Dufry appoints Xavier Rossinyol as Chief Executive Officer as of June 1, 2022
Julian Diaz is stepping down from his role as CEO of Dufry, effective May 31, 2022
Dufry has announced that Chief Executive Officer Julian Diaz will step down from his position on May 31, 2022. Additionally, he will not stand for reelection as a member of the Board of Directors for the company.
Replacing Diaz as CEO will be Xavier Rossinyol, effective June 1, 2022. To ensure a smooth transition, Xavier will join as designated CEO and member of the Global Executive Committee on March 1, 2022.
Dufry’s new CEO Xavier Rossinyol was a part of the company’s executive team from 2004 until 2015; for the past seven years he served as CEO of gategroup
Diaz has been CEO of the company since 2004; he executed and oversaw substantial global expansion and sustainable growth, bringing the company to its position as global travel retailer that it holds today. Diaz has been an elected member of the Board of Directors since 2013.
Xavier Rossinyol was Chief Financial Officer of the company from 2004 until 2012, and then as Chief Operating Officer EMEA and Asia until 2015. Since that time, Rossinyol has been CEO of gategroup, the leader in airline catering and on-board retail.
Juan Carlos Torres, Chairman of Dufry, said: “In the name of the entire Board of Directors and company, I express our immense gratitude to Julian Diaz for his outstanding dedication and extraordinary contributions to Dufry and its stakeholders. He has been the driving force of the group’s development. I am very pleased to have Xavier back as our new CEO. His unparalleled industry experience, leadership skills and strategic vision will enable Dufry to recover further from the Covid-19 crisis and accelerate short- and long-term value creation.”
Julian Diaz, CEO of Dufry, commented: “I am grateful for the opportunity I had to lead Dufry over the past eighteen years and to contribute to its impressive growth. I thank the Board of Directors, the shareholders, suppliers and partners for their trust and support, with special thanks to all my colleagues of the Global Executive Committee and our employees. I very warmly welcome Xavier back as new CEO of the company. His unique experience will be a perfect match to lead the group to its next phase.”
Xavier Rossinyol, designated CEO of Dufry, stated: “I am honored to have been appointed as new CEO of Dufry and I thank the Board of Directors for their trust. Dufry is a great company, with an amazing team of experienced and dedicated professionals. We have a strong financial position and enough liquidity to address the short-term recovery. As a team, we will re-energize the growth and address the long-term challenges of the industry and the group. Our focus will be to captivate our customers and generate renovated shareholders value, working with our landlords, suppliers and other key partners.”
