The luxury group Kering has appointed Raffaella Cornaggia as CEO of the newly created cosmetics division Kering Beauté. Based in Paris, she will report to Jean-François Palus, Group Managing Director of Kering, and will be a member of the Group’s Executive Committee.
In her new role, she will develop cosmetic lines for in-house fashion brands Bottega Veneta, Balenciaga, Alexander McQueen, Pomellato and Qeelin “as a natural extension of her universe,” according to a press release.
Many years of international experience
Born in Italy, Raffaella Cornaggia has more than 25 years of international experience in the beauty industry. Cornaggia began her career at L’Oréal, where she held various roles in Italy and France for ten years before joining Chanel Parfums Beauté as Global Vice President, Marketing Makeup. In 2008 she started at Estée Lauder Companies when the EMEA region was founded there. There she managed marketing for Estée Lauder and Tom Ford Beauty from Paris. She then moved to Asia, where she was named senior director, brand development for Estée Lauder and Tom Ford Beauty, and later rose to vice president and general manager for MAC Cosmetics in the region. In 2017, based in New York, she led the development of the global travel retail business for Estée Lauder and Aerin as senior vice president and general manager. Then in 2020 she became International Senior Vice President and General Manager of both brands, responsible for global business outside of the US and Canada.
Jean-François Palus, General Manager of the Group, said: “I am delighted to welcome Raffaella Cornaggia. She brings with her great experience in a segment that we consider to be strategically important for our houses. We are building this new area of expertise within our group to ensure our brands can fulfill their potential in this category.”
Kering is active in fashion, leather goods and jewelry. Brands included Gucci, Saint Laurent, Bottega Veneta, Balenciaga, Alexander McQueen, Brioni, Boucheron, Pomellato, DoDo, Qeelin, and Kering Eyewear. In 2021, Kering employed over 42,000 people and generated sales of 17.6 billion euros.