Priya Nair to take over as Hindustan Unilever MD & CEO from Rohit Jawa

Nair, the first woman CEO of the company, will also join the board, subject to necessary approvals, and continue to be a member of the Unilever Leadership Executive (ULE).

Nair joined HUL in 1995 and held several sales and marketing roles across Home Care, Beauty & Wellbeing, and Personal Care businesses. Her significant contributions led her to become the executive director, home care, HUL between 2014 and 2020, and thereafter, the executive director, beauty & personal care, HUL from 2020 to 2022.

Subsequently, she went on to become the global chief marketing officer, beauty & wellbeing at Unilever. Since 2023, Priya has had a successful tenure as president of beauty & wellbeing, one of Unilever’s fastest growing businesses, HUL said.

Nair is commerce graduate from Sydenham College, Mumbai, MBA from Symbiosis Institute of Business Management, Pune and has also completed executive education at Harvard Business School.

In a letter to the board of HUL, Jawa said, “I have decided to pursue the next chapter in my personal and professional journey. I am proud of my 37- year strong track record with Unilever including as leader of strategically significant markets over the last decade in Asia.”

Welcoming Priya back to India and to HUL, Nitin Paranjpe, chairman, HUL said, “Priya Nair has had an outstanding career in HUL and Unilever. I am certain that with her deep understanding of the Indian market and excellent track record, Priya will take HUL to the next level of performance.”

Jawa took over as the CEO and MD of HUL from Sanjeev Mehta in 2023. During his tenure of over two years, the company delivered volume-led competitive growth. He introduced the ‘ASPIRE’ strategy that is driving the business to transform portfolio and channels towards high-growth demand spaces.

Jawa has held many notable roles across his successful 37-year career, including executive vice president North Asia, chair Unilever China, and chair of Unilever Philippines, two of the most important Unilever operations, in which he achieved notable success.

HUL reported a turnover of Rs 61,469 crore and a net profit of Rs 10,644 crore for FY2025. The company has a market capitalisation of Rs 5.66 lakh crore.