Pablo Isla, a renowned businessman with extensive experience in the retail sector, has recently been appointed vice president of the Nestlé Group. Isla, who served as president of Inditex for over a decade and is currently an advisor to the Cinven fund, was elected as lead independent director and chairman of the Nomination Committee by Nestlé’s shareholders at their recent meeting.
Isla has been a director of the Swiss multinational for five years and his term expired this year. His appointment comes after Henri de Castries stepped down as vice president due to internal term limits. Isla’s expertise in supply chain, innovation, and governance was highlighted by the company at his initial appointment in April 2018. Despite stepping down as president of Inditex in March 2022, Isla will continue to serve on the Nestlé board of directors for another six years.
In addition to his role at Nestlé, Isla has taken on various other projects. He became a global advisor to the Cinven fund on January 1 and is also the president of Amara Nzero, a renewable energy company in which the fund invests. Isla serves as the president of the governing council of IE University and is an advisor to private equity firm General Atlantic. He is also a member of several boards of trustees.
At Nestlé’s 157th shareholders meeting, the company approved its latest accounts, including a proposed dividend of 3 Swiss francs per share and a capital reduction. The dividend represents a 5-cent increase from the previous year. Despite reporting a 21% growth in net profit to 11.2 billion Swiss francs for the 2023 financial year, Nestlé experienced a 1.5% drop in revenue to 93 billion Swiss francs, partly attributed to a decrease in volumes sold. The company’s shares on the Swiss Stock Exchange have been trading at their lowest levels since the pandemic but experienced an increase in prices at