Chanel chief finance officer Philippe Blondiaux is retiring at the end of the year, the French couture and beauty giant confirmed on Thursday, in the latest example of the generational change sweeping through the executive suites and creative studios of Europe’s luxury houses. Blondiaux, a former Nestlé and PricewaterhouseCoopers executive, has worked for Chanel for over 15 years and was involved in major real estate investments and retail expansion projects, as well as the company’s philanthropic activities, the group said in a statement.He has resigned from the board. Blondiaux’s departure comes as Chanel pursues creative renewal under fashion designer Matthieu Blazy and freshly appointed jewellery designer Marie-Laure Cérède — changes ultimately overseen by CEO Leena Nair, who joined the company in 2022.Nair, a British-Indian former human resources executive at Unilever, has been a beacon of change in a tradition-soaked industry that often recruits from within. She has gradually renewed Chanel’s top management ranks as longtime executives retire, recruiting a new human resources chief late last year from insurance company Aegon, for example.Chanel isn’t the only French luxury group that has been shuffling its top management ranks. LVMH’s finance chief Cécile Cabanis and managing director Stéphane Bianchi stepped into their roles two years ago, while at Kering, former automobile executive Luca de Meo was drafted in to take the reins as CEO last year. All three replaced executives who had held their roles for at least two decades.The changes have come as the luxury sector seeks to pull itself out of a prolonged sales slump. Chanel has fared better than rivals, returning to growth last year while others continue to struggle to reignite sales.The company is privately owned by billionaire brothers Alain and Gerard Wertheimer.
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