Brands
Sunanda Khaitan appointed CMO, beauty & wellbeing at HUL
MUMBAI: Hindustan Unilever has handed the reins of its beauty and wellbeing portfolio to a familiar face. Sunanda Khaitan has been appointed chief marketing officer for the category, marking a new milestone in her nearly two-decade-long journey with Unilever.
Khaitan steps into the role after a successful stint as vice president and business head of Lakmē, where she sharpened the brand’s premium edge while keeping it firmly rooted in mass appeal. Her elevation signals continuity with confidence for one of HUL’s most competitive and culturally influential businesses.
Khaitan’s career reads like a guided tour of Unilever’s beauty playbook. From cutting her teeth in sales to shaping global narratives for brands such as Fair and Lovely, Citra and Ponds, she has worked across markets, categories and consumer mindsets. Her time as global brand director for Haircare further added an international lens to her leadership.
What sets her apart is range. Few marketers can claim equal fluency in street level sales realities and global brand strategy. At HUL, she has moved steadily from area sales manager to the top marketing role, gathering insights, instincts and credibility along the way.
As Beauty and Wellbeing continues to evolve, blending science, self care and storytelling, Khaitan’s appointment feels timely. With deep brand knowledge and a knack for staying relevant, she now has the task of keeping HUL’s beauty portfolio both future ready and firmly in the public imagination.
For Unilever, it is a homegrown leader stepping into the spotlight. For the category, it is a steady hand with a sharp eye on what consumers want next.
Brands
Lululemon picks former Nike executive to be its next chief
Heidi O’Neill, who helped grow Nike into a $45 billion giant, will take the top job in September
CANADA: Lululemon has found its next chief executive, and she comes with serious credentials. The athleisure giant named Heidi O’Neill as its new CEO on Wednesday, ending a search that has left the company running on interim leadership since earlier this year. O’Neill will take charge on September 8, 2026, based out of Vancouver, and will join the board on the same day.
O’Neill brings more than three decades of experience across performance apparel, footwear and sport. The bulk of that time was spent at Nike, where she was a central figure in one of corporate sport’s great growth stories, helping take the company from a $9 billion business to a $45 billion global powerhouse. She oversaw product pipelines, brand strategy and consumer connections, and played a significant role in shaping how Nike spoke to athletes around the world. Earlier in her career, she worked in marketing for the Dockers brand at Levi Strauss. She also brings boardroom experience from Spotify Technology, Hyatt Hotels and Lithia and Driveway.
The board was unequivocal in its enthusiasm. “We selected Heidi because of the breadth of her experience, her demonstrated success delivering breakthrough ideas and initiatives at scale, and her ability to be a knowledgeable change and growth agent,” said Marti Morfitt, executive chair of Lululemon’s board.
O’Neill, for her part, was bullish. “Lululemon is an iconic brand with something rare: genuine guest love, a product ethos rooted in innovation, and a global platform still in the early stages of its potential,” she said. “My job will be to accelerate product breakthroughs, deepen the brand’s cultural relevance, and unlock growth in markets around the world.”
Until she arrives, Meghan Frank and André Maestrini will continue as interim co-CEOs, before returning to their previous senior leadership roles once O’Neill steps in.
Lululemon is betting that a Nike veteran who helped build one of the world’s most powerful sports brands can do something similar for an athleisure label that has genuine love from its customers but is still chasing its full global potential. O’Neill has done it before at scale. The question now is whether she can do it again.
