The Estée Lauder Companies (ELC) has announced several key leadership appointments and a notable restructure of its Asia Pacific operations that underlines the US beauty group’s mounting focus on China.
Mark Loomis, currently President Asia/Pacific has been appointed President North America effective February 2022. He replaces Chris Good who has announced his retirement after 25 years with the company.
Following Loomis’ appointment, Joy Fan is promoted to President and CEO of China. Mainland China, one of the most dynamic markets in global prestige beauty, is elevated in importance to report directly to the International team.
Fan reports directly to Peter Jueptner in his new role as President International and remains a member of ELC’s Executive Leadership Team.
Loomis will report directly to ELC President and Chief Executive Officer Fabrizio Freda and also remains a member of the Executive Leadership Team.
Good led ELC’s North America business for the last five years, overseeing the region’s pivotal retail and organisational transformation. He leveraged data analytics and insights to unlock new opportunities across brands, consumers and channels. He also accelerated the online business and strengthened the region’s retail relationships. Under Good’s leadership, the North America business returned to growth in fiscal year 2021 and continued this momentum into the first quarter of fiscal year 2022.
“We are grateful for Chris’ tremendous contributions to our business, and the resolve and dedication he has demonstrated to push boundaries, invent the unexpected and bring the best to ELC and beyond. He has championed our company values and embodied our culture both in the field and alongside his teams, continuously fuelling collaboration and creativity,” said Executive Chairman William P. Lauder.
“Across our global ELC family and the wider industry, Chris has nurtured strong relationships and his hospitable nature, dynamic leadership and deep retail expertise will be truly missed. On behalf of the company and the Lauder family, I would like to wish Chris the very best in his well-deserved retirement.”
“Chris is a visionary, global leader who is deeply admired at ELC and recognised across the beauty industry worldwide. With his extensive international background, Chris’ leadership agility and deep insights into our diverse markets and consumers around the world have made an indelible impact on our business,” said Freda.
“Known for his extraordinary business acumen, ability to build high-performing teams and his track record of achieving strong results in both nascent and established markets globally, Chris has exemplified a commitment to excellence.”
“We are thrilled that Mark will take on leadership of our home market in North America,” said Freda. “Mark has successfully built and led high-performance organisations throughout his 25 years at The Estée Lauder Companies, delivering incredible results through his visionary strategic leadership and collaborative style. I look forward to our continued close partnership as Mark leads our talented North America team to build on their successes as the region continues to gain momentum.”
As President North America, Loomis will guide the regional Leadership Team to maximise sales, enhance profitability and grow market share in the company’s home market. Loomis will have accountability for top and bottom line results in the US and Canada across all brands and channels. Leveraging his commercial expertise, Loomis will drive business strategy, fuel recovery and unlock new opportunities in the fast-evolving North American market.
He will also drive ELC’s digital transformation and leverage ELC’s strong retailer relationships to develop powerful omnichannel experiences. With a 25-year career at ELC, Loomis has gained deep global leadership experience across brands channels and regions, where he has consistently delivered results and led significant beauty markets including in Canada and Japan, the company noted.
Loomis has been President Asia/Pacific since 2018 and has grown the region to new heights across all 13 Asia/Pacific affiliates. Through his leadership, ELC’s Asia/Pacific net sales have grown significantly with online sales doubling between from 2019 to 2021.
Core China focus underlined
ELC currently serves millions of consumers in over 600 cities across Mainland China and with Joy Fan’s appointment the company expects to deepen its commitment to China and the core Chinese consumers.
The elevation of ELC’s China business will increase the speed of local decision making and promote global collaboration to deliver successful high-quality products geared for Chinese consumers, the company said. As President and CEO China, Fan will leverage her deep understanding of Chinese consumer preferences to grow ELC’s market share in this key market.
Fan assumed leadership of ELC’s China affiliate in 2012 and has worked with her team to deliver extraordinary growth in just nine years, the company said. She spearheaded direct-to-consumer strategies in China which have led to the growth of ELC’s portfolio in key channels and to the company’s leadership position in social media and digital marketing.
During the COVID-19 pandemic crisis, Fan has successfully pivoted the company’s approach in China to address the changing distribution landscape and evolving consumer preferences. As President and CEO China, Fan will leverage her strong leadership abilities and elevate the company’s understanding of the key Chinese consumer across all enterprises. China’s strong growth, under Fan’s leadership, is a testament to her ability to lead innovation, recruit new young consumers and drive repurchase loyalty, ELC commented.
ELC has also opened the China Innovation Centre in Shanghai which will create new opportunities to grow and build on Chinese consumer insights and expand the company’s scientific presence. Fan will play an important role in the development of the centre and enable localised innovation.
General Manager Japan Matthew Growdon will be promoted to Senior Vice President and General Manager Asia/Pacific. Growdon will also report to Jueptner and will become a new member of the Executive Leadership team. In his new role, Growdon will lead all 12 markets in Asia/Pacific excluding China. He will work closely with affiliate General Managers and promote multiple engines of growth, leverage new opportunities, especially with the Dr.Jart+ brand, and build new local capabilities, particularly through ELC’s new facility in Japan.
With 20 years of experience in ELC across strategic management roles in Asia, Europe, Africa and the US, Growdon has gained extensive experience working across geographies and cultures. This gives him a deep understanding for the diverse consumers and channels within each country in the Asia/Pacific region, the company noted.
Growdon has led the strategic Japan market since January 2020 and successfully drove the Japan affiliate’s organisational transformation despite the challenges of COVID-19. He also established new capabilities and developed a channel diversification strategy through the expansion of the affiliate’s online presence.
Commenting on the leadership appointments, Freda said: “This important evolution in our regional enterprise structure reflects our dedication to leveraging the unique talents, local expertise, and proven track records of internally-trained leaders across the organisation. As we continue to elevate our commitment to China and Chinese consumers, these updates will also reinforce our focus on Asia/Pacific to realise future business growth. We are proud to elevate Joy and Matthew, two seasoned and globally-minded strategic leaders at the helm of our China and Asia/Pacific businesses.”
“This business evolution will further enable our regions to lead in an increasingly complex and competitive beauty landscape,” added Group President International Cedric Prouvé. “I have every confidence in Joy’s and Matthew’s strong leadership of our talented China and Asia/Pacific teams and know they will take our business to even greater heights as they step into their new roles.”
Jueptner added, “These well-deserved promotions reflect Joy’s and Matthew’s global expertise, strategic focus and strong abilities to continue advancing our China and Asia/Pacific businesses into the future. I look forward to working closely with them.”
