Hindustan Unilever names Pavanjit S. Bedi as Chief Marketing Officer

Hindustan Unilever Ltd has appointed Pavanjit S. Bedi as Chief Marketing Officer for its Foods business, as part of a restructuring aimed at strengthening marketing leadership across portfolios.

Bedi announced his elevation on LinkedIn, confirming his new role at the maker of Dove, Horlicks and Lakmé.

He said, “I’m delighted to share that I will be stepping into the role of CMO - Foods at HUL. Few portfolios combine cultural relevance, scale and the opportunity for reinvention the way Foods does in India. As consumer behaviours evolve faster than ever, the challenge - and opportunity - is to build brands that feel both timeless and unmistakably contemporary. Looking forward to the work ahead.”

The appointment follows CEO Priya Nair’s announcement during the company’s third-quarter earnings that HUL would introduce dedicated CMOs for its business units to sharpen brand focus and execution. Sunanda Khaitan has been named CMO for the Beauty & Wellbeing portfolio, while Abhinav Ravikumar has taken over as CMO for the Personal Care segment.

Bedi has spent over two decades with HUL and its parent, Unilever, in various leadership roles. Before his current appointment, he served as Global Brand Vice President.

He has held global brand leadership positions for Pond’s in Singapore, Glow & Lovely in India, and Lifebuoy across multiple markets. In these roles, he oversaw innovation programmes, brand strategy and digital initiatives across regions including South Asia, Africa, the Middle East and Latin America.

Earlier, he worked as Regional Brand Manager for Skin Cleansing brands such as Dove and Pears in South Asia. He also held sales leadership responsibilities in Kolkata, managing business delivery and sales infrastructure.