PARIS — Beiersdorf AG said on Tuesday that it is reshuffling management, with the appointments effective starting Jan. 1, when Stefan De Loecker becomes the German personal-care company’s chief executive officer.
Ralph Gusko, a member of Beiersdorf’s executive board since July 2011, who oversees brands, research and development, and the Asia-Pacific region will leave the group at the end of 2019 at the latest. Beiersdorf said his departure is by mutual consent.
Asim Naseer, global marketing director for skin care, based in Singapore for Procter & Gamble, has been appointed to Beiersdorf’s executive board with the oversight of its consumer brands, effective Jan. 1.
Ramon A. Mirt will become a member of the group’s board on March 18 and spearhead its Near East and Americas regions, succeeding De Loecker in the role. Mirt most recently has served as Reckitt Benckiser’s senior vice president of Central and Eastern Europe.
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Meanwhile, a newly established executive committee will manage the Beiersdorf Group’s consumer business segment. Alongside the company’s executive board will be May Shana’a, global head of R&D, and Harald Emberger, global head of supply chain.
“Such [a] decision could seem quite usual if the new ceo wants to put the focus on operational discipline and support future growth,” wrote Pierre Tegnér, an analyst with ODDO BHF, in a note.
“But what we see is that such [a] decision could be also more than useful if the ceo does want to secure the execution of an acquisition,” he added. “We continue to think that the Galderma/Nestlé Skin Health could help Beiersdorf in being positioned on all the three key segments of the skin-care market: mass with Nivea, super premium with La Prairie, and dermatology with Galderma [and] Eucerin.”
Reinhard Pöllath, chairman of the group’s supervisory board, thanked Gusko and commended him for being both “a pillar and a driver of worldwide Beiersdorf business,” and welcomed Naseer and Mirt.
“They will help Beiersdorf further deepen its commitment to international diversity and being closest to markets and consumers,” said Pöllath.
As reported, De Loecker’s appointment was revealed in mid-October. He will succeed Stefan F. Heidenreich, who steps down from the ceo position on Dec. 31. He started in the job in 2012.
De Loecker joined the maker of Nivea, Eucerin and La Prairie products in 2012, first as senior vice president, Near East. In 2014, he was named to the executive board and also took charge of the Americas on April 1, 2016. De Loecker was appointed deputy chairman of the executive board on July 1.
Prior to that, he held positions at Tesco plc and Nestlé Group.