Unilever Appoints Beauty Head Alan Jope As New CEO

Anglo Dutch consumer goods giant, Unilever said on Thursday (29) that its CEO Paul Polman will retire from the company.

Alan Jope, currently president, beauty and personal care, has been appointed to the position with effective January 1, 2019, with Polman supporting the transition process during the first half of the year.

Paul Polman has been Unilever CEO for over 10 years and has worked in the consumer goods industry for almost four decades. During his tenure, the company has delivered consistent top and bottom line growth ahead of its markets, the company said in a release.

Alan Jope (54), has led beauty and personal care, Unilever’s largest division, since 2014 and has been on the company’s leadership executive since 2011. He led Unilever’s business in both developed and emerging markets. Alan joined the company as a graduate marketing trainee in 1985.

Alan Jope said, “it will be a huge privilege to lead Unilever, a truly global company full of talented people, and brilliant brands. Over the 30 years I have worked at Unilever, I have seen the many ways in which our brands improve people’s lives, positively impacting more than two billion citizens every day.”

Polman will retire as CEO and as a board member on December 31, 2018. He will support the transition process in the first half of 2019 and will leave the company in early July.

A successor to the role of president, beauty and personal care will be announced shortly, Unilever said in a statement.

CEO Paul Polman’s is retiring less than 60 days after a damaging issue with stakeholders.

Polman’s retirement comes after the manufacturer of Dove soap and Ben&Jerry’s ice cream was pressured to stop a plan to change the firm’s headquarters to the Netherlands in October, following a stakeholder protest.