Jul 01, 2023 at 08:42Update: an hour ago
The British laundry and food group Unilever has another Dutchman at the helm. Hein Schumacher took office on July 1 as the new CEO of the company behind brands such as Dove, Knorr, Rexona and Magnum.
Schumacher was CEO of dairy company FrieslandCampina until the end of April. His new position at Unilever was announced in January this year. He had been a supervisory director at Unilever since last year and also worked for the company years ago.
The new CEO said at his appointment that Unilever has “a strong brand portfolio” and that he sees clear growth opportunities for the group. He also wants to commit himself “to taking business performance to the next level”.
Schumacher succeeds the Briton Alan Jope at Unilever, who announced last year that he would retire.
Failed attempt to take over pharmaceutical company
The announcement of Jope’s departure followed Unilever’s failed attempt to buy the consumer arm of British pharmaceutical company GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) for billions. That company makes Advil painkillers and Sensodyne toothpaste, among other things.
The takeover plan was widely criticized by shareholders. At the annual shareholders’ meeting in May, a majority of Unilever shareholders also voted against the remuneration for Jope out of dissatisfaction. Unilever promised to enter into dialogue with critical shareholders.
Jope started his career at Unilever in 1985 and has been the top boss of the group since early 2019. At the time, he succeeded the Dutchman Paul Polman, who held the top position for ten years.
2023-07-01 06:42:35
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