The Consumer Goods Forum, Paris has elected Muhtar Kent, chairman and CEO of The Coca-Cola Company, and Lars Olofsson, CEO of Carrefour, the world’s second largest retailer, as its new co-chairs. Elected for a two-year term, the co-chairs will jointly drive cross-industry collaborative action on sustainability, consumer health and wellness and food safety.
Commenting on his election, Olofsson said: “We truly have today an opportunity to serve shoppers and consumers in a better, faster and responsible way and offer them a better life through better business. We as an industry must move forward in a more collaborative, open and inclusive way.”
Kent said: “The Consumer Goods Forum offers the industry the chance, finally, to come together on even terms and work in concert on the non-competitive issues that affect all of our companies. The Forum delivers the concrete working tools, benchmarks and best practice we need to get this work done. It is also a highly-effective way for us to stay connected and engaged with our many and varied stakeholders. It’s an industry hub for us, keeping us connected and challenging us to do our best work meeting our consumers’ needs.”
Asserting that Muhtar and Lars bring a clear vision and very strong leadership to the Forum, Jean Marc Saubade, MD, Consumer Goods Forum, said: “The election of two very high-profile leaders from each of the retail and manufacturing sectors underlines our member companies’ commitment to work together on today’s most important issues.”
The Consumer Goods Forum is an independent global parity-based consumer goods network. It brings together the CEOs and senior management of over 650 retailers, manufacturers, service providers and other stakeholders across 70 countries.
The Forum provides a unique global platform for thought leadership, knowledge exchange and networking among retailers, manufacturers and their partners on collaborative, non-competitive issues.
– IndiaRetailing Bureau
