New Nestlé CEO wants to improve performance after poor figures
Published: Friday, Aug 23rd 2024, 09:30
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The Swiss food company Nestlé has surprisingly changed its boss. The new CEO and company veteran Laurent Freixe now wants to improve performance again and gain market share.
The food multinational has disappointed with its figures in recent quarters. This was also recently reflected in the share price, which performed poorly. In a conference call with analysts on Friday, Chairman of the Board of Directors Paul Bulcke refused to confirm that this was the reason for the change at the top of the Group.
Gaining market share
However, both the new CEO Freixe and Bulcke stated in unison during the interview that the aim now was to improve Nestlé's performance again and gain market share. "My focus is on organic growth," emphasized Freixe.
He could imagine making acquisitions, but the aim was to grow more strongly on its own again. And above all in the Group's core categories, i.e. the products in which Nestlé is particularly strong.
To achieve this, the Group must also invest in research and development as well as in productivity. Freixe also wants to drive forward the digital transformation. None of this is easy, because Nestlé is a complex company. "We are both the most global and the most local company in the world."
No statement on the forecast
However, when asked about forecasts for 2024 and 2025, Chairman of the Board of Directors Bulcke put the analysts off. "The aim of this meeting is not to comment on our current forecast," he emphasized. Rather, the aim is to explain the background to the abrupt change at the top of the Group.
The Swiss food giant unexpectedly announced the resignation of CEO Mark Schneider on Thursday evening. Schneider was still seen as a beacon of hope when he took office. He had been at the helm of Nestlé since the beginning of 2017, when he joined from the German healthcare group Fresenius.
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