Laurent Freixe will succeed Mark Schneider as chief executive officer of Nestlé S.A. on September 1. He is currently the Vevey, Switzerland-headquartered multinational food and drink company’s executive vice president and chief executive officer of Zone Latin America (LATAM).
Schneider, who has decided to relinquish his role as a member board of directors as well as the chief executive officer position, is leaving after over eight years on the job, during which time he actively shaped the company’s portfolio in line with a strategy to focus on high-growth categories.
Freixe (pictured above) joined Nestlé in France during 1986. Since then, he has continuously progressed within the company, assuming various positions of increasing responsibility across different businesses and market. He successfully managed Zone Europe during the financial and economic crisis, from 2008 until 2014. He then took over as CEO of Zone Americas, and was later named the chief executive officer of Zone Latin America.
Paul Bulcke, Nestlé’s chairman of the board, stated: “I have known Laurent for a long time and highly regard him as a talented leader with strategic acumen, extensive in-market experience and expertise as well as a deep understanding of markets and consumers. He has demonstrated his ability to deliver results in challenging market conditions and is the perfect fit for Nestlé at this time. Under his leadership, Nestlé will further strengthen its position as a dependable, reliable company through consistent and sustainable value creation.”
Buicke added: “I would also like to express our gratitude to Mark for his significant contributions to Nestlé and for his outstanding, steady leadership in turbulent times. He has been instrumental in the great progress we have made on our sustainability agenda. We extend our best wishes to him in all his professional and personal endeavors.”
