As President of Personal Care, Fabian Garcia leads the biggest business group in Unilever – a stable which includes Dove, Rexona, Lifebuoy, Axe, LUX and many more.
Here he shares why he’s staying humble at the helm of some of the world’s best-loved brands.
Fabian, please share a little about your career before joining Unilever.
I’ve had a varied and fulfilling career so far – from working with luxury brands at Chanel, fashion with Timberland, and fast-moving consumer products at Procter & Gamble, Revlon and Colgate-Palmolive, among others. In other words, I’ve spent my entire career immersed in understanding consumer needs and how to deliver quality products for them.
I’m fortunate to have worked all over the world too, in countries including my home country Venezuela, together with Japan, Taiwan, the US, Colombia, the Philippines and Singapore, and now I’m based in the UK.
What attracted you to working at Unilever?
After my last corporate role, I considered early retirement. While contemplating my options, my criteria to come back to the corporate world became increasingly clear, and Unilever was the only company that felt like the right choice.
I admired its purpose, ideas, brands, values and reputation. The concept of doing well by doing good. Unilever’s commitment to sustainable living is proof that value creation and making a positive impact on people and planet are not at odds. They are intrinsically linked.
The second thing that attracted me was the opportunity to steward legendary brands like Dove, Axe and Rexona, to name but a few.
Thirdly, it’s the most global of any company I have worked with. Unilever has a deep cultural understanding of its markets and I’m proud to see that reflected in its commitment to equity, diversity and inclusion.
And finally, the intellectual engagement and the growth agenda at Unilever are unmatched. Few companies have the scale and brands to drive this intent with such conviction. It’s exciting to be part of that and I can’t think of a better way to crown a long career.
What do you find most rewarding about your work?
I’ve been working for decades and what I find the most fun at this stage in my career is going to the markets and seeing how our strategy, agenda and brands are really landing. It’s great to see things for myself, not just what I’m told in reports!
Every market I’ve been to has impressed me in so many different ways.
How would you describe your leadership style?
I have done everything I wanted to do in my career already. Because of that my sense is that now I need to give something back. To share my experience so that others can take what they need from me.
I like to bring my entire team together for acts of service as often as we can. I do this for three reasons. The first is that when you do something to help others, you are reminded of your own privilege, something that we often take for granted. Secondly, it’s the best team-building activity you can do because everyone is humbled at the same time. And thirdly, it reminds us to be humble in business. Our brands might be the biggest but even market leaders can fall.
