Sue Nabi hires Coty, Edgar Huber leaves the company

New Coty Inc. CEO Sue Nabi has made her first executive appointments as chief luxury officer and chief digital officer.

At the same time, Edgar Huber, Coty’s chief commercial officer and beauty industry veteran who has been with Coty since 2015, will leave the company.

Huber played a key role in building Coty’s luxury division, which now licenses Burberry beauty products as well as Gucci, Calvin Klein, Chloé and Marc Jacobs perfumes. Before Coty, Huber ran Lands’ End and Juicy Couture, and also worked at L’Oréal, heading the luxury department.

Nabi thanked Huber in a statement and called him an “experienced, respected leader.”

“I am delighted that he will remain with us for the next several months as we transition to a new approach to leadership,” she added. He will work alongside Isabelle Bonfanti, who joins Coty as chief commercial officer for luxury, in his first few months on the job.

Bonfanti is a L’Oréal veteran who worked for 17 years in the company’s luxury division of fragrances, cosmetics and skin care. Nabi highlighted Bonfanti’s experience in growing brands in Asia and China, describing her as “perfectly suited to this role.” In addition to L’Oréal, she also spent 10 years at Hermès.

Jean-Denis Mariani, former chief digital officer at Guerlain, an LVMH company, will join Coty as chief digital officer. In his previous role, he oversaw Guerlain’s digital transformation, which included accelerated global e-commerce and digital marketing efforts. He will start work on November 1.

Mariani’s appointment comes as Coty’s e-commerce sales accelerate. This trend has been widely observed by beauty companies as consumers continue to shop online during the coronavirus pandemic. Coty said e-commerce sales have more than doubled in the past few months.

“One of the many seismic changes in our industry has been the meteoric rise of digital and e-commerce. Coty is now making progress in developing a digital offering that is truly best-in-class. Jean-Denis’ brand building experience and track record around the world make him a fantastic addition to our leadership team,” said Nabi.

Both Bonfanti and Mariani will report to Nabi.

More executive appointments are expected at Coty – the company said it plans to “modernize its consumer beauty organization in the near future” and will appoint a leader in the segment. Coty’s consumer beauty divisions, which include Rimmel and Cover Girl, have struggled in recent years.

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