Changing of the guard at Unilever. After only two years, Hein Schumacher is stepping down as CEO and member of the Board of Directors. His retirement is scheduled to take effect on March 1. The decision, according to a note from Unilever, was made "by mutual agreement" with the company, which Schumacher will leave definitively on May 31.

The role of CEO will then be assumed by Fernando Fernandez , currently CFO and Executive Director of Unilever. Before becoming CFO in January 2024, Fernandez was President of Beauty & Wellbeing, one of Unilever's fastest-growing businesses. In his previous roles as President Latin America, CEO Brazil and CEO Philippines, the manager led "some of the company's best-performing markets, achieving strong financial results and developing exceptional talent".

"On behalf of the Board, I would like to thank Hein for reshaping Unilever's strategy, for the focus and discipline he has brought to the business and for the strong financial progress achieved in 2024," said Unilever Chairman Ian Meakins . " Hein introduced and led a major productivity program and the start of the separation of Ice Cream, both of which were fully on track. The Growth Action Plan (Gap) has put Unilever on a path to higher performance and the Board is committed to accelerating its execution. We are grateful for Hein 's leadership and wish him all the best for the future."

On Fernandez’s appointment as CEO, Meakins said: “The Board was impressed by Fernando ’s decisive, results-oriented approach and his ability to drive change quickly.” At the same time, the chairman noted that “while the Board is pleased with Unilever’s performance in 2024, there is still a long way to go to achieve best-in-class results.”

For his part, Schumacher said: "We have made real progress and I am proud of what we have achieved in a short space of time. With a clear strategy, a portfolio reset in place and a strong leadership team in place, I look forward to seeing Unilever go from strength to strength in the future."

The new CEO Fernandez immediately expressed his programmatic lines: "We will focus on building a future-proof portfolio with an attractive growth footprint and delivering unmatched functional and measurable superiority across our 30 leading energy brands. I have full confidence in our team's ability to propel Unilever to a global industry leader position and create substantial value for our shareholders. I would like to thank Hein for his values-based leadership and focus on performance that he has brought to the company. I wish him every success for the future."

In its note, the group finally specifies that "there are no changes in Unilever's 2025 outlook or in the company's medium-term guidelines".