Nestlé recently shocked the corporate world after firing its CEO Laurent Freixe on September 1, 2025, find out more about her and the incident below
The shocking dismissal came after investigators confirmed that he violated company rules by engaging in a secret relationship with a direct subordinate.
Ex-Nestle CEO Laurent Freixe: Bio, age, wife, children, education, religion, salary and net worth
NESTLÉ CEO FIRED OVER SECRET ROMANCE
Nestlé has dismissed CEO Laurent Freixe after an internal investigation confirmed he failed to disclose a romantic relationship with a subordinate, breaching company conduct rules.
Freixe spent 40 years with the group and became CEO in… pic.twitter.com/2PvKJKLkLz
— Business Explainer (@businessXplain) September 2, 2025
The abrupt decision ended his short stint as the chief executive officer, just barely a year after his appointment.
Nestlé CEO Laurent Freixe sacked
Nestlé has sacked company CEO Laurent Freixe with immediate effect after uncovering his undisclosed romantic relationship with a subordinate. The board declared the relationship as a clear breach of the company’s code of conduct, with Chairman Paul Bulcke and lead independent director Pablo Isla leading the investigation with outside counsel. Following the findings, the board has now appointed Nespresso CEO Philipp Navratil as the new chief executive.
As of now, the identity of the subordinate with whom Freixe had the relationship with is not known as Nestlé has not disclosed personal details, citing legal and privacy reasons.
The company has maintained that the matter is a violation of Nestlé’s Code of Business Conduct.
Reactions and official statements
Following the news about the dismissal, Nestlé issued a firm statement saying:
“The departure of Laurent Freixe follows an investigation into an undisclosed romantic relationship with a direct subordinate, which breached Nestlé’s code of business conduct.”
Chairman Paul Bulcke also defended the board’s move, saying:
“This was a necessary decision. Nestlé’s values and governance are strong foundations of our company. I thank Laurent for his years of service.”
Laurent Freixe biography and age
Laurent Freixe is a longtime Nestlé executive who was born in 1962 in Paris, France. Over the last four decades, Freixe has risen through the company ranks, attaining the role of CEO. At the time of his dismissal, he was 63 years old and had been serving as CEO since last September 2024. It is not yet known if Laurent is married and has any children either with him keeping his personal life private.
Although his religion isn’t known, the surname Freixe occurs mostly in Europe, where 100% of Freixe live; 96% live in Western Europe and 96% live in Gallo-Europe.
Education
Laurent Freixe reportedly studied business administration at Ecole de Hautes Etudes Commerciales du Nord (EDHEC), Lille, France. Following which he completed the Program for Executive Development at IMD, Switzerland.
Professional career
Laurent Freixe started out his professional career with Nestlé France in 1986, working in sales and marketing. By 1999, Laurent eventually became the company’s head of the Nutrition Division in France and then moved to Hungary in 2003 as Market Head. Just four years later, in 2007, Laurent took charge of Nestlé’s Iberian region and oversaw operations in Spain and Portugal.
He then attained another promotion in 2008 as Executive Vice President and Zone Director for Europe. During his time here, he guided the company through the subprime and euro crises. Later in 2014, Freixe shifted to the Americas as Executive Vice President and Chief Executive Officer, managing various businesses across the United States, Canada, Latin America, and the Caribbean. He eventually became the CEO of Nestlé’s Latin America division in 2022 and by September 2024, Freixe was appointed as the CEO of Nestlé S.A., up until his recent dismissal in 2025.
Et hop un de plus ! #Nestlé licencie le directeur général Laurent Freixe pour une « relation amoureuse non déclarée »
Le groupe suisse a annoncé ce jeudi soir le licenciement de Laurent Freixe, avec effet immédiat, à la suite d'« une relation amoureuse non déclarée avec une… pic.twitter.com/7yDNqKN5Pz
— MagLiber (@MagLiber3) September 2, 2025
Net worth
While there are no exact figures available regarding Laurent Freixe’s net worth, he earned millions annually as a Nestlé executive and is believe to be worth $4 million.
He was dismissed without any exit compensation and although Nestlé has not released Freixe’s 2025 pay, company reports indicate that his pay was similar to his predecessor’s, who earned 9.6 million Swiss francs (or approximately USD 11.9 million) in 2023.
Freixe held more than 41,000 Nestlé shares worth approximately USD 3.6 million as of 2025 and his net worth is placed at $4 million.
