Leena Nair, luxury outsider, will be the next CEO of Chanel
After joining Unilever 29 years ago, Nair worked her way up to become the first Asian, first female, and youngest chief human resources officer at the company.
Shriya Patil/The The India Today Group via Getty Images
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The luxury fashion brand Chanel picked its newest CEO from a pool that wasn’t filled with $80 perfume. The company announced that Leena Nair, an exec at the British consumer goods giant Unilever, would replace billionaire co-owner and chairman Alain Wertheimer.
Who is Nair? After joining Unilever 29 years ago, she worked her way up to become the first Asian, first female, and youngest chief human resources officer at the company.
- As the first luxury brand CEO of Indian origin, Nair brings Chanel into the ranks of powerful companies like Google, Microsoft, Adobe, and most recently, Twitter, which are all run by people who grew up in India.
Zoom out: Chanel’s decision to hire Nair signals 1) a shift in product priorities—Chanel sells a number of other items including makeup and watches—and 2) a new company culture that values inclusivity. Her appointment will also hopefully help the brand avoid any more out-of-touch advent calendars.—MM
Become smarter in just 5 minutes
Morning Brew delivers quick and insightful updates about the business world every day of the week from Wall St. to Silicon Valley.