MILAN — Kiko Milano has named Cecilia Schena its latest chief marketing officer. Joining the Italian beauty brand’s global leadership team, Schena will report on to chief executive officer Simone Dominici.

Schena exited the role of senior vice chairman for marketing and business development at cosmetics manufacturing company Chromavis — a division of French pharmaceutical company Fareva — which she joined in 2019.

Counting greater than 20 years of experience in the wonder industry, Schena also worked for Italian beauty tools specialist Tenacta Group, where she was head of the wonder division for the Imetec, Bellissima and Ducati by Imetec brands, leading the event of the hair care, skincare and men’s care categories at a world level, contributing to boosting the group’s internationalization and innovation strategy. Previously, she held leading roles in marketing and communications at Bottega Verde and Deborah Group.

At Kiko Milano, Schena might be tasked to further speed up the corporate’s growth, with a specific concentrate on the areas of customer experience and innovation, leveraging her knowledge in product development and skill to scout latest makeup trends.

“Cecilia brings together with her a wealth of data on product development and marketing excellence that might be fundamental to assist speed up Kiko’s growth, strengthening the brand on its path of omnichannel, in addition to geographic expansion within the fundamental beauty categories,” said Dominici, who was appointed CEO last yr.

Schena described Kiko Milano as “the most emblematic international beauty brand in Italy” and said she is desperate to contribute to its expansion into other markets. 

Established in 1997 by entrepreneurs Antonio and Stefano Percassi, Kiko Milano is controlled by Percassi’s Odissea Srl holding and generated sales of 671 million euros in 2022, up 41.6 percent versus the previous yr and beating the outcomes of its best yr in 2017, when the group generated sales of 610 million euros. 

The corporate counts greater than 1,000 stores in 40 countries and sells its products in greater than 62 markets.

Last yr, the founding family bought back the 38 percent stake private equity fund Peninsula Capital had held within the firm since first investing in the corporate in 2018 through an 80 million euro capital increase.