Nestle names new CEO
Nestlé SA on Monday named Ulf Mark Schneider, the head of a European health-care company—to be its new chief executive, in a surprise move that underscores the increasing emphasis on health and nutrition from the owner of Kit Kat candy bars, Perrier mineral water and DiGiorno frozen pizza.
Mr. Schneider, chief executive of Germany-based Fresenius SE, will succeed current CEO Paul Bulcke, whom Nestlé’s board proposed as the company’s next chairman after Peter Brabeck-Letmathe retires from that position next year.
While Mr. Bulcke, who has been at Nestlé nearly four decades—was widely expected to succeed Mr. Brabeck-Letmathe, the appointment of Mr. Schneider as CEO was unexpected.
“It is a big surprise. An insider was expected,” said Jon Cox, head of Swiss equities at Kepler Cheuvreux. Mr. Schneider “has a very strong track record,” Mr. Cox added, but “he doesn’t have a food-and-beverage background.”
Many investors and analysts had expected 150-year-old Nestlé to stick with tradition and name one of several strong internal candidates—including the head of its Asia, Oceania and Africa zone, Wan Ling Martello; head of business excellence, Chris Johnson; and head of the Americas, Laurent Freixe—as the next CEO.
Mr. Schneider will be the first outsider to run Nestlé since 1922, when banker Louis Dapples was chosen to lead the company after its only financial loss.
Société Générale analyst Warren Ackerman described the appointment as “a breath of fresh air,” saying Mr. Schneider “will bring something new to the table and reinforce Nestlé’s credentials in health and wellness.”
Under Mr. Bulcke, Nestlé over the past eight years has been expanding its nutrition-and-health-sciences arm, a business both investors and employees believe could be a game changer.
Mr. Schneider is seen as a strong person to lead Nestlé through its journey of becoming a more health-focused foods company because of his experience leading Fresenius over 13 years. The company generates annual sales of €28 billion ($31 billion) and offers products and services for dialysis, hospitals and outpatient treatments.
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