Meet Leena Nair, the new Indian origin CEO of luxury brand Chanel

Dec 15, 2021

By: Vaamanaa Sethi

Credit: Unilever

French luxury brand Chanel has named Leena Nair, former chief human resources officer...

...(CHRO) of Unilever, as its global chief executive officer.

Credit: Unilever

After Parag Agrawal, Nair also joins the list of Indian origin executives ruling global companies.

Credit: Wikipedia

Leena Nair was the first female and youngest-ever CHRO of fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) major Unilever.

Credit: Facebook

52-year-old Nair would be taking over her new position, as Chanel CEO in January 2022.

Credit: Youtube

In 2007, she became Hindustan Unilever's youngest executive director...

...and the first woman in the management committee of Hindustan Unilever, in 90 years, heading its human resources department.

Credit: BCCL

In 2016, she was appointed as the CHRO and member of Unilever Leadership Executive.

Credit: Twitter

She had joined Hindustan Unilever in 1992 as a management trainee.

Credit: BCCL

Nair has also won several awards like ‘role model of the year’ in Great British Business Women's Awards 2021..

...and was part of Fortune India's Most Powerful Women's List 2021, and many more.

Credit: Unilever

Nair was born and raised in Kolhapur, Maharashtra.

She studied electronics engineering at Walchand College of Engineering in Sangli, Maharashtra.

Credit: Wikipedia

After studying electronics engineering, she joined Xavier School of Management (XLRI) Jamshedpur in 1990.

Credit: Wikipedia

Meet the Indian-origin women CEOs who are leading the way for major global companies