VEVEY, SWITZERLAND — Purina continues to lead in several regions for Nestlé, despite witnessing low, single-digit growth in the first nine months of 2024. Sales for the pet care business were CHF 14.02 billion ($16.21 billion USD), a very minimal increase from CHF 14.01 billion ($16.20 billion USD) from the prior year.
Note: Swiss franc (CHF) to USD currency conversions are based on Oct. 17 conversion rates.
“We delivered organic sales growth, driven by positive real internal growth,” shared Nestlé Chief Executive Officer Laurent Freixe. “Consumer demand has weakened in recent months, and we expect the demand environment to remain soft.”
Purina’s growth was largely attributed to continued growth for its science-based and premium brands Purina Pro Plan, Purina ONE and Fancy Feast. Organic growth was 3%, RIG was 1.8%, and pricing was 1.2%.
Total sales for Nestlé were CHF 67.1 billion ($77.6 billion USD), down 2.4% from the prior year. Organic growth rose 2% for the first nine months and real internal growth (RIG) was 0.5%, which Nestlé attributed to “softening” consumer demand and reduced customer inventory. Pricing was 1.6%.
Zone North America sales were CHF 18.5 billion ($21.40 billion USD), a decrease from CHF 19 billion ($21.97 billion USD) in the prior year. Organic growth was -0.3%, RIG was -0.9%, and pricing was 0.6%. Purina was the largest growth contributor in this region with low, single-digit growth. This was primarily led by Purina Pro Plan, Fancy Feast and Friskies.
Zone Europe sales were CHF 13.9 billion ($16.06 billion USD), a decrease from CHF 14.1 billion ($16.29 billion USD) in the prior year. Organic growth was 3.3%, RIG was 0.8%, and pricing was 2.5%. In this zone, Purina was the largest contributor, delivering mid, single-digit growth driven by premium brands Purina ONE, Gourmet and Pro Plan.
Zone Asia, Oceania and Africa (AOA) sales were CHF 12.5 billion ($14.45 billion USD), a decrease from CHF 13.2 billion ($15.26 billion USD) in the prior year. Organic growth was 3.6%, RIG was 0.8%, and pricing was 2.8%. Purina delivered mid, single-digit growth in this region, led by Felix and Purina ONE.
Zone Latin America sales were CHF 8.9 billion ($10.29 billion USD), a decrease from CHF 9.1 billion ($10.52 billion USD) in the prior year. Organic growth was 1.9%, RIG was -0.7%, and pricing was 2.5%. In this region, Purina had flat growth supported by its Felix and Friskies brands.
Zone Greater China sales were CHF 3.6 billion ($4.16 billion USD), flat from the prior year. Organic growth was 2.5%, RIC was 3.9%, and pricing was -1.5%. Purina had the most growth in this region, growing at a double-digit rate. This was attributed to new product launches and continued e-commerce momentum for Purina Pro Plan and Friskies.
“Nestlé is uniquely positioned to win in our industry, given our global scale, broad portfolio of iconic brands and innovative products that connect with people every day and in every stage of their lives,” Freixe said. “Building on this strong foundation, we will sharpen our focus on consumers and customers and advance our categories to accelerate performance and gain market share. We will also expand our digital transformation to enhance agility and efficiency.
“For our brands to win in the market, we need to invest,” he added. “We will generate the resources we need through efficiencies and growth leverage. Disciplined in-market execution will drive Nestlé’s virtuous circle to sustain profitable growth over time, and we have exceptional people to make this happen.”
With these results in mind, Nestlé updated its full-year 2024 outlook. Organic sales growth is expected to be around 2%. The underlying trading operating profit margin is now expected around 17% and underlying earnings per share growth is expected to remain flat.
In addition to its nine-month financials, Nestlé shared changes to its executive board, all of which will become effective Jan. 1, 2025.
Zone Latin American and Zone North America will merge to become Zone Americas, which will be led by Steve Presley, current executive vice president and CEO of Zone North America. Presley will relocate to Nestlé’s headquarters in Vevey.
Zone Greater China Region will become part of Zone Asia, Oceania and Africa (AOA), which is currently led by Executive Vice President and CEO of Zone AOA Remy Ejel. David Zhang will remain executive vice president and CEO of Zone Greater China Region, but will step down from the executive board.
“A leaner executive board structure and close collaboration of the leadership team at the headquarters will increase simplicity, speed up decision-making and strengthen the momentum behind global initiatives,” Freixe said. “We will continue to build on the strengths of our market heads to ensure consistent in-market execution across the group.”
Additionally, Bernard Meunier will step down from the board on March 31, 2025, to lead strategic projects for the company. David Rennie, current head of Nestlé Coffee Brands, will succeed Meunier as head of strategic business units (SBU) and marketing and sales. Following this, Nestlé Coffee Brands, except Nespresso, will be integrated into the SBU organization.
Currently Nespresso is led by Philipp Navratil, who will join the executive board and report directly to Freixe.
Additional personnel changes include:
- Béatrice Guillaume-Grabisch, head of human resources and business services, will step down. Anna Lenz, country manager of Nestlé Portugal, will lead human resources and join the executive board.
- Chris Wright, current chief information officer, will now report directly to Freixe.
- Hans-Ulrich Mayer will continue to lead business services and report to Anna Manz, chief financial officer of Nestlé.
- Antonia Wanner, who currently leads the company’s sustainability unit, will now report directly to Freixe.
“With these organizational changes, all the leaders of key units driving our performance and our transformation will now report directly to me,” Freixe said. “This is crucial, as we sharpen our focus on consumers and customers and restore investment in our brands and in innovation to expand market share and accelerate our performance.
“Going forward, we are also placing a greater emphasis on Nestlé’s digital transformation into a real-time, end-to-end connected, data- and AI-powered organization,” he added. “I am confident these changes will optimally position Nestlé for future success.”
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