Leena Nair: The ‘human spark’ igniting Chanel’s next century

In the cloistered world of Parisian luxury, where heritage is currency and creative lineage is paramount, appointing an outsider can send shockwaves through the industry. When French luxury label Chanel named Leena Nair its global chief executive officer in January 2022, the move was seen as nothing short of revolutionary.

Nair, a 30-year veteran of the fast-moving consumer goods giant Unilever and a leader whose expertise was in people, not petit point, was an unconventional choice. Yet, her selection signalled a deliberate and forward-thinking pivot for the iconic house, a bet that the future of luxury lies not just in what you create, but in how you create it and who you empower along the way.

Nair’s journey to the helm of the 115-year-old brand was, as she describes it, a "quadruple jump": from chief human resources officer to CEO, from a publicly listed company to a privately owned one, from an Anglo-Dutch conglomerate to a French heritage brand, and from household staples such as toothpaste and ice cream to luxury.

Education and early career

Born in Kolhapur, a small city in Maharashtra, India, Nair’s path was defined by a series of firsts. Growing up in a conservative environment, she was the first woman in her family to pursue higher education in engineering, a decision that was met with negotiation and concern. Her mother famously worried, "Oh, my God, you're so ambitious. Who's going to marry you?". Undeterred, Nair pursued an engineering degree in electronics and telecommunication, a field with few women at the time.

A college mentor, however, spotted her innate talent for understanding human behaviour, guiding her toward a different path. She went on to earn an MBA in human resources from the prestigious XLRI – Xavier School of Management, graduating as a gold medallist in 1992. This pivot from engineering to human resources was an early sign of her capacity for reinvention, a skill that would define her career.

Being first

Nair’s professional ascent began in 1992 as a management trainee at Unilever's Indian subsidiary. True to her trailblazing nature, she became the first woman at the unit to work a night shift on a factory floor. This hands-on experience, from selling tea in rural India to managing factory personnel, gave her a ground-level understanding of the business and its people.

Over three decades, she systematically broke barriers, becoming the youngest executive director at Hindustan Unilever and the first woman on the company's South Asia Leadership Team. Her tenure was marked by tangible results. As executive director HR for South East Asia, she improved productivity levels by 33 percent in two years. In 2016, she was appointed Unilever’s "first female, first Asian, youngest ever" chief human resources officer, responsible for the company’s 150,000 employees across 190 countries.

Being the first woman, Indian or person of color in a role has been a privilege and a burden, Nair says. She openly shares her moments of failure and doubt. When Nair was on the shortlist to become CEO of Unilever, she consulted her mentor, former PepsiCo CEO Indra Nooyi, listing the skills she felt she lacked for the role. Nooyi prompted her to list what she ‘did’ bring: experience in managing at a global scale, running huge transformation programs, and leading a massive workforce. The call from Chanel came as a surprise and it took Nair nine months to say yes to a move from mass market to the insular world of luxury.

Vision for human creation

Since taking the helm, Nair has articulated a clear and ambitious vision for Chanel: to ensure the house is a "beacon of inspiration for the next 100 years", she said during a talk at Stanford university last year. Her strategy is not a radical departure from the brand’s core tenets of creativity and craftsmanship but rather an evolution, embedding a modern consciousness into its operations. Her leadership rests on three pillars: having a positive impact in the world, relentlessly protecting human creation, and always shaping what is next.

Her leadership philosophy, honed over decades in human resources, is unapologetically "human-centred". She champions what she calls "compassionate leadership," believing that while tough business decisions are necessary, they must be executed with empathy. "I truly believe in benevolence, in kindness, in compassion, in empathy," she said during the talk. This approach manifests in her commitment to "collective intelligence," a practice of listening to every voice in the room to foster a culture where diverse perspectives are valued.

Challenges and a new course for Chanel

While her tenure is still relatively new, Nair’s impact is already measurable. Under her leadership, Chanel has demonstrated financial resilience in a slowing luxury market. In 2022, her first year as CEO, the company’s revenues rose 17 percent to a record 17.2 billion dollars. This momentum continued into 2023, with sales climbing another 16 percent to just under 20 billion dollars, driven by double-digit growth across all product lines.

Economic pressures and shifting consumer behaviour started to weigh on Chanel in 2024. Sales declined 4.3 per cent, falling to 18.7 billion dollars, as the company embarks on a new course with the appointment of a new creative director. Matthieu Blazy is set to present his first collection on Monday. The company is doubling down on fragrance and beauty with the opening of 48 store openings planned in the current year.

Nair has significantly bolstered the house’s philanthropic efforts. Upon taking the CEO role, she increased the annual funding for the Fondation Chanel, which supports women and girls worldwide, from 20 million dollars to 100 million dollars. This aligns with her long-standing advocacy for gender equality, a cause she championed at Unilever, where she was instrumental in achieving a 50/50 gender balance across global leadership. At Chanel, women now hold over 60 percent of management positions.

In the news

Leena Nair is not a CEO who actively seeks the media spotlight. Her appointment generated significant press, largely focused on her former "outsider" status and what it signified for Chanel and the broader luxury industry. For much of her first year and a half, she maintained a low profile, embarking on a "listening tour" to immerse herself in the company, visiting over 100 retail locations and 40 manufacturing sites.

Recently, she has begun to engage in more public-facing conversations, speaking at events like the Business of Fashion Voices conference and Stanford University’s "View From The Top" series. These appearances have been carefully chosen, allowing her to articulate her leadership philosophy and vision directly. There has been no significant controversy associated with her leadership; the primary narrative remains one of respectful curiosity and observation as the industry watches her blend her people-first approach with Chanel’s deep-rooted heritage.

Family person

Behind the trailblazing CEO is a person grounded in her values and family. Nair often speaks of the crucial support from her husband, Kumar Nair, a financial services entrepreneur, and their two sons. She shares the story of her arranged marriage with humour and affection, recounting how her father held her to a promise to marry the man he chose in exchange for supporting her education, a promise that led to a partnership of more than 30 years after a 30-minute coffee meeting.

She is a practitioner of self-reflection, using journaling to navigate moments of self-doubt and to cultivate gratitude. Her reported hobbies include reading, running, and Bollywood dancing.

Closing insight

Leena Nair’s leadership is a study in quiet revolution. She is not dismantling the house that Coco Chanel built but is reinforcing its foundations for a new era, ensuring its legacy is not just preserved but made relevant for the century to come. Her vision is perhaps best captured in her own words at her Stanford talk, a powerful reflection on her ultimate ambition for the brand:

"I want 100 years from now for men and women to say, 'Wow, those people in Chanel in 2024 really knew what they were doing because they've changed our lives today.' So I want us to be a beacon of inspiration for the next hundred years."

This story has been written with the assistance of AI.