Nestlé has ousted its chief executive, Laurent Freixe, just a year into his tenure, following an investigation into an undisclosed romantic relationship with a direct subordinate that violated the company’s code of business conduct.

The makers of products ranging from Kitkat to Nescafé began the investigation in spring this year, led by Nestlé’s chairman, Paul Bulcke and lead independent director Pablo Isla, said Reuters.

“This was a necessary decision. Nestlé’s values and governance are strong foundations of our company. I thank Laurent for his years of service at Nestlé,” said Bulcke in a statement.

Freixe, a veteran of the food and beverage company, took over as CEO in September last year after Nestlé dismissed his predecessor, Mark Schneider.

All about Laurent Freixe

The ousted chief executive was born in Paris and educated at Ecole de Hautes Etudes Commerciales du Nord in Lille, where he majored in Marketing.

In 1986, Freixe joined Nestlé in France, where he took on roles in marketing and sales. He went on to hold roles around the world, including serving as the Nestlé CEO of Hungary in 2003 and later of the Nestlé Iberian region in 2007.

When Nestlé revamped its geographic structure in January 2022, Freixe became the CEO of Zone Latin America. In August 2024, he was tapped to replace then-CEO Mark Schneider in the top role and started on 1 September 2024.

He will not receive an exit package after his immediate dismissal from the company, Nestlé told Reuters.

Who will be the next chief?

The board of directors has already announced the immediate appointment of Philipp Navratil as the new CEO of Nestlé SA.

Navratil has been a company veteran for more than 20 years and joined the executive board at the beginning of this year. Prior to his appointment as the CEO of Nestlé SA, he was positioned as the chief executive of Nespresso, the coffee unit of Nestlé.

He has also served the company as senior vice president and head of the Coffee Strategic Business Unit, where he was responsible for global strategy for the Nescafé brand and a licensing partnership with Starbucks.

“I fully embrace the company’s strategic direction, as well as the action plan in place to drive Nestlé’s performance,” he said, according to Monday’s statement.