Unilever on Monday announced the appointment of Hein Schumacher as its new chief executive officer, effective July 1, 2023. Schumacher replaces Alan Jope, who has been at the helm since 2019.
Schumacher previously served as the CEO of Royal FrieslandCampina, a Dutch multinational dairy cooperative operating in over 40 countries.
Before joining Royal FrieslandCampina, Schumacher spent over 10 years at HJ Heinz where he held several positions, including chief strategy officer. He later relocated to China as president and CEO in 2011.
Schumacher was appointed as a non-executive director of
Unilever PLC, which kicked in in October 2022. He currently also serves on the Audit Committee as a member.
Unilever is a multinational consumer goods company operating in over 190 countries. The company produces food, beverages, cleaning products and personal care items.
As the new CEO of Unilever, Schumacher will be responsible for leading the company's future growth and innovation.
News of Jope's departure comes soon after rumours of his retirement were confirmed by Unilever in September 2022 who said the British businessman would leave by the end of 2023.
Fund manager at Unilever shareholder Oberon Investments had called Jope's tenure as CEO as "a bit of a mixed bag" as its shares had underperforming European consumer staples and discretionary indices, as most of the company's rivals.
A source familiar with the matter said Unilever's "unusual" decision to tell the market more than a year before Jope leaves stemmed from concerns that the news would have leaked before being officially announced.
The company had announced in September 2022 that they were considering both internal and external candidates.
