The Estée Lauder Companies Appoints Meridith Webster as Executive Vice President, Global Communications and Public Affairs, Effective May 17, 2021
May 11, 2021 at 07:00 am EDT
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The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. announced that Meridith Webster will join the company in the newly-created role of Executive Vice President, Global Communications and Public Affairs, effective May 17, 2021. Meridith will report jointly to William P. Lauder, Executive Chairman, and Fabrizio Freda, President and Chief Executive Officer. She will also join The Estée Lauder Companies Inc.’s (“ELC”) Executive Leadership Team. Meridith will succeed Alexandra (Alex) Trower as head of Global Communications and Maria Cristina (MC) González Noguera as head of Global Public Affairs. Her appointment follows the news that Alex has made the decision to retire in June after an esteemed career at the company, and that MC was recently tapped for the role of EVP and Chief Communications and Public Affairs Officer at Popular Inc., the Puerto Rico-based global financial services conglomerate. In this new role, Meridith will lead ELC’s global communications and public affairs strategic agendas to advance and protect its business interests and corporate reputation globally, and strengthen relationships to drive value for key stakeholders. She will serve as a strategic advisor to the ELC’s Executive Leadership Team, the Board of Directors and the Lauder Family on a variety of critical topics. Meridith will oversee ELC’s Global Communications and Public Affairs teams, elevating the impact of these important functions across the business. She will lead the strategy and delivery of holistic, integrated global communications to advance ELC’s corporate reputation and winning business narrative, while building brand equity and strengthening the platforms that resonate with key audiences internally and externally. She will also lead the global public affairs and stakeholder engagement strategy to further advance ELC’s business goals, build reputation capital and proactively mitigate issues. Prior to serving in the Biden Administration, she served as Vox Media’s first-ever Chief Communications Officer, overseeing strategic and crisis communications and media relations across a growing modern media company, including editorial networks and advertising, studios, and podcasting. She also previously led the Public Affairs practice at Emerson Collective and served as Global Head of Public Affairs at Bloomberg L.P. and Bloomberg Philanthropies where she managed the expansion of the business and established public affairs and communications functions in Washington, New York and globally.
The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. is one of the 1st world cosmetics groups. Products are sold under brands (Estée Lauder, Aramis, Clinique, Lab Series, Origins, M·A·C, Bobbi Brown, La Mer, Aveda, Jo Malone London, Bumble and bumble, Darphin, Smashbox, Le Labo, Editions de Parfums Frédéric Malle, GLAMGLOW, Kilian Paris, Too Faced, Dr. Jart+, DECIEM and The Ordinary) and under brands of licenses (Tommy Hilfiger, Donna Karan New York, DKNY, Michael Kors, Tom Ford, Dr. Andrew Weil, Ermenegildo Zegna and AERIN). Net sales break down by family of products as follows:
- skin care products (58.4%);
- make-up products (25.9%);
- perfumes (11.9%);
- hair care products (3.5%);
- other (0.3%).
At the end of June 2021, products are marketed through about 1,600 outlets worldwide, distributed between large stores, perfume shops, pharmacies, beauty institutes and exclusive shops, and via Internet.
The group has 10 production sites worldwide.
Net sales are distributed geographically as follows: Americas (23.4%), Europe/Middle East/Africa (42.8%) and Asia/Pacific (33.8%).