German chemicals and consumer goods group Henkel has announced the appointment of Wolfgang König as the executive vice-president of its beauty care business and member of the management board, effective 1 June 2021.
Currently, König serves as the category president of Kellogg North America and will succeed Jens-Martin Schwärzler.
König is a seasoned professional with over 25 years of experience in the FMCG industry in both mature and emerging markets.
He started his career in Beiersdorf in 1996 and served in several brand and key account management roles in Germany and the US.
In 2005, he joined Colgate-Palmolive in Germany as marketing director for Germany, Austria and Switzerland.
Subsequently, he moved to the US as global marketing director for the company's personal care division and then to Mexico, where he assumed the role of general manager of marketing and innovation for the LATAM region.
'Valuable Expertise'
Chairperson of the Henkel shareholders' committee and supervisory board, Dr Simone Bagel-Trah, commented, "He has broad international management and leadership experience in leading consumer goods companies and adds valuable expertise in marketing, sales and innovation, and a strong performance focus. We are very much looking forward to welcoming him to the Henkel team."
König joined Kellogg Company in 2012 as the general manager of the Northern Europe region.
He was responsible for 23 countries, including Germany, the Nordics and Central Eastern Europe.
In due course, he became the category president of Kellogg North America, responsible for a $6.7 billion business across all categories and central functions, such as R&D and marketing.
He holds a master's degree in business economics from the University of Kassel.
Successful Track Record
Outgoing EVP, Jens-Martin Schwärzler, has a successful track record with Henkel spanning over 28 years. He has led Henkel's beauty care division since 2017.
He joined the company in 1992 and served in various marketing and general management roles in the laundry and home care division.
Between 2008 and 2014, he was responsible for the global marketing of body, skin and oral care in the beauty care business unit.
He also assumed the additional responsibility of the company's cosmetic retail business in Western Europe and international sales in the beauty care arm.
Since the beginning of 2015, he was responsible for Henkel's consumer goods business in North America.
Under his leadership, Henkel launched brands like Persil and Schwarzkopf in the North American market.
Following the acquisition of Sun Products Corporation in 2016, he led the integration process as well as the relocation of Henkel's consumer goods businesses in the US. [Pic: ©Oleksandr Lutsenko/123RF.COM]
© 2021 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Dayeeta Das. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine.
