PURCHASE, N.Y., Jan. 10, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ: PEP) today announced that its Board of Directors has unanimously elected Ramon Laguarta as the company's Chairman of the Board, succeeding Indra K. Nooyi who announced in August 2018 her intention to step down as PepsiCo CEO effective October 3, 2018 and remain Chairman until early 2019 to ensure a smooth and seamless transition. The appointment is effective when Chairman Nooyi retires from the company on February 1, 2019.

Laguarta is currently Chief Executive Officer of the global food and beverage company, a role he assumed on October 3, 2018. He becomes the sixth Chairman and CEO in PepsiCo's 53-year history, following Nooyi, Steve Reinemund, Roger A. Enrico, Wayne D. Calloway and Donald M. Kendall. Herman W. Lay served as PepsiCo's first chairman, while Kendall served as CEO.

"I am honored to take on this important post and want to thank the Board for the confidence they have placed in me," said Laguarta. "I also want to thank Indra for her outstanding leadership and tireless work on behalf of PepsiCo. I look forward to building on the strong legacy she and our previous leaders have created, and to working with our very talented global team to position PepsiCo for our next phase of growth."

Laguarta, a 22-year veteran of PepsiCo, has held a number of executive and leadership roles within the company. Prior to becoming CEO, he served as President of PepsiCo, with responsibility for shaping the company's corporate strategy, working closely with business units to deliver top-line growth, driving productivity to enable this growth, and investing in new areas of disruptive innovation. In this capacity he oversaw PepsiCo's Global Category Groups; its Global Operations, Corporate Strategy, and Public Policy & Government Affairs functions; and the PepsiCo Foundation. Previously, Laguarta served as Chief Executive Officer, Europe Sub-Saharan Africa, one of PepsiCo's most complex businesses with operations spanning three continents and comprised of developed, developing and emerging markets. Prior to that, he served as President, PepsiCo Eastern Europe region and served in a variety of sales, marketing and other commercial roles across Europe.

Speaking on behalf of PepsiCo's Board of Directors, Presiding Director Ian Cook said: "We are pleased to appoint Ramon as our company's Chairman. He is an outstanding leader with a compelling vision for PepsiCo and a keen understanding of the evolving needs of consumers around the world. His vast PepsiCo knowledge, combined with his innovative thinking and proven executional excellence, make him the ideal steward to take on this most important role and lead our company into the future."

Cook continued: "On behalf of the Board and the entire PepsiCo family, I want to sincerely thank Indra for her leadership and commitment over the last 24 years, for paving the way for future leaders to 'do well by doing good,' and for making PepsiCo one of the world's most ethical and admired companies. She proved that it is possible to deliver extraordinary and consistent financial performance while making a difference in the world around us, and leaves a lasting legacy." 

Nooyi served as PepsiCo's Chairman since 2007 and as Chief Executive Officer for 12 years. Prior to becoming CEO, Nooyi served as President and Chief Financial Officer beginning in 2001, when she was also named to PepsiCo's Board of Directors.  Nooyi joined PepsiCo in 1994.

About PepsiCo 
PepsiCo products are enjoyed by consumers more than one billion times a day in more than 200 countries and territories around the world. PepsiCo generated more than $63 billion in net revenue in 2017, driven by a complementary food and beverage portfolio that includes Frito-Lay, Gatorade, Pepsi-Cola, Quaker and Tropicana. PepsiCo's product portfolio includes a wide range of enjoyable foods and beverages, including 22 brands that generate more than $1 billion each in estimated annual retail sales.

At the heart of PepsiCo is Performance with Purpose – our fundamental belief that the success of our company is inextricably linked to the sustainability of the world around us. We believe that continuously improving the products we sell, operating responsibly to protect our planet and empowering people around the world enable PepsiCo to run a successful global company that creates long-term value for society and our shareholders. For more information, visit www.pepsico.com.  

Cautionary Statement
Statements in this communication that are "forward-looking statements" are based on currently available information, operating plans and projections about future events and trends. Terminology such as "estimate," "expect," "may," "plan," "position," "will" or similar statements or variations of such words and other similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements, although not all forward-looking statements contain such terms. Forward-looking statements inherently involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those predicted in such forward-looking statements. Such risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to: changes in demand for PepsiCo's products, as a result of changes in consumer preferences or otherwise; changes in, or failure to comply with, applicable laws and regulations; imposition or proposed imposition of new or increased taxes aimed at PepsiCo's products; imposition of labeling or warning requirements on PepsiCo's products; changes in laws related to packaging and disposal of PepsiCo's products; PepsiCo's ability to compete effectively; failure to successfully complete or integrate acquisitions and joint ventures into PepsiCo's existing operations; or to complete or manage divestitures or refranchisings; changes in estimates and underlying assumptions regarding future performance that could result in an impairment charge; increase in income tax rates, changes in income tax laws or disagreements with tax authorities; PepsiCo's ability to recruit, hire or retain key employees or a highly skilled and diverse workforce; loss of any key customer or disruption to the retail landscape, including rapid growth in hard discounters and the e-commerce channel; climate change or water scarcity, or legal, regulatory or market measures to address climate change or water scarcity; other factors that may adversely affect the price of PepsiCo's publicly traded securities and financial performance.

For additional information on these and other factors that could cause PepsiCo's actual results to materially differ from those set forth herein, please see PepsiCo's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including its most recent annual report on Form 10-K and subsequent reports on Forms 10-Q and 8-K. Investors are cautioned not to place undue reliance on any such forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date they are made. PepsiCo undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

SOURCE PepsiCo, Inc.