Laurent Freixe took over as CEO of Nestle in September, succeeding Mark Schneider, who did not meet investor expectations due to a prolonged period of weak sales volume growth.
During Schneider's leadership, Nestle cut back on marketing and advertising budgets and invested less in innovation due to the financial strain of the COVID-19 pandemic. Bulcke pointed out that the company had to increase prices in response to rising inflationary pressures.
Bulcke stated in preliminary excerpts from an interview with Swiss television channel TeleZueri, scheduled to air later on Tuesday, "That had an influence on sales."
"We will balance that out now. Perhaps we went a bit too far with prices. That needs to be rolled back. The consumer must be able to buy our products. We need to act there," he added.
These changes have adversely impacted the company's revenue, as consumers have turned to more affordable, better-promoted, or more innovative brands, resulting in a loss of market share for Nestle.
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