Following an inquiry that found that he had an “undisclosed romantic relationship” with a subordinate, Nestlé fired CEO Laurent Freixe. His actions were against company policy. Philipp Navratil, the CEO of Nespresso, was named as his successor by the Swiss multinational.
After 40 years with the company, Mr Freixe left after an examination led by lead independent director Pablo Isla and Nestlé chair Paul Bulcke, with assistance from outside counsel.
This was a necessary decision, Bulcke stated. Nestle’s governance and values serve as solid pillars for the business. “I thank Laurent for his years of service.” Nestlé is well-known for its brands, which include KitKat chocolate bars and Nespresso coffee capsules.
Laurent Freixe’s Career Journey
It was in Paris, France, that Laurent Freixe was born in 1962. He is French and speaks German, Spanish, English, and French. He finished the Program for Executive Development at IMD, Switzerland, and studied business administration at the Ecole de Hautes Etudes Commerciales du Nord (EDHEC) in Lille, France.
Prior to joining the Executive Board for Zone Europe, Mr Freixe led Nestlé Hungary and the Iberian Region after joining the company in 1986 after working in sales and marketing in France. According to his LinkedIn profile, he also started Nestle’s youth programme, Nestle Needs YOUth. With responsibility for the US, Canada, Latin America, and the Caribbean, Mr Freixe was appointed Executive Vice President and CEO of Zone Americas in 2014.
In 2022, he was appointed Executive Vice President and CEO of Zone Latin America, where he also assisted the CEO with zone coordination. In 2018, he was designated International Youth Ambassador. Mr Freixe succeeded Ulf Mark Schneider as CEO of Neste on September 1, 2024. Exactly one year later, he was let go.
Boards and Contributions
Mr Freixe has held positions on a number of boards, such as Froneri SA, the Consumer Goods Forum in Latin America, and Cereal Partners Worldwide. He chaired the Global Apprenticeship Network since 2019 and joined the World Business Council for Sustainable Development’s Executive Committee in 2023. Additionally, he is a member of the IMD Foundation Board, the European Roundtable, and the EDHEC Business School Advisory Board.
Quick
Shots
•Nestlé CEO dismissed over undisclosed
romantic relationship with a subordinate.
•Inquiry led by Pablo Isla (lead
independent director) and Paul Bulcke (Nestlé chair) with external counsel.
•Philipp Navratil, Nespresso CEO,
appointed as new Nestlé chief.
•Joined in 1986; led Hungary, Iberian Region,
Zone Europe, Americas, and Latin America.
•Studied at EDHEC Business School;
completed IMD’s Executive Development Program; fluent in 4 languages.
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Nestlé is the world’s largest food and beverage company, in terms of revenue. It is a Swiss Company established in 1866 by Henri Nestlé. While its main foray is foods and drinks, it has hundreds of other products as well.
It is present in 187 countries around the world, and its 291,000 employees are committed to Nestlé’s purpose of unlocking the power of food to enhance quality for everyone, today and for generations to come.
Nestlé is a Swiss multinational food and drink processing conglomerate corporation headquartered in Vevey, Vaud, Switzerland. It is the largest food company in the world, measured by revenue and other metrics, since 2014.
Nestlé’s products include baby food, medical food, bottled water, breakfast cereals, coffee and tea, confectionery, dairy products, ice cream, frozen food, pet foods, and snacks. Twenty-nine of Nestlé’s brands have annual sales of over 1 billion CHF (about US$1.1 billion), including Nespresso, Nescafé, Kit Kat, Nesquik, Stouffer’s, Vittel, and Maggi. Nestlé has 447 factories, operates in 189 countries, and employs around 339,000 people. It is one of the main shareholders of L’Oréal, the world’s largest cosmetics company.
Nestlé – Founder and History
Nestlé was formed in 1905 by the merger of the Anglo-Swiss Milk Company, established in 1866 by brothers George and Charles Page, and Farine Lactée Henri Nestlé, founded in 1866 by Henri Nestlé.
Founder of Nestlé
Nestlé’s origin dates back to the 1860s, when two separate Swiss enterprises were founded that would later form Nestlé. In the following decades, the two competing enterprises expanded their businesses throughout Europe and the United States.
In 1866, Charles Page and George Page, brothers from Lee County, Illinois, USA, established the Anglo-Swiss Condensed Milk Company in Cham, Switzerland. The company’s first British operation was opened at Chippenham, Wiltshire, in 1873.
The company grew significantly during the First World War and again following the Second World War, expanding its offerings beyond its early condensed milk and infant formula products. The company has made a number of corporate acquisitions, including Crosse & Blackwell in 1950, Findus in 1963, Libby’s in 1971, Rowntree Mackintosh in 1988, Klim in 1998, and Gerber in 2007.
Nestlé has modified its logo at least six times throughout its more than 150-year history.
Since the very first logo, introduced in 1866, the visual identity concept of the famous Swiss company has been based on the family name of its founder, Henri Nestle, which translates from German as “The Nest”.
Nestle’s mission statement says, “Good Food, Good Life” which is to provide consumers with the best tasting, most nutritious choices in a wide range of food and beverage categories and eating occasions, from morning to night.
Nestlé – Business Model
Nestlé is a powerhouse of consumer brands spanning across baby foods, bottled waters, powdered drinks, cereals, coffee, drinks, pet-care, and more. The company made almost $92 billion in 2018, with high margins on its powdered and liquid beverages (coffee, cocoa, and malt beverages and tea categories).
A spokesperson for Nestlé said, “As the ‘Good Food, Good Life’ company, we enhance quality of life and contribute to a healthier future. Winning with consumers is the source of our sustainable financial performance and our way to earning trust and maintain our market leadership. Based on a compelling Nutrition, Health and Wellness strategy, our company delivers sustainable value over the short term and the long term.”
In short, Nestlé focuses on generating demand for its current brands, while improving its operational efficiency, and by allocating massive amounts of capital to buy and sell relevant consumer brands, which help the company to keep its dominance in the consumer food and beverage industry.
Nestlé – Growth and Revenue
Nestle SA revenue for the twelve months ending June 30, 2020 was $0 million, a NaN% increase year-over-year.
Year
Annual Revenue
Percentage change
2019
$93.469B
-0.36%
2018
$93.805B
+2.42%
2017
$91.59B
+0.47%
Nestlé – Investments
Nestlé has made 7 investments. Their most recent investment was on Nov 9, 2020, when Prometheus Biosciences raised $130M.
Nestlé has acquired 30 organizations. Their most recent acquisition was Mindful Chef on Nov 8, 2020.
Acquiree Name
Announced Date
Amount
Transaction Name
Mindful Chef
Nov 8, 2020
–
Mindful Chef acquired by Nestlé
Freshly
Oct 30, 2020
$950M
Freshly acquired by Nestlé
Yinlu
Jun 28, 2018
CN¥50M
Yinlu acquired by Nestlé
Wamiz
Mar 1, 2018
–
Wamiz acquird by Nestlé
Terrafertil
Feb 9, 2018
–
Terrafertil acquird by Nestlé
Atrium Innovations
Dec 5, 2017
$2.3B
Atrium Innovations acquird by Nestlé
Chameleon Cold-Brew
Nov 3, 2017
–
Chameleon Cold-Brew acquird by Nestlé
Nestlé – Competitors
The top 10 competitors in Nestlé’s competitive set are Mondelez International(Food Processing industry, Mondelez International has 211,000 fewer employees than Nestlé), Kellogg’s(Kellogg’s has 260,000 fewer employees than Nestlé), Mars(Mars generates $48.8B less revenue than Nestlé), Hershey, Kraft Heinz, Unilever, Danone, General Mills, PepsiCo, Keurig Dr Pepper.
Nestlé – Challenges Faced
Maggi was the most popular instant noodles brand in India, which children in particular loved to snack on. The brand had a dominant position until suddenly in mid-2015 it got engulfed in controversy. Several state food regulators found that Maggi contained monosodium glutamate as well as lead well above the prescribed limits which were harmful especially for children. When Nestlé India was confronted with lab test results, it stuck to its position that they had a world-class quality control process in place and that their products were safe for consumption. Finally, the national food regulator FSSAI, ordered a ban on the sale of Maggi including product recall. Consequently, several state governments imposed temporary ban on the sale of Maggi noodles in their respective states. The future of the company suddenly looked very bleak.
Critics have accused Nestlé of discouraging mothers from breastfeeding and suggesting that their baby formula is healthier than breastfeeding, despite there being no evidence for this. This led to a boycott which was launched in 1977 in the United States and subsequently spread into Europe.
Multiple reports have documented the widespread use of child labour in cocoa production, as well as slavery and child trafficking, throughout West African plantations, on which Nestlé and other major chocolate companies rely. According to the 2010 documentary, The Dark Side of Chocolate, the children working are typically 12 to 15 years old. The Fair Labour Association has criticized Nestlé for not carrying out proper checks.
Food and nutrition major Nestle India plans to focus on core categories, including milk & nutrition, chocolates & confectionery and coffee & beverages to explore growth and expansion opportunities in these segments. In accordance with long-term goals that are committed in support of the UN plan for sustainable development by 2030, the company Nestlé by the end of 2020 is reduced sugar in Nestlé confectionery products by 5%, which means that only in Europe, there will be removed at least 18,000t of sugar from the products. Salt in products will be reduced for 10% and all the artificial colours.
The company will add at least 750 million rations vegetables, 300 million rations of nutrient-rich ingredients such as cereals and legumes, and more nuts and seeds. There are 42 Nestlé social obligations to be achieved by 2020, the progress that the company has so far recorded, as well as future plans, which are items that make Nestlé ranked in the top of the Dow Jones World Sustainability Index (DJSI World), which measures global companies in terms of impact in the field of sustainable development.
Nestlé – FAQ’s
Who is the Founder Of Nestlé?
It is a Swiss Company established in 1866 by Henri Nestlé.
Who is the CEO of Nestlé?
Ulf Mark Schneider is a German/American businessman, and the CEO of Nestlé.
What Nestlé provides?
Nestlé’s products include baby food, medical food, bottled water, breakfast cereals, coffee and tea, confectionery, dairy products, ice cream, frozen food, pet foods, and snacks.
What is Nestlé all about?
Nestlé is a powerhouse of consumer brands spanning across baby foods, bottled waters, powdered drinks, cereals, coffee, drinks, pet care, and more.
What is Nestlé’s Slogan?
Nestlé’s mission statement says, “Good Food, Good Life” which is to provide consumers with the best tasting, most nutritious choices in a wide range of food and beverage categories and eating occasions, from morning to night.
Nestlé – Conclusion
Nestlé is trying to understand the changing lifestyles and anticipate consumer needs so that it can provide Taste, Nutrition, Health, and Wellness through its products that it offers. The culture of innovation and renovation within the company has given a distinct advantage in these efforts. It has helped the company to create value that can be sustained over the long term by offering consumers a wide variety of high-quality, safe food products at affordable prices. Nestlé has been putting a lot of effort into providing quality products to its consumers which has made Nestlé dominate the market for over 150 years.
