Written on: August 29, 2023 by SprayTM
The Estée Lauder Companies has announced that Leonard A. Lauder has decided not to stand for re-election to the company’s Board of Directors at the annual meeting in November. Lauder will remain Chairman Emeritus of the company. Pursuant to the stockholders’ agreement among Lauder family members and the company, Lauder has the right to designate two directors of the company. In addition to his son William, who serves as Executive Chairman, Lauder has designated his son Gary to serve on the board. The Board of Directors has nominated Gary Lauder and will include his name among the nominees for election at the November annual meeting.
LAUDER
Lauder formally joined The Estée Lauder Companies in 1958 and served as President from 1972-1995 and as Chief Executive Officer from 1982-1999. He became Chairman of the Board in 1995 and served in that role through June 2009, until he was appointed Chairman Emeritus for the company. As Chairman Emeritus, Lauder provides his advice and counsel on a variety of business topics including brand building, marketing, and understanding the global luxury consumer. He continues to play an active role as “Chief Teaching Officer,” educating leaders throughout the company with his brand symposiums and through speaking engagements with global employees.
“It has been an honor and privilege to serve on the Board of the company my mother and father created over 75 years ago,” said Lauder.
He continued, “As Chairman Emeritus of the company, I’m looking forward to continuing my work as advisor and ‘Chief Teaching Officer,’ serving what I believe to be the best company in the world.”
In addition to his activities with The Estée Lauder Companies, Lauder is involved in the worlds of education, art, politics, and philanthropy. He is a Charter Trustee of the University of Pennsylvania and a founding member of the Board of Governors of its Joseph H. Lauder Institute of Management & International Studies. Lauder became a Trustee of the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York City in 1977 and currently serves as its Chairman Emeritus. He is Co-Founder and Co-Chairman of the Alzheimer’s Drug Discovery Foundation; Honorary Chairman of the Breast Cancer Research Foundation; a member of the Council on Foreign Relations; a Trustee of the Aspen Institute; and a member of the President’s Council of Memorial Sloan-Kettering Hospital.
Lauder also served on the Advisory Committee for Trade Negotiations under President Ronald Reagan. Among his honors, he has been named an Officier de la Légion d’Honneur by France and recognized by the U.S. Navy Supply Corps Foundation with its Distinguished Alumni Award, was the 2013 recipient of the Palazzo Strozzi Renaissance Man of the Year Award, and was named a 2014 Living Landmark by the New York Landmarks Conservancy.
