LONDON, Feb. 5, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Avon Products, Inc.
(NYSE: AVP), today announced that Jan
Zijderveld has been appointed Chief Executive Officer,
effective immediately. He succeeds Sheri
McCoy, who previously announced her intention to retire from
the Company and Board. Jan will also serve as a member of the Board
of Directors.
Jan joins Avon from Unilever
N.V./PLC ("Unilever"), a global leader in personal care, home and
food products, where he has had a 30-year career, living and
working in seven countries across three continents. He most
recently served as a member of Unilever's Executive Committee, and
as President of Unilever's $14
billion European business.
As President of Europe, Jan was
responsible for Unilever's largest operating business, encompassing
34 countries and 25,000 employees. Under Jan's leadership, the
European business stabilized and returned to growth and improved
profitability following several years of decline and during
significantly challenging market conditions. He previously served
as Executive Vice President in South East
Asia and Australasia, where he drove substantial organic
growth through a significant step-up in innovation, market
development and in-store execution. During this time Jan was also
Non-Executive Chairman of Unilever's listed Indonesian business,
with a market capitalisation in excess of $20 billion.
Prior to that, as CEO of Unilever, Middle East and North Africa, Jan successfully led a complex
business, in a volatile region, which included many joint venture
partners and several distributor and go to market models. While
leading this region, he refocused the food and personal care
portfolio and created dedicated modern and traditional trade
channels to meet the needs of the changing marketplace. In
addition, Jan has previously held a number of leadership positions
across Europe, Australia and New
Zealand, where he built his career in General Management,
marketing, sales and distribution.
"On behalf of the Board of Directors, we are delighted to
welcome Jan to Avon, who we
unanimously appointed from a very strong list of seasoned global
executives," said Chan Galbato,
Chairman of the Board of Directors of Avon. "With his 30-year track record as a
proven global leader, Jan has driven profitable growth in large,
multi-channel, complex consumer businesses across emerging,
developing and developed markets."
Mr. Galbato continued, "In addition, Jan's focus on strategic
and operational excellence, while putting our direct selling
representatives and consumers front and center, makes him ideally
suited to lead Avon. The
Avon Board looks forward to
supporting Jan as he leads a deep and comprehensive strategic and
operating review of all facets of the business and evaluates ways
to significantly accelerate Avon's
path to profitable growth."
Jan Zijderveld, Chief Executive
Officer said, "I am thrilled to be joining Avon at such an important chapter in the
Company's turnaround. I strongly believe in the opportunity and
relevance of direct selling for today's representatives and
consumers. Avon is an iconic brand
with an incredible global footprint as the world's leading direct
selling beauty company, operating in the attractive and growing
beauty category."
"With a dramatically changing consumer and competitor landscape,
business as usual is not an option. Alongside continuing
significant operational improvements in the near term, we will take
a fresh look at the business, and deliver Avon's next chapter with a sense of urgency. I
am looking forward to working with Avon's talented global team, while continuing
to drive compelling opportunities for our six million
representatives to do business with us."
Mr. Galbato continued, "On behalf of the Board, I would like to
take this opportunity to thank Sheri
McCoy for her leadership and commitment to Avon.
During her time as CEO, Sheri has ensured Avon representatives are at the forefront of
all the Company does."
About Avon Products Inc.
Avon is the Company that for 130 years has
proudly stood for beauty, innovation, optimism and, above all, for
women. Avon products include
well-recognized and beloved brands such as ANEW, Avon Color, Avon
Care, Skin-So-Soft, and Advance Techniques sold through
approximately 6 million active independent Avon Sales
Representatives. Learn more about Avon and its products at
www.avoncompany.com.
Contacts:
INVESTORS:
Avon Investor Relations
Gina Grant
(914) 935-2121
ICR, Inc.
Allison Malkin/Caitlin Morahan
(203) 682-8200
MEDIA:
Brunswick
Mathilde Milch / Laura Buchanan
U.S.: (212) 333-3810 / U.K. +44 207 404 5959
Forward Looking Statements
This press release
contains "forward-looking statements" that are made pursuant to the
safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform
Act of 1995, including turnaround of the Company's business,
achieving its stated long-term financial goals, and the execution
of its strategic plan to create consistent, sustainable and
profitable growth. Because forward-looking statements
inherently involve risks and uncertainties, actual future results
may differ materially from those expressed or implied by such
forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties
include, but are not limited to, the possibility of business
disruption, competitive uncertainties, and general economic and
business conditions in Avon's
markets as well as the other risks detailed in Avon's filings with the Securities and
Exchange Commission. Avon
undertakes no obligation to update any statements in this press
release for changes that happen after the date of this release.
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SOURCE Avon Products, Inc.