pladis, one of the world’s leading snacking companies, has appointed A. Salman Amin as global ceo, effective in February.
Amin succeeds Cem Karakas, who stepped down from his executive role in September 2018 for family health reasons.
Karakas, who took the company’s helm when pladis was formed in 2016, also took a leave of absence from his role as deputy chairman of parent company Yildiz Holding. He will be retained as an adviser to the United Biscuits UK Board.
Jim Zaza, pladis senior board member and chairman of United Biscuits UK, served as interim ceo. Zaza had been an executive on the pladis board since its inception. He has previously held senior executive positions at Pepsico, Black and Decker and Eastman Kodak.
With a strong reputation in the food and drink sector, Amin assumes pladis’ top position after an international career spanning 30 years and three continents. Most recently, Amin was the global chief operating officer, global commercial division, for SC Johnson & Son, where he was accountable for all categories and geographies.
During his tenure at the family-owned enterprise, Amin was successful in rejuvenating its portfolio of global brands, building a world-class marketing organization, accelerating innovation speed to market, driving growth in operating profit margins and leading a program of cultural transformation.
“pladis is just over two years old and already we’re fast becoming a global snacking leader,” said Murat Ulker, chairman of Yildiz Holding. “With Salman’s proven track record in driving transformation and growth among global FMCG players, we’re delighted to welcome him to lead our ambitious and entrepreneurial team.”
Previous to joining SC Johnson, Amin was PepsiCo’s chief marketing officer and also held significant roles across the business including president, PepsiCo, United Kingdom and Ireland and other leadership roles during his 17 years at the company. He also spent 10 years at Procter & Gamble working in the United States, Germany, Saudi Arabia and Switzerland.
An insights-focused, energetic leader with comprehensive global experience across marketing, sales and operations, Amin thrives at the center of brand and business development. As cmo at PepsiCo, he led all facets of marketing for the company’s multiple billion-dollar brands across insights, sports marketing, digital, media buying, and capability and people planning. Amin also led PepsiCo’s move to front-of-pack labeling in the UK, encouraging well-informed consumer decision-making. He was a leader in successfully expanding the PepsiCo snacks portfolio globally with iconic brands such as Lays and Doritos.
Amin will be responsible for all the categories and geographies of the company, from Europe, America, Africa to Middle East, Central Asia and Far East.
He will begin immersing himself in the culture of pladis, meeting colleagues and customers, before formulating his global strategy for the business. He will build on pladis’ focus to strategically diversify its global brand, McVitie’s, alongside Ulker and a range of Godiva chocolates exclusively for consumer-packaged goods channels and core markets. He will also focus on inspiring a global workforce to capitalize on ever-changing, multi-channel, dynamic environments.
“I’ve built a career on seeking out opportunities to rewrite the rules, diversify and be part of consumer evolution,” Amin said. “At pladis we have the opportunity to make our local favorites global stars, and share the heritage of our biscuits and confectionery with the world. I’m looking forward to joining my new colleagues as we embark on this journey together.”
