FMCG giant Hindustan Unilever Limited (HUL) has announced the appointment of Rohit Jawa as its new Managing Director (MD) and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) effective June 27, 2023. He will join the company as CEO designate and whole-time director from April 1, 2023. 

Jawa (56) succeeds Sanjiv Mehta, who will retire after a transformational tenure of 10 years at the helm of HUL.

He will also take over as President, Unilever South Asia and join the Unilever Leadership Executive (ULE) effective April 1, 2023. 

Currently the Chief of Transformation for Unilever in London, Jawa started his career with HUL as a management trainee in 1988 and has a proven track record of sustained business results across - India, South East Asia, and North Asia. 

As EVP for North Asia & Chairman for Unilever China, he led a significant transformation of Unilever China into a competitive, profitable, and consistent business, now Unilever’s 3rd biggest globally.  As the Chairman of Unilever Philippines, he led the business to become one of the top 10 markets for Unilever globally. 

“I am delighted to welcome Rohit back to India. He has a deep understanding of the business landscape particularly in Asia and has led the transformation of Unilever businesses in China and in the Philippines. I am certain that with his astute business acumen, and growth mindset Rohit will take HUL to the next level of performance,” said Nitin Paranjpe, Non-Executive Chairman, HUL said.

Mehta (62), took over as the MD & CEO of HUL in October 2013 leading the business through a period of sustained growth. During his decade at the helm, the business crossed the 50 thousand crore turnover mark and the market capitalisation of the Company increased more than four times from $17 billion to $75 billion, reinforcing HUL as one of India’s most valuable businesses.

Mehta introduced several transformative business programmes such as ‘Dial Up the Big Q’ and ‘Winning in Many Indias’ to make the business more consumer-centric, agile, and resilient. To make the business more future-fit, Mehta kickstarted the ‘Reimagine HUL’ agenda by leveraging data, harnessing latest technologies, and designing business models to redefine how HUL engages with consumers, customers, and the way the business operates. 

He has led the business into future growth segments with several strategic mergers and acquisitions such as the amalgamation of GSK Consumer Healthcare into HUL, one of the biggest mergers in the history of FMCG in the country. 

Under his leadership, various programmes, such as the Hindustan Unilever Foundation, Project Shakti, Project Prabhat and Suvidha scaled new heights, reinforcing his commitment to responsible growth, the company statement said.