Our Leadership Teams

Nathalie is a French executive renowned for her international experience in the food industry at Kraft, Kronenbourg and Mars, and in cosmetics at L’Oréal.

As the CEO of LIPTON Teas and Infusions, Nathalie is committed to drive the whole tea industry upwards and grow value for the planet and all stakeholders – farmers, consumers, retailers and other partners, her own teams, and shareholders.

A firm believer in the bond that unites brands and consumers, she initiated and executed the corporate name change to LIPTON Teas and Infusions, to strengthen the company’s position as the world’s number one tea business and to affirm its approach as a consumer-centric organization. She champions building consumer insight and proximity through brands, whether global leaders such as Lipton, Pukka, Tazo and T2 or local jewels like PG Tips in the UK.

In her previous role as a member of the Executive Committee of L’Oréal Group, as the head of its Professional Products division, Nathalie carried out an in-depth transformation of the division, adapting it for a digitally revolutionized market. Before that role, she served as the group’s Country Manager for Germany and held senior roles at Mars, Incorporated for nearly 20 years.

In all her executive roles, Nathalie believes in constantly supporting the balance between her colleagues’ professional and personal lives to build a workplace environment that she calls a ‘Great Place to Win’. She promotes entrepreneurial spirit, commitment and ownership.

In 2010, Nathalie was elected ‘Conseillère Régionale’ (Regional Council Member) of Alsace, to develop the region’s economy and employment market.

Nathalie is a member of the Boards of Directors of Pret A Manger and of Bel Group, the French healthy dairy and fruit snack manufacturer. She has joined the Board of Directors of the NEOMA Business School, from which she graduated. She is also a member of the European advisory board of the Harvard Business School and the President of the 170-year-old charity Les Cigognes, which cares for children facing social, medical or economic difficulties. Nathalie was awarded the Chevalier of the Legion d'Honneur.

Nathalie is married to a dentist, Thierry Roos, and is the mother of three grown-up children.

Wendela is a boardroom professional in governance, sustainability and law, with expertise in the private and public sectors. An international executive with broad global and cross-cultural experience, her skills have evolved over three decades working in multiple industries and living on multiple continents. Building on her deep legal experience, she has also undertaken board advisory work on steering companies effectively and sustainably.

Wendela has Masters Degrees in Law from the University of Amsterdam and the University of Cambridge (as Chevening Scholar)

In her spare time, Wendela loves making art, playing tennis and sailing.

With 30 years of experience in fast moving consumer goods, Pierre-André served as the Chief Financial Officer of the Danone Group and Coty. He also held operational roles as the Executive Vice-President of Danone African businesses and, in 2020, as Chief Operating Officer for Coty. 

Additionally, Pierre-André steered the environmental activities at Danone and acted as a Chairman of the LIVELIHOODS CARBON FUND. He is an entrepreneur himself, and since 2021, he has dedicated most of his time to MIYA, a sustainable bottled water business, using reusable large bottles, which he started in Dakar in 2019. He is motivated by the opportunity to contribute to a company where teams, sustainable practices and entrepreneurship are central.

Pierre-André, aged 57, is a French citizen and holds a master’s degree in finance from EM Lyon Business School.

Matt has a wealth of experience in implementing innovative, transformative people models, and delivering sustainable business performance.

He started his career as an engineer, designing and simulating manufacturing facilities in the Defense industry.

Formerly the Global P&O lead at Nestlé Waters, Matt joins from PZ Cussons, the Global Healthcare and Consumer Goods Business.

One of the youngest female CEOs of a major global brand, Farheen joined Unilever in 1999. Since then, she has led a diverse set of categories during her career, including Personal Care, Ice Cream, Food and Beverages. Before her appointment to the board of Unilever Pakistan in 2016, Farheen was Ice Cream Brand Development Director for North Africa & Middle East. Farheen has helped recraft three diverse portfolios: Lipton & Brooke Bond Tea, Knorr Foods and Wall’s Ice Cream.

Farheen gained her BBA and MBA from the Institute of Business Administration. She prides herself on unapologetically living her purpose that ‘women can achieve corporate leadership without compromising on a well-balanced family life.

Ruben is a change agent and is very passionate about his role as Transformation Officer and President of LIPTON Teas and Infusions Europe. He started his career at Procter & Gamble, where he had several commercial roles. He then moved to Beiersdorf as Country Manager for the Benelux business. There he has led strategic business turnarounds for both countries driven by customer engagement and organizational transformation.

After nearly 15 years in FMCGs, he moved to Bain & Company to work in strategy consulting. He has supported many large FMCG companies on several strategic transformations. He also helped various private equity funds with commercial due diligence and has been part of the Bain team that supported CVC during the bid for LIPTON Teas and Infusions, formerly ekaterra.

Ruben has lived in the US, India and UK and has a Master in Business Administration from Erasmus University in Rotterdam. He now lives in Amsterdam with his wife Valerie and their two children. He is passionate about sports, having played many, most recently exploring Padel, the racket sport that is making its entry in the Netherlands rapidly. On Saturdays, he is the coach of his daughter’s field hockey team.

Karen has a track record of building brands that consumers want to engage with and talk about.

She worked globally across a diverse range of categories including Healthcare, Cosmetics, Fragrances and Hair Colour.

Karen is joining from Diageo where she was most recently responsible for leading Marketing for its luxury spirits portfolio.

Racquel brings a wealth of experience initially as a marketer before moving into general management, leading multiple categories, and routes-to-market within some of the world’s most iconic brands, including The Coca-Cola Company, Johnson & Johnson, and Procter & Gamble.

Racquel brings a deep understanding of the North American region, and as a brand expert, she knows how to build, launch, and cultivate a diverse portfolio of leading heritage brands, within highly competitive marketplaces. Additionally, with her Jamaican heritage, she also brings a lifelong passion and understanding of the importance of tea.

Bruno has more than 20 years’ experience in Supply Chain roles, having joined Unilever in 1999. He has served as the Chief Supply Chain Officer for LIPTON Teas and Infusions since 2021.

Bruno has worked across multiple product categories including Ice Cream, Food, Personal Care and Home Care.

As well as a strong track record in Supply Chain, Bruno has held positions as Head of Ice Cream Supply Chain Europe, Head of Market Supply Chain and Factory Director in different locations. He is a graduate of Icam Engineering School in France.

Brazilian-born chemical engineer and bio-scientist Taisa has lived and worked around the world.
She has experience from world’s leading drinks and food businesses, including Kraft Foods, Mondelez International, and the Coca-Cola Company.

She joins from Danone, where she was responsible for the Group’s Research and Innovation team.

Abhiroop has over 18 years’ experience in FMCG industries across categories and functions throughout India, Southern Asia and the Gulf region. Since beginning his career at Unilever in 2004, he has gained a deep understanding of the Foods, Refreshments, Beauty and Personal Care categories, including the customer segments within each of them.

With strengths in P&L Management for complex, multi-brand businesses, and in product and marketing mix creation and deployment, Abhiroop is an expert in product, packaging and communication development, as well as in media planning, execution and go-to-market strategies for distribution.

He is passionate about doing business by ‘doing right for people and planet’. With a decisive and inclusive leadership style, he uses technology as a change catalyst, fostering a culture of experiment, learn and scale. Abhiroop gains particular satisfaction from seeing team members realize their potential, and the business unlock further growth.

Terry, an Australian, has been based in Asia for the last 8 years. He brings significant experience and knowledge in the consumer goods industry, successfully leading business operations and accelerating growth across multiple markets and categories worldwide, particularly the Asia-Pacific market. Terry has delivered sustainable and people-oriented transformations for some of the world's leading consumer brands, including Mars Wrigley, Campbells, Douwe Egberts, and most recently, DKSH, a leading company specialising in market expansion services.

A journalist by background, Gareth has held various senior positions, designing and implementing communication strategies with several purpose-driven and customer-centric brands such as Virgin, Uber, and more recently DSM. A longstanding advocate for corporate social responsibility, Gareth will play a significant role in championing our ongoing commitment to sustainability.

Pierre is an accomplished CEO in the consumer brands space and an experienced Board Director. His career spans multiple global companies and he has acquired a strong reputation as a transformative leader focused on fundamentals and systemic change. He is recognized for his international mindset as well as his ability to consistently focus on teams’ alignment and engagement.

Most recently he was the CEO of Coty Inc., a global leader in the beauty industry with a turnover of US$9b and 20,000 employees. Prior to this, Pierre was CEO of JDE, a privately-owned coffee company which he led from September 2013, overseeing its integration with the Mondelez coffee business in 2015. JDE is now established as a key player in the coffee industry with €5.5b sales and more than 15,000 employees.

Before joining JDE, Pierre spent 25 years at Mars Inc. in multiple leadership roles across the world. In his last position he was CEO of Mars Global Petcare, a $14b business with 40,000 employees. An avid diver, motorbiker, and modern art amateur, Pierre holds a law degree from the university of Paris-La Sorbonne and an Economics and Finance degree from the Sciences-Po Paris. He has a son and lives with his partner Veronique in Amsterdam.

Pev is a Partner of CVC Capital Partners, having joined in 2004. He became a Director of ekaterra (now LIPTON Teas and Infusions) on July 31, 2022, when ekaterra was successfully acquired using funds managed by CVC.

Before joining CVC, Pev worked for Citigroup and Schroders in their Mergers & Acquisitions departments. He has an MA degree from Oxford University.

Rachid is a prominent business leader and former Minister of Trade, Industry & Investment in Egypt. He is the founder of Swiss-based Alsara Investment Group, a holding company that strategically invests in companies in creative industries in the United States, Europe and the Middle East, with a focus on luxury, wellness, design, innovation and technology. In addition to founding Alsara, Rachid is Chairman of both Valentino and Balmain, two of the world’s leading luxury fashion companies. He is the CEO of Mayhoola for Investment and a Board Member of the Katara Hospitality Group.

A former President of Unilever North Africa, Middle East, Turkey and Member of Unilever’s Board of Directors, Rachid holds degrees from the University of Alexandria and Harvard Business School.

He is the recipient of the Cavaliere di Gran Crose, Ordine al Merito della Repubblica Italiana, the highest Order of Merit in Italy.

Jean-Remy is a Managing Partner at CVC, having joined in 2008. Based in Luxembourg, he is head of the Operations team.

Prior to joining CVC, Jean-Remy worked at TPG as a member of their operations team. Before TPG he worked at Mars Inc. in various operational and financial roles.

Jean-Rémy holds a bachelor's degree in Business Administration from the University of Michigan and an MBA from Harvard Business School. He is a board member of several portfolio companies.

David is an investment professional at LIPTON Teas and Infusions’ parent company, CVC Capital Partners, having joined in 2009. He became a Director on July 31, 2022 of what was then ekaterra, when its acquisition by funds managed by CVC was successfully completed.

Prior to joining CVC, David worked for OC&C Strategy Consultants.