Veet owner Reckitt appoints Kris Licht as CEO

Reckitt, the UK-based owner of Veet and many other household-named brands, has announced the appointment of Kris Licht as Chief Executive Officer.

Licht, who succeeds Nicandro Durante, will be appointed to the Board as an Executive Director on 1 June and will take over as CEO by the end of 2023. To ensure a smooth transition, Nicandro Durante will stay with Reckitt until December.

Prior to his new role as CEO, Licht served as the President of Reckitt's Health business and as Chief Customer Officer since July 2020. During his time at the company, he has been pivotal in its strategic direction ensuring a strong growth trajectory.

Licht joined Reckitt from PepsiCo, where he held a variety of senior operational and strategic leadership positions.

Kris Licht

Chris Sinclair, Chairman of the Board at Reckitt, commented: "We conducted a thorough process to identify a new CEO and the Board and I are confident that Kris Licht is the right leader to take Reckitt forward, building on the strong momentum in the business after three years of successful transformation. The Board came into this process knowing we had a strong bench of leadership talent and Kris was the outstanding candidate.

"Kris has been instrumental in Reckitt's transformation through his strategic role and his strong operational leadership in the turnaround of our Health GBU over the last three years. He has a deep understanding of Reckitt's business, customers, brands and culture. He brings extensive experience and a broad range of skills to the role and is an excellent fit to lead Reckitt in the next exciting phase of its journey. "

Kris Licht added: "It is an honour to have been appointed as the next CEO of Reckitt... As our recent performance shows, it is clear we are delivering, and after significant investment, we are well-positioned to generate consistent, strong shareholder returns. While there is more work to be done to realise our full potential, I see strong momentum and believe it is truly an exciting time for Reckitt."

Reckitt owns a long list of household names such as Clearasil and Gaviscon to name a few. It is also the owner of hair removal brand, Veet, which is available at Boots, Savers, Tescos, Superdrug and more.