Former Walgreens exec Curtin to join Coty

NEW YORK — Shannon Curtin, former group vice president of beauty and personal care at Walgreen Co., is joining Coty Inc. as senior vice president for North America.

Shannon Curtin

Coty said Friday that Curtin will assume her new position after the completion of the company’s merger with Procter & Gamble Specialty Beauty. In the interim, she will serve as the U.S. general manager, beginning May 23.

Curtin, who will report to Esi Eggleston Bracey, future president of Coty Consumer Beauty, will be based in Coty’s New York City offices.

“Shannon is an accomplished and highly respected beauty and retail leader with more than 15 years of experience at Walgreens and Walmart,” Eggleston Bracey said in a statement. “Shannon’s unique perspective of beauty from inside of the retailer will ensure that our product development, sales approach and marketing are developed with our customers squarely at the center.”

At Walgreens, Curtin led the beauty and personal care strategy for the U.S. business, served on the global beauty team and provided leadership to the 26,000 beauty advisers in the field. Before joining the drug chain, Curtin spent nine years at Walmart, where she held a variety of merchandising roles, with an emphasis on beauty care and personal care.

“She has a deep passion for beauty and a track record of developing innovative in-store programs to drive engagement and sales,” Eggleston Bracey added. “Shannon’s leadership will be invaluable as we build winning partnerships with our customers and delight consumers with high-quality beauty products.”

Coty said its merger with P&G Specialty Beauty is slated to be completed in the second half of 2016. After the deal closes, plans call for Coty to be organized into three divisions: Coty Consumer Beauty, Coty Luxury and Coty Professional.

Under the $12.5 billion deal, announced in July, P&G will merge 43 of its beauty brands with Coty, including P&G’s global salon professional hair care and color, retail hair color, cosmetics, fine fragrances, and select hair styling businesses.