MAM
The Hershey Company names Luigi Mirri general manager, India alongside APAC role
Mumbai: The Hershey Company, a leading global snacking company and the largest producer of quality chocolates in North America, announced the appointment of Luigi Mirri as general manager, India effective 1 January 2024. Currently serving as the general manager of APAC, Luigi will expand his responsibilities to include India.
In his current role as general manager for the Asia-Pacific (APAC) regions, he keeps his team focused on consumers and customers and smoothly integrated multiple business units into a cohesive region. Notably, he spearheaded the expansion of the brand footprint in critical markets, such as Australia, fostered a strong relationship with 7-Eleven convenience stores, played a pivotal role in fostering stability in Hershey Korea and set Hershey Philippines and Thailand on a multi-year double-digit growth trajectory. Prior to joining The Hershey Company five years ago, Luigi was based in India with another confection company where he held key leadership positions and dedicated substantial time to business operations.
The Hershey Company president, International Rohit Grover said, “Both India and APAC play crucial roles in shaping our company’s future. Our business in India, in particular, is growing, and a strategically important market for the future. Luigi’s outstanding track record in steering growth for large enterprises, driving profitability, and turnarounds, will guide his leadership as we continue to tap our desired growth and unlock new potential.”
Commenting on his appointment, Hershey India and APAC general manager Luigi Mirri said, “I’m looking forward to embracing my new role and the opportunity it brings, including my return to India. I am excited to contribute to the broader transformation goals and growth of our company. India is a key focus for Hershey, bringing moments of goodness to our consumers with fantastic products and our commitment to talent development and leadership building. I’m excited about the prospect of collaborating with the talented team here to make an impact for the company and our people.”
Brands
Estée Lauder to shed 10,000 jobs as new boss bets on digital shift
The cosmetics giant raises its profit outlook but stays silent on a possible merger with Spain’s Puig, as job cuts deepen and a three-year sales slump weighs on the turnaround
NEW YORK: Stéphane de La Faverie is not done cutting. Estée Lauder announced on Friday that it plans to eliminate as many as 3,000 additional jobs, taking its total redundancy programme to as many as 10,000 roles, up from a previous target of 7,000 announced a year ago. The company, which owns La Mer, The Ordinary, Tom Ford, and Aveda, employs roughly 57,000 people worldwide. The mathematics of what is now being contemplated is stark.
The fresh round of cuts is expected to generate a further $200 million in savings, bringing the total annual savings from the programme to as much as $1.2 billion before taxes. That money, De La Faverie has made clear, will be ploughed back into the turnaround.
A CEO in a hurry
De La Faverie, who took the helm in January 2025, inherited a company that had endured three consecutive years of annual sales declines. His response has been to move fast and cut deep. A significant portion of the latest redundancies reflects his push to reduce headcount at US department stores, long a cornerstone of Estée Lauder’s distribution model but now a channel in structural decline. In their place, he is accelerating the shift toward faster-growing online platforms, including Amazon.com and TikTok Shop, a pivot that is reshaping not just where Estée Lauder sells but how it thinks about its customers.
The numbers are moving in the right direction
Despite the pain, there are signs the medicine is working. Estée Lauder raised its profit outlook for the remainder of the fiscal year, guiding for adjusted earnings per share in the range of $2.35 to $2.45, above analyst estimates and a notable step up from the $2.05 to $2.25 range it had guided for in February. Organic net sales growth is expected to come in at 3 per cent, the company said, at the high end of the range it set out in February.
The share price tells a mixed story. After De La Faverie took charge, the stock surged nearly 60 per cent, buoyed by investor optimism that a longtime company insider could finally arrest the decline. But 2026 has been rougher: the shares have fallen 27 per cent this year, weighed down by disappointing February results and the overhang of unresolved merger talks with Spanish beauty giant Puig Brands SA. The company gave no additional details about those discussions on Friday, leaving the market to guess.
Silence on Puig
The proposed tie-up with Puig remains the most consequential unknown hanging over Estée Lauder. A deal with the Barcelona-based group, which owns brands including Carolina Herrera and Rabanne, would reshape the global luxury beauty landscape. But with nothing new to say and a turnaround still very much in progress, De La Faverie is asking investors to trust the process.
Three years of sales declines, 10,000 job cuts, and a merger that may or may not happen. At Estée Lauder, the overhaul has barely started.
