Coty strengthens Consumer Beauty business with senior talent

NEW YORK - Coty Inc. (NYSE: COTY), one of the world’s leading beauty companies and the global leader in fragrances, today announced two leaders to drive its Consumer Beauty organization. Stefano Curti will join the company as Chief Brands Officer, Consumer Beauty, while Alexis Vaganay will be promoted to Chief Commercial Officer, Consumer Beauty. The appointments come as CEO Sue Y. Nabi strengthens her leadership team, following the recent additions of Isabelle Bonfanti as Chief Commercial Officer, Luxury, and Jean-Denis Mariani as Chief Digital Officer.

Stefano Curti joins Coty this week as Chief Brands Officer, Consumer Beauty and will be based in New York. Curti – who has a strong track record of brand building and channel expansions – will focus on strengthening the division’s brand equity, global positioning and innovation performance. He brings a wealth of senior international experience, having spent almost 30 years working in the beauty and health industry in the U.S., Europe and Latin America. Curti joins from Markwins Beauty Brands – the largest independent cosmetics company in the U.S., with established mass cosmetics brands including Physicians Formula, LORAC, Black Radiance and WetnWild – where he served as Global President. He spent 22 years at Johnson & Johnson, where he progressed through the marketing organization to the role of Global President Beauty and Baby divisions. During his time at J&J, Curti led iconic skin and personal care brands like Aveeno, Clean & Clear and Neutrogena, driving above-market sales growth and double-digit profit growth for the beauty portfolio.

Coty also announced the promotion of Alexis Vaganay to Chief Commercial Officer, Consumer Beauty. Vaganay, who has more than 20 years’ experience in international sales and marketing, takes up his appointment this week and will be based in Coty’s Amsterdam headquarters. He will be responsible for leading Coty’s regions - in close collaboration with his Luxury counterpart - and developing Consumer Beauty’s commercial strategy to increase market share and grow revenues in color cosmetics, body care and consumer fragrances. Most recently, Vaganay was EVP, EMEA, following four years as General Manager of UK&I Luxury. Under his leadership, Coty UK&I was among the fastest growing luxury fragrance players. Prior to joining Coty in 2016, Vaganay worked at Unilever and Bic in a variety of global roles.

Sue Y. Nabi, CEO of Coty, said, “My ambition from day one has been to quickly build a first-class leadership team. The appointment of these two leaders means we are now in great shape to re-position our portfolio of brands more clearly. Stefano’s track record and sector expertise makes him the right leader for our Consumer Beauty transformation. Alexis, likewise, is a proven leader within Coty and his deep knowledge of our business and brands makes him the perfect fit to accelerate our growth on all continents.”

Nabi continued: “Consumer Beauty is a critical pillar of our business. In times of uncertainty, the consumer beauty industry has an essential mission: the place where people can access the latest trends and innovations, find the best quality at an accessible price and experience the diversity of all kinds of beauties. That’s why we are excited that Coty has found two beauty champions who will enable our portfolio of meaningful brands - which include COVERGIRL, Sally Hansen, Rimmel, Bourjois, adidas and David Beckham, to name a few - to truly thrive.”

In October, Coty announced the appointment of Isabelle Bonfanti as Chief Commercial Officer, Luxury. She boasts more than 30 years’ experience in international brand development and transformation, including 17 years in L’Oréal’s Luxury division. Bonfanti was joined by Jean-Denis Mariani as Chief Digital Officer, who joined from Guerlain as Coty continues to generate record e-commerce sales across its portfolio.