Karim Bitar loved fireworks, putting on extravagant shows in his backyard at the slightest excuse. In the days running up to New Year’s Eve he would arrive home to unpack so many boxes of pyrotechnics from his car that he was known in the neighbourhood as the fireworks guy. The stocky, 5ft 7in Bitar lit fireworks of a different kind at Convatec, the healthcare business he was parachuted into in 2019 to pull it out of a succession of losses, profit warnings and boardroom upheavals.
Convatec, which focuses on products for advanced care of wounds, incontinence and infusions, had had a tough few years on the stock market after its 2016 debut. Bitar immediately imposed his brand of discipline in a three-year turnaround strategy culminating in the firm’s return to the FTSE 100 in September 2022. Under his direction, Convatec grew for six years straight, selling laggards and prioritising 12 key markets, particularly the US and China. He more than doubled annual research and development spending to $100 million and made strategic acquisitions. One addition, Triad Life Sciences, developed biologically based wound care, and another, Cure Medical, helped Convatec become the second-largest manufacturer in the US for continence care.
Bitar was renowned for calmness under pressure. A 2022 Times profile called him “a methodical talker who has a tendency to ask questions to get his points across”. He told the interviewer that leadership meant setting a clear direction of travel, building a cohesive, high-performance team and providing motivation and inspiration, adding that his own inspiration was Nelson Mandela. “I can never change the past, but I can learn from the past,” Bitar said.
Karim Bitar was born in New York City in 1965, eldest son of Abdul Raman, a Syrian diplomat, and Fereshteh, a Persian teacher whose father was an ambassador. Their other sons are Nader, a lawyer, and Sami, an engineer. Together they run MagCanica, which designs, develops and manufactures torque sensor systems.
Karim’s childhood was largely shaped by the family’s multicultural household and his father’s career. Shortly after his birth the family moved to Tunisia, where they lived for five years, and then Rome, where Abdul worked for the Food and Agriculture Organisation. Karim stayed there until he returned to the US to go to college.
In Rome, he attended an American school, Notre Dame International, where he excelled at mathematics and science, constantly questioning what he was being taught. He was an eagle scout with the Boy Scouts of America in Rome, an experience that shaped his life and instilled in him the Baden-Powell motto, “Be prepared.” He showed early signs of leadership with the scouts, collaborating and working collectively. Even then, for him success was about everyone reaching the finish line together. He loved football from an early age, following Juventus and the Italian national team, the Azzurri.
In 1984 Bitar met his future wife, Arzu, on the beach when they were on holiday with their families in Bodrum on Turkey’s Aegean coast. Their relationship survived being confined to long-distance correspondence while studying at their respective universities. They married and settled in Ann Arbor, Michigan, where Bitar completed his MBA and Arzu worked at Kraft Foods. She later became an interior architect. They had three children: identical twin daughters, Sarah and Sabrina, and a son, Dani. Sarah works for Deloitte Consulting, while Sabrina is in brand management. Dani has followed his father to the University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business and intends moving into business healthcare. Dani said: “Dad enjoyed organising family events, from ski trips to dinner parties, football matches or theatre visits. He liked creating memories.” Bitar played backyard football with the children and attended their weekend matches. All three still play football.
Bitar took a degree in biochemistry at the University of Wisconsin, representing the university at backgammon and playing for its international football team with students from other countries. On graduating, he had offers from several potential employers and chose Dow Chemical, even though that meant rejecting an offer worth $5,000 a year more. His decision was reported admiringly on the front page of The Wall Street Journal. After a few years he moved to Johnson & Johnson, the baby powder firm.
On obtaining his MBA in 1992 at the Ross School of Business, supported by a Unilever scholarship, he joined McKinsey as a consultant, spending four years there before a career-making 15 years at Eli Lilly began in 1996. As general manager of its Italian offshoot, he was for the first time responsible for profits and losses. Later he was president of Lilly Europe, Canada and Australia, and became fluent in Italian, English, French and Arabic.
After Lilly, in 2011 he became chief executive of Genus for eight years, developing the company into a technology leader in animal genetics. He transformed Genus, a global agricultural biotechnology company focused on selling pig and bull semen, into a technology pioneer with leading global franchises. His tenure was marked by a strategic dive into gene editing, including signing an exclusive global deal with Caribou Biosciences to use technology to develop pig and cattle breeds resistant to disease and improve protein yields. From 2017 to 2022 he was a non-executive director of Spectris, an analytical instrumentation company.
Bitar applied a disciplined approach at Convatec
FIONA HANSON FOR THE TIMES
During his time at Eli Lilly in Italy, Bitar was heavily involved in charitable activities, partnering with the Irish Nobel peace prizewinner Betty Williams to establish a Città della Pace (City of Peace) mission, promoting dialogue and peace. He was committed to advancing female education and supporting women in leadership, endowing several scholarships for Middle Eastern first-generation female college students. He was on the Ross School of Business Advisory Board.
Bitar and Arzu ran together through London’s Richmond Park, ending their run at a coffee shop. He and his brothers created a family football team, BFA (Bitar Football Academy), with customised jerseys, and with their children they held an annual mini-tournament. Bitar and Arzu played tennis against one another, Arzu usually winning. He played the piano, and was a fan of Taylor Swift and the Italian singer Laura Pausini. On Sundays at home with Arzu he made scrambled-egg brunches, watched Juventus games and FaceTimed his family. Whatever the weather, at home or elsewhere, he insisted on plenty of ice in his cold drinks.
Through thick and thin, Bitar was Convatec’s biggest champion. He said: “Being in the FTSE 100 was just a reflection of the progress we made. We’ve made good progress, but I think there is still significant room for us to do even better and take it to the next level.”
Karim Bitar, businessman, was born on February 11, 1965. He died of pancreatic cancer on October 26, 2025, aged 60