She was her senior by about four years at the iconic Mumbai based Sydenham College of Commerce. Both pursued their B.Com Degree from the famed college which draws on an unrivalled legacy including that of Dr B R Ambedkar being Professor of Political Economy there in the year 1918.
While the junior one marks history today taking charge as the first woman to lead HUL, the senior Sydenham pass out is India’s only second self-made (Kiran Mazumdar Shaw being the first) Indian billionaire businesswoman, having founded beauty and lifestyle retail company Nykaa, officially known as FSN E-Commerce Ventures which is an acronym of her own name. Nayar is one of two self-made female Indian billionaires.
Priya Nair returns to lead HUL
Priya Nair, currently President, Beauty & Wellbeing, Unilever, joined HUL today as its Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director. She will also join the HUL Board, subject to necessary approvals, and continue to be a member of the Unilever Leadership Executive (ULE). From 2012 to 2016, she was SVP of Leadership and Organization and Head of DEI. In 2016, Nair became Unilever’s “first female, first Asian, youngest ever” chief human resources officer.
Welcoming Priya back to India and to HUL, Nitin Paranjpe, non-executive chairman, HUL said, “Priya has had an outstanding career in HUL and Unilever. I am certain that with her deep understanding of the Indian market and excellent track record, Priya will take HUL to the next level of performance.”
“Today marks a new beginning as I return to my alma mater Hindustan Unilever Limited as the MD & CEO. I am honoured to be trusted with this responsibility, and humbled to receive the baton from a league of extraordinary leaders who have helped make HUL one of the largest and most respected FMCG companies in India today,” Nair remarked in her Linked Post.
Falguni Nayar scales Nykaa success
Coincidentally, it was in 2012 that Falguni Nayar launched Nykaa; she founded Nykaa with $2 million of her own money. In 2005, she was appointed as the managing director of Kotak Mahindra Capital, the investment banking unit, and director of Kotak Securities, the institutional equities arm. She quit her job in 2012.
Apart from the Sydenham connection, what binds Priya Nair and Falguni Nayar is their love for the blush and glow of the beauty (personal care and well-being) business. Sydenham, in fact, boasts of the first woman commerce graduate in Asia in August 1925 (about a 100 years ago).
HUL posted a 7.6 per cent year-on-year rise in standalone net profit for Q1FY26, which stood at ₹2,732 crore, up from ₹2,538 crore in the same period last year. Revenue from operations grew 3.8 per cent to ₹15,747 crore, compared to ₹15,166 crore in Q1FY25.
Nykaa (Q4FY25) reported a net profit growth of 193% to Rs 20 crore versus Rs 7 crore in the year ago period. The profit is attributable to the equity shareholders of the parent while revenue from operations rose by 24% to ₹2,062 crore compared to the same quarter last year. For the full fiscal year FY25, revenue reached ₹7,950 crore, a 24% increase, and net profit grew by 81% to ₹72 crore.
Discussing the importance of identifying early-stage opportunities, Nayar advocates for building solutions in a highly capital-efficient manner. “I need to really build a sunrise industry and become bigger before, you know, I used to say Tata, Birla, and Ambani get interested, and that’s exactly what happens,” she remarked during her ‘Duologue with Barun Das’ show on News9.
Leena Nair helms Chanel globally
While on the ever buoyant story of Beauty Inc, it is pertinent to mention the third Indian origin woman, coincidentally another Nair, who lords over world’s premier luxury fashion company, Chanel. Nair has several firsts to her credit including the big one when she became CEO of Chanel in 2021. She inscribed her name in history being the first woman and first person of Indian-origin to hold the role. Nair earlier excelled in her various roles at Unilever rising to be its first women Chief Human Resources Officer.
Together, Priya, Falguni and Leena, showcase the power of women led development, a global force dominating the World Inc boardrooms, through sheer impeccable credentials made immaculate by their collective quest to reimagine personal care and beauty business.
Independent estimates say India’s beauty and personal care market, valued at Rs. 2,43,236 crore (US$ 28 billion), is expected to reach Rs. 2,95,358 crore (US$ 34 billion) by 2028, growing at 10-11% annually.