Nestlé on Monday dismissed CEO Laurent Freixe after only a year on the job following “an investigation into an undisclosed romantic relationship with a direct subordinate” that breached its Code of Business Conduct.
“This was a necessary decision,” Nestlé Chairman Paul Bulcke said. “Nestlé’s values and governance are strong foundations of our company.”
Freixe, a company veteran, was appointed last year to replace CEO Mark Schneider as the maker of Toll House cookies and Nespresso coffee struggled with slowing sales. The Swiss company tapped Philipp Navratil, the head of Nestlé’s Nespresso division, to succeed Freixe.
Nestlé, which imports Nespresso machines and coffee from Switzerland, may soon feel the sting of the Trump administration’s 39% tariffs on the country, though the company makes most of its other products in the U.S. Nestlé shares recently were down about 1% in Swiss trading.
Earlier this year, department store chain Kohl’s fired CEO Ashley Buchanan after an investigation found he directed the company to enter a multi-million-dollar agreement with a group that included a personal contact.
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