announced the appointment of Hein Schumacher as its new CEO effective on 1st July 2023, to succeed Alan Jope, who will retire from the group.

“We are delighted to welcome Hein as our new Chief Executive, after an extensive, global search process. Hein is a dynamic, values-driven business leader who has a diverse background of experiences and an excellent track record of delivery in the global consumer goods industry. He has exceptional strategic capabilities, proven operational effectiveness, and strong experience in both developed and developing markets. The Board looks forward to Hein realising the full potential of Unilever as a winning business which delivers long-term growth and value for all its stakeholders,” said Board Chairman, Nils Andersen.

About Hein Schumacher

Hein is currently CEO of the global dairy and nutrition business Royal FrieslandCampina and became a Non-Executive Director of Unilever in October last year.

Hein is a business leader with an excellent track record across multiple leading companies in the consumer goods industry. As CEO of Royal FrieslandCampina, an €11bn turnover business operating in over 40 countries, he has delivered significant portfolio and organization change as part of transforming it into a more focused, growth-driven, and sustainable business.

Before joining Royal FrieslandCampina as CFO in 2014, Hein worked for H.J. Heinz for over a decade – during a time of significant change at the company – across the US, Europe, and Asia. In his last four years at Heinz, he was based in China, where he led a turnaround of the Asia Pacific zone. Hein began his career in finance at Unilever, before joining Royal Ahold NV.

Hein Schumacher commented: “I am delighted to have been appointed to lead Unilever. It is a business with an impressive global footprint, a strong brand portfolio, a talented team, and an enviable reputation as a leader in sustainability. In my time serving on the Board, I have only become more convinced by the strength of Unilever’s fundamentals and its clear growth potential. I will be very focused on working with the Unilever team to deliver a step-up in business performance, as we serve the billions of people around the world who use its products every day.”

Hein Schumacher is a global business leader with an excellent track record across multiple leading companies in the consumer goods industry.

He has been CEO of Royal FrieslandCampina, an €11bn business operating in over 40 countries – and with products sold in over 100 – since January 2018. During this time, Hein has delivered significant portfolio and organization change as part of transforming it into a more focused, growth-driven, and sustainable business. Before he was appointed CEO, Hein was Royal Friesland Campinas’s Chief Financial Officer for three years.

Before joining Royal FrieslandCampina, Hein worked for H.J. Heinz for over a decade – during a time of significant change at the company. In 2008 he was appointed Chief Strategy Officer, before moving to China in 2011 as its President and CEO. In 2013, he was appointed Executive Vice President of Kraft Heinz’s Asia Pacific Zone and led a successful turnaround of the business, which spanned China, Indonesia, India, Japan, and Oceania.

Earlier in his career, Hein worked in finance as Corporate Controller, in Asia and Central America for Royal Ahold NV. He began his career at Unilever.

Hein holds a Master’s degree in Political Science and International Relations from the University of Amsterdam.

About Unilever

Unilever is one of the world’s leading suppliers of Beauty & well-being, Personal Care, Home Care, Nutrition, and Ice Cream products, with sales in over 190 countries and products used by 3.4 billion people every day. We have 148,000 employees and generated sales of €52.4 billion in 2021.

Our vision is to be the global leader in sustainable business and to demonstrate how our purpose-led, future-fit business model drives superior performance. We have a long tradition of being a progressive, responsible business.

The Unilever Compass, our sustainable business strategy, is set out to help us deliver superior performance and drive sustainable and responsible growth, while:

– improving the health of the planet;
– improving people’s health, confidence, and wellbeing; and
– contributing to a fairer and more socially inclusive world.

For more information: https://www.unilever.com

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