Indian consumer giants' CEOs changing at a pace not seen since Covid

Dec 24, 2025

Synopsis
Top leadership is changing rapidly across consumer companies in 2025. Major firms like Hindustan Unilever and Britannia Industries are seeing unexpected exits. This shift is fueled by intense competition from digital brands and a demand for quicker growth. Companies are prioritizing leaders with strong digital skills to navigate a complex market.

From Hindustan Unilever’s appointing Prita Nayar after Rohit Jawa stepped down as chief executive to the unexpected exit of Britannia Industries’ vice-chairman, managing director and chief executive Varun Berry, 2025 has turned into a year marked by sharp leadership churn across consumer-facing companies. Executive search and advisory firm Longhouse told ToI the pace of changes at the top this year has been far quicker than what the sector has seen over the past few years.

Only a small number of appointments to the top job, such as at Nestle India, have followed a planned succession triggered by retirements. Most leadership changes, however, have been driven by companies pushing for quicker growth in India, where competition from digital-first brands is disrupting long-established business models.

At HUL, the company handed over leadership to internal candidate Priya Nair, a homegrown executive who was president of beauty and wellbeing at Unilever. Her experience lies in one of HUL’s priority categories. L’Oreal named Jacques Lebel, an internal executive, as India country manager, replacing Aseem Kaushik. At Arvind Fashions, former chief executive and managing director Shailesh Chaturvedi stepped down earlier than expected, clearing the way for Amisha Jain to take charge.

“The increase in CEO churn reflects how sharply India’s operating environment has changed. This is no longer a straightforward high-growth market – it’s become far more complex and competitive. Double-digit growth has tapered to low single-digits, margins are under sustained pressure, and omni-channel disruptions have added layers of complexity. As a result, boards and investors are reassessing leadership far more frequently,” Sonal Bahl, partner at Positive Moves, told TOI.

These leadership moves in the consumer sector come amid intense competition from agile regional players and direct-to-consumer brands, mounting pressure from investors and boards, and, for multinational companies, renewed expectations from global headquarters to maintain India’s growth momentum when overseas markets slow.

India Inc has also witnessed a broader rise in exits from corner offices as scrutiny tightens. During the first half of 2025, 16 chief executives of BSE 200 companies stepped down. This pace was last seen during the height of the Covid-19 crisis in 2020. Nearly 40% of these transitions occurred within three years, according to the Spencer Stuart CEO Transition Study cited by ET, which tracked appointments between January 2020 and July 2025.

James Citrin, chair of Spencer Stuart’s CEO practice and co-leader of its board practice, said that while it may appear that leadership challenges have reached unprecedented levels, the churn is broadly in line with global patterns. Boards and chief executives have voiced similar concerns in earlier crises, ranging from the dotcom collapse to Covid-19 and now uncertainty driven by artificial intelligence and geopolitics, he said.

Leadership reshuffles have not been limited to consumer companies. In the automobile sector, Hyundai Motor India has appointed a new Indian managing director, while BMW Group and Hero MotoCorp have also undergone changes at the top.

Several recent appointments point to a wider shift towards hiring leaders with strong digital capabilities, as product discovery increasingly moves online and consumers grow comfortable with ultra-fast delivery platforms.

Nestle India’s chairman and managing director Manish Tiwary joined from Amazon, where he last served as India country manager. A former HUL executive and FMCG veteran, Tiwary brings experience across both digital and physical retail. Reliance Retail Ventures created a new chief executive role as it prepares for a possible initial public offering, appointing former Flipkart chief product and technology officer Jeyandran Venugopal. One of his key responsibilities is to speed up omni-channel expansion. Arvind Fashions said its appointment of former Levi’s executive Jain as chief executive and managing director aligns with its focus on digital transformation and strengthening brand equity.

“Traditional companies are increasingly prioritising financial efficiency instead of expanding headcount. Alongside this shift, there is a clear trend toward appointing digital-first leaders to strengthen digital capabilities and improve the contribution of digital revenues to the overall business,” said Rohit Srivastava, senior partner at Longhouse.

Boards are also showing far less tolerance for extended learning periods. When shortcomings in execution, strategy or market response become visible, boards are stepping in sooner than they would have earlier, Bahl said.

“In retail and FMCG, the churn was more strategic than reactive. Companies were not just filling roles, they were redesigning leadership for a digital future,” said Mala Chawla, managing director for India and Singapore at Stanton Chase.

(with ToI inputs)

[The Economic Times]