Coty Inc.
Leadership History
4 leaders · 1992 to present
Markus Strobel is the CEO of Coty, in the role since 2026. The first chief executive was Camillo Pane, from 2015.
| Name | Role | From | To | Years in role |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Markus Strobel | Executive Chairman and Interim Chief Executive Officer | 2026 | Present | < 1 |
| Sue Nabi | Chief Executive Officer | 2020 | 2025 | 5 |
| Camillo Pane | Chief Executive Officer | 2015 | 2019 | 4 |
| Peter Harf | Chairman | 1992 | 2025 | 33 |
Coty is a global beauty company founded in Paris in 1904 by perfumer François Coty and now run from New York, with operations across the Americas, EMEA and Asia Pacific. It is one of the largest makers of prestige fragrances, combining licensed designer names, the majority-owned Kylie Cosmetics and mass makeup brands acquired from P&G. JAB Holding, the Reimann family's investment firm, has controlled Coty since 1992 and owns a majority of its shares. After a decade of debt reduction and leadership turnover, Coty entered 2026 with a new interim CEO, a shrinking portfolio and a market value of roughly $2.3 billion. The company is headquartered in New York City, New York. The massive multinational beauty conglomerate was founded in Paris, France in 1904, originally revolutionizing the global fragrance industry before executing massive, highly complex acquisitions to dominate color cosmetics and skincare.
Executive Chairman and Interim Chief Executive Officer
2026 – Present
0 years (current)
Took over on January 1, 2026, after Sue Nabi's exit and Peter Harf's retirement as chairman. Launched the Coty.Curated framework, directed the Wella stake proceeds toward debt reduction and agreed the early Gucci Beauty exit with Kering.
Chief Executive Officer
2020 – 2025
5 years
Nabi, the highly successful founder of Orveda and former L'Oréal executive, executed a massive turnaround by aggressively premiumizing Coty's skincare and fragrance lines.
As CEO, she completely stabilized the company following years of chaotic leadership changes, driving six consecutive quarters of massive revenue growth in the prestige division.
Chief Executive Officer
2015 – 2019
4 years
Pane attempted to manage the chaotic, incredibly complex integration of the massive P&G brand portfolio, struggling severely with supply chain disruptions and plummeting sales.
He resigned as CEO in 2018 for 'family reasons' after failing to stabilize the mass beauty division (CoverGirl, Max Factor), leaving the company in severe financial distress.
Chairman
1992 – 2025
33 years
Harf orchestrated the disastrous 2016 acquisition of 43 beauty brands from Procter & Gamble for $12.5 billion, which nearly bankrupted the company due to catastrophic integration failures.
As Chairman (and Managing Partner at JAB Holding, Coty's majority owner), he personally intervened multiple times as interim CEO to fire underperforming executives and restructure the debt.
These officers report to the chief executive and are not part of the CEO timeline above.
Coty's FY2026 shows the pressure points clearly: like-for-like sales fell 5%, reported gross margin slipped 190 basis points to 62.9% on lower volumes, tariffs and inventory write-downs, adjusted EBITDA fell 22% to $846.9 million, and the company swung to an $81.5 million operating loss. Losing the Gucci Beauty license (ending June 30, 2027) will cut sales and profit in FY2028, mass color cosmetics keeps losing share to digital-native brands, and financial net debt of $2.91 billion still equals about 3.4x adjusted EBITDA. The share price fell below $3 in 2026, leaving a market value near $2.3 billion.
Markus Strobel has served as Executive Chairman and Interim CEO of Coty since January 1, 2026. He succeeded Sue Nabi as CEO and Peter Harf as chairman.
Markus Strobel is a former Procter & Gamble beauty and personal care executive who became Coty's Executive Chairman and Interim CEO in January 2026. He launched the Coty.Curated strategy in February 2026.
Coty announced Nabi's exit in December 2025 after five years as CEO, following weaker sales and a sharp share-price decline in 2025.
Nabi, a former L'Oréal executive, led Coty from September 2020, refocusing on prestige fragrance, reducing debt and growing sales to $6.12 billion in FY2024.
Soraya Benchikh, previously CFO of British American Tobacco, became Coty's CFO on September 1, 2026. Predecessor Laurent Mercier moved into a Strategic CEO Advisor role through June 30, 2027.
Camillo Pane was CEO during the 2016 P&G specialty beauty merger and its integration; he was followed by Pierre Laubies, then interim leadership by chairman Peter Harf in 2020.
Peter Harf is a long-time JAB partner who shaped Coty for about 30 years as an executive and chairman and served as interim CEO in 2020. He retired as Coty chairman at the end of 2025.
As of October 2026, Strobel remained interim CEO; Coty had not announced a permanent appointment.
Sue Nabi serves as CEO. A legendary former L'Oreal executive, she was brought in to save Coty in 2020. She executed an absolutely brilliant turnaround, successfully fixing Coty's struggling mass-market brands and heavily boosting its luxury skincare portfolio.
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