British American Tobacco (LSE:BATS) said Luciano Comin will step down as Chief Marketing Officer and leave the Management Board on 28 February 2027, ending a 34-year career at the tobacco and consumer goods group.
Pascale Meulemeester, currently Regional Director for Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa (APMEA), will succeed him, taking the title of Chief Marketing Officer Designate from 1 January 2027 before assuming the role in full on 1 March.
Celina Li will join BAT on 1 September as Regional Director Designate, APMEA, becoming Regional Director and a Management Board member from 1 January 2027.
Li joins from Ocean Spray Cranberries, where she was Chief Commercial Officer and General Manager for International & Ingredients, and previously held senior roles at The Coca-Cola Company, Anheuser-Busch InBev and Procter & Gamble.
Chief Executive Tadeu Marroco said Meulemeester's leadership of the APMEA region had shown "deep expertise in building brands at scale" alongside a strong grasp of shifting consumer trends.
The reshuffle lands as BAT pushes its shift toward smokeless products, which made up 19.8% of group revenue at the end of June, against a 2035 target of 50%.
The group reported £25.6bn in revenue for 2025.
News Intelligence what this means for the company
BAT is replacing its Chief Marketing Officer, with Pascale Meulemeester—currently Regional Director for APMEA—taking over from Luciano Comin on 1 March 2027 after his 34-year tenure. The move is a routine succession within the management structure and does not signal strategic change; Meulemeester's appointment reflects her track record in brand-building in a region where BAT saw a 6.3% revenue decline in the first half of 2026, described as slower-than-expected recovery.
This is a management reshuffle with no material bearing on BAT's core investment thesis. The company continues its transition toward smokeless products (19.8% of revenue at end-June, targeting 50% by 2035) and maintains its cash-generative combustible-cigarette base; a CMO change does not alter that trajectory or the regulatory and litigation risks that dominate BAT's outlook.
Insights assembled by AI. Editor-reviewed and grounded in tickstock’s coverage and proprietary knowledge graph.
Content is for informational purposes only, not financial advice.
