Adi Godrej to step down from GCPL board next month

Packaged consumer goods company Godrej Consumer Products Ltd (GCPL) on Wednesday announced that Godrej Group chairman Adi Godrej will step down from the board of directors of GCPL effective 30 September 2021. Godrej, 79, will remain chairman emeritus at the maker of Cinthol soaps and Goodknight mosquito repellents.

“It has been a privilege to serve Godrej Consumer Products. I am grateful to our board for their continued guidance, to all our team members for their passion for Godrej and helping build a company that we can all be proud of, and to our customers, business partners, shareholders, investors, and communities, for their deep partnership over the years," Godrej said.

“The foundations of our company are very strong and I am very confident that Nisa (Nisaba Godrej) and our leadership team will continue to build forward and create even more sustainable, long-term value for all our stakeholders," he said.

The company also announced the elevation of Sameer Shah, GCPL’s current head of finance and investor relations as the company’s chief financial officer (CFO) effective 1 September 2021.

Shah will take over from V. Srinivasan, GCPL’s current CFO and company secretary, who is stepping down to pursue opportunities outside of the company, the company said in a filing.

Shah has worked at GCPL for 15 years across leadership roles, including being the CFO of the company’s India and SAARC cluster. Rahul Botadara has been appointed as the company secretary and compliance officer of the company with effect from 1 September 2021.

Earlier this year, the company had also announced the appointment of Hindustan Unilever Ltd’s, Sudhir Sitapati as its managing director and chief executive officer effective 18 October 2021.

In 2017, the Godrej Group had announced the elevation of Nisaba Godrej, Adi Godrej’s daughter, as the executive chairman of GCPL. Adi Godrej had then moved on to the role of chairman emeritus of the company.