Coty CEO Sue Nabi Leads Cosmetic Company to Higher Revenues

Cosmetic company Coty is flourishing under CEO Sue Nabi’s leadership. Recognized as an innovator in the world of beauty, Nabi has been at the helm of Coty since July 2020.

On Nov. 8, the company reported that its revenues for the first quarter of 2022 increased 22 percent, which was well ahead of expectations. The increase was due to a combination of growth in Coty’s strong brick and mortar Prestige business as well as 23 percent growth through e-commerce channels, the company said in a statement.

The company’s strong performance in the first quarter marks the fifth consecutive quarter that Coty's results were ahead of the expectations.

“Fifteen months into our turnaround, I am highly encouraged by the strength of our portfolio, our people, and our strategic path, which together are delivering results in record time as we transform Coty into a true leader in beauty,” Nabi said in a statement.

She promised to provide more details on the company’s progress and medium-term trajectory at Coty's Investor Day event on Nov. 18 in New York City.

Prior to joining the Coty team, Nabi spent 20 years working for L’Oreal. She started working for L’Oreal in 1993 as a retail sales representative. She climbed the ranks in the company until she eventually became worldwide president of both L’Oréal in 2005 and Lancôme in 2009. She was the youngest president in the company’s history.

During her time at L’Oreal, Nabi is credited with championing diversity in beauty and reinventing L’Oreal Paris’ advertising and brand identity. Under her leadership at Lancôme, the company launched many new products including the perfume “La Vie est belle,” which is advertised by actress Julia Roberts.

After leaving L’Oreal, Nabi created the new-age luxury vegan and genderless skincare line, Orveda, with co-founder and friend Nicolas Vu. The line is available in luxury spas and medi-spas in the U.S., U.K., France, Switzerland, Mexico, Germany, and Italy. Nabi sold Orveda in 2020 before joining Coty.

When Nabi became the CEO of Coty, she was one of only two female CEOs in the top 10 beauty manufacturers and the only transgender CEO of a Fortune 500 company.

“Sue is renowned as a visionary and ongoing game-changer whose outstanding creativity is celebrated in the beauty industry. I am proud that she now wants to bring her unique sense of inspiration to Coty,” former Coty CEO Peter Harf said when Nabi was announced as the new CEO.

At the beginning of Coty’s fiscal 2021, Nabi told company employees and investors that her goal was to create “a product-centric organization, entirely focused on our customers and our brands.” She encouraged them to bring new ideas to the table.

“We want this to be the place for people to fall in love with the world of beauty,” Nabi said in September 2020. “I want you to think of this as a cultural shift more than a transformation – and one that we will shape together. It will not be easy, and we have no time to waste, but I am absolutely certain that our hard work will pay off, and we will proudly look back at this turning point in Coty’s history.”