Vandemoortele Leadership

Board of directors

JEAN VANDEMOORTELE | CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Jean Vandemoortele joined Vandemoortele in 1982. He was appointed as board member in 1986, as CEO in 2001 and as Chairman of the Board in 2014. He holds a degree in Applied Economic Sciences from the University of Leuven, Belgium, and an MBA from Insead, Fontainebleau, France. Jean Vandemoortele is a member of the 4th generation of the shareholders family.

CATHERINE BILLIET

Catherine Billiet was appointed as board member in May 2021. She gained a Master in Law from the Catholic University of Leuven, Belgium, as well as a Master in General Management from the Vlerick Business School, Belgium, and a Master of Laws (LL.M.) from the Columbia Law School in New York, USA. Catherine Billiet started her career as a corporate lawyer, gaining experience in several highly regarded international law firms and is accredited both to the bar in Brussels and the state of New York. She is currently working as an M&A lawyer at Cargill. Catherine Billiet is a member of the 5thgeneration of the shareholders family. 

CÉCILE BONNEFOND | CHAIR OF THE C&N COMMITTEE

Cécile Bonnefond, representing CB management, joined the board of directors of Vandemoortele in 2016.  She is a member of the Compensation and Nomination Committee and became its Chair in 2020. After graduating from the European Business School in 1977, Cécile Bonnefond made a career in the food and beverage industry for 35 years. The first 20 years, she held positions from marketing and sales to general management in international food companies such as Danone, Kellogg, Grand Metropolitan and Sara Lee. She joined Veuve Clicquot Champagne (LVMH) as President and CEO, then became an investor and Chairman at Piper and Charles Heidsieck. Cécile Bonnefond is now involved in international boards of directors and acts as a strategic advisor to the bank Bpifrance, where she advises small and medium-sized enterprises in France.  

MARIE-CHRISTINE DE BRIEY

Marie-Christine de Briey joined the board in 1998 and holds a degree from the University of Louvain, Belgium. For several years, she has been vice-president of the non-profit organisation AEMfe: Association Européenne Du Microcredit Pour Les Femmes Entrepreneurs. Marie-Christine de Briey is a member of the 4th generation of the shareholders family.

FRANÇOIS CASIER

François Casier, representing Arema sprl, joined the board of Vandemoortele in the 80’s and, since 1999 he also chairs the Family Council. Holder of a Law and of an MBA degree from Insead in France, he started his professional career in marketing at Procter & Gamble. Later, François Casier managed a company that employed 40 people for 9 years. After a fortuitous encounter with a young refugee, he founded and managed the non-profit organisation Mentor-Escale. Through this, François Casier helped more than a hundred unaccompanied minor refugees every year in their process of becoming independent and responsible citizens. He also sits on the board of The de Duve Institute, a multidisciplinary biomedical research institute. François Casier is a member of the 4th generation of the Vandemoortele family.

ERWIN PARDON

Erwin Pardon joined the board in May 2023. He holds a bachelor's degree in Applied Economic Sciences and obtained an MBA from the Leuven University, Belgium. He started his career as external auditor at PWC Brussels and gained five years of financial management experience in the chemical industry taking on roles in Brussels, London and Paris. Erwin Pardon worked for over 30 years at McCain Foods Ltd, the global market leader in frozen potato and appetiser products. At McCain, he held various executive positions in the areas of finance, general management and transformation being based in Belgium, in the Netherlands, France and Canada. He is currently Regional President for McCain in EMEA region and retired from the company on 30th June 2023. 

YVON GUÉRIN | CEO

Yvon Guérin joined Vandemoortele in January 2019 as Managing Director BP and in July 2020, he became CEO of the Vandemoortele Group. Yvon Guérin graduated as Food Engineer at ESA Angers, France, and obtained an MBA in ESSEC Business School in Paris, France. For 28 years, he worked at Lactalis Group, a worldwide dairy leader. During his career at Lactalis, he continued to earn his stripes. First, as Head of Control and Finance. Later as GM for USA and Brazil, and years later as MD Industrial & Food Service Europe and Group Europe. For a decade, Yvon Guérin was a member of the Exco and the Board of the Lactalis Group. Seven years before joining Vandemoortele, Yvon Guérin was CEO and MD of the Parmalat Group in Parma, Italy. 

OTMAR HOFER

Otmar Hofer joined the board of Vandemoortele in 2020. He earned a master’s degree in Food Technology from the Federal Institute of Technology in Zürich, Switzerland, as well as an MBA from the Swiss University of St. Gallen. He worked for HERO, Ospelt and Swiss retailer Migros. Otmar Hofer is CEO and co-owner of the Swiss based HPW group, a fruit processor with factories in Ghana, the Ivory Coast and Kenya. 

NATASJA LAHEIJ | CHAIR OF THE AUDIT COMMITTEE

Natasja Laheij joined the board of Vandemoortele in September 2020 as an independent board member. She started as member of the audit committee and became its chairwoman in September 2022. Natasja Laheij obtained a bachelor’s degree in Business Economics and a master’s degree in Business Strategy & Management from Erasmus University Rotterdam, the Netherlands. Moreover, she completed post grad degrees from London Business School and Harvard Business School. She has 25 years of experience as a finance executive in several technology companies, overseeing and assessing company performance. Her career started by executing finance roles at Sony Ericsson, Vodafone, Deloitte and KLM. Between 2010 and 2014, Natasja Laheij held several senior Business and Finance roles at Apple Inc. From 2014 to 2019, she held the position of CFO at Amazon Fashion EMEA. In 2019, Natasja Laheij became CFO for Google EMEA. She is also a board member for Google Payment Limited. 

PHILIPPE SCHAILLÉE

Philippe Schaillée was appointed as a board member in 2020. At the University of Leuven, Belgium, he obtained a degree in Applied Economic Sciences, followed by an MBA from the Vlerick School of Management, Belgium. Philippe Schaillée has held Divisional leadership, General Management, Strategy, M&A, CMO roles at Sara Lee, JDEP and Groupe Seb across North America and Europe. He is currently the Chief Executive Officer at Costa Coffee.

CHARLES VANDEMOORTELE

Charles Vandemoortele, representing Honest Foods BV, was appointed as board member in 2021. He holds a degree in Applied Economic Sciences from the University of Leuven, Belgium, and a Master degree in Financial Management from the Vlerick Management School of Ghent, Belgium. Before becoming the managing owner of a juice bar chain, he was active in private equity. Charles Vandemoortele is a member of the 5th generation of the shareholders family.

Christian Vandemoortele

Christian Vandemoortele, representative of Artval NV, joined the board in 1986. He holds a law degree from the Catholic University of Brussels, Belgium. For several years, he worked as a creative in advertising companies. Christian Vandemoortele is a member of the 4th generation of the shareholders family. 

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