Who Are the Top Beauty CMOs in 2026? 12 Leaders to Know

The most influential beauty CMOs in 2026 are the marketing, digital and brand chiefs steering L'Oréal, Estée Lauder, Sephora, Ulta, e.l.f., Glossier and Rare Beauty. This list names 12 current leaders, with each person's title, what they run and the career move that put them there. Titles were checked against company announcements and trade reports in October 2026.

How do the 12 beauty CMOs compare at a glance?

The 12 leaders below hold the top marketing, digital or brand seat at some of the largest and fastest-moving names in beauty, and their roles are current as of October 20, 2026. The table gives the title, the company and the career move that defines each one.

Who leads marketing at the largest beauty groups?

Four executives set marketing direction at L'Oréal and The Estée Lauder Companies, the two largest names on this list. Three of the four carry a combined digital and marketing title.

1. Asmita Dubey, L'Oréal Groupe

Asmita Dubey is Chief Digital and Marketing Officer of L'Oréal Groupe and sits on its Executive Committee. Marketing Week reports she oversees about 10,000 marketers across 36 global brands for a business that reported €44.05 billion in sales.

She joined L'Oréal in 2013 as Chief Marketing Officer for L'Oréal China, where she helped build the group's first partnerships with Alibaba and Tencent. She calls marketing a state of "permanent transformation," according to Marketing Week.

2. Han Wen, L'Oréal USA

Han Wen is Chief Digital and Marketing Officer of L'Oréal USA, where she leads digital transformation across the company's divisions and brands. She previously served as Global Chief Digital Officer for the L'Oréal Paris brand.

Before that she spent two years at LVMH and nearly eight years at Clarins as Group Chief Digital Officer, according to her Gold House biography.

3. Aude Gandon, The Estée Lauder Companies

Aude Gandon is Chief Digital & Marketing Officer of The Estée Lauder Companies, a role the company created for her effective August 1, 2025. She reports to CEO Stéphane de La Faverie and oversees digital, marketing, media and global digital commerce.

She arrived from Nestlé, where she was Global Chief Marketing Officer and led a digital transformation across 188 markets and more than 2,000 brands, according to the company's announcement.

4. Jane Hertzmark Hudis, The Estée Lauder Companies

Jane Hertzmark Hudis is Executive Vice President and Chief Brand Officer of The Estée Lauder Companies. On September 3, 2026 she announced brand leadership appointments following the planned retirement of Sandra Main, Global Brand President of La Mer and Skin Care Brands.

The changes include Erica Kwok as SVP and general manager of the Estée Lauder brand and Justin Boxford leading La Mer, which the company calls the number one luxury skin care brand in the world.

Who leads marketing at Sephora and Ulta?

Sephora and Ulta each have a marketing chief who controls how millions of shoppers discover beauty brands. Both retailers also decide which brands get shelf space, so their marketing leaders shape the whole category.

5. Zena Arnold, Sephora

Zena Arnold is Chief Marketing Officer of Sephora US and serves on the company's Operating Committee. MediaPost reports that she oversees integrated marketing, creative operations, store design, public relations, consumer insights, retail media and loyalty.

She succeeded Deborah Yeh, who held the role for nearly eight years. Arnold came from PepsiCo, after serving as chief digital and marketing officer at Kimberly-Clark and spending seven years at Google.

6. Kelly Mahoney, Ulta Beauty

Kelly Mahoney is Chief Marketing Officer of Ulta Beauty. WWD reported she was named to the role in 2025, as CEO Kecia Steelman reshaped the wider executive team.

The appointment followed the January 2025 departure of Michelle Crossan-Matos, CMO since January 2023, according to BeautyMatter. For the retailer's loyalty, services and range, see Ulta's marketing strategy.

Who are the CMOs behind the fastest-moving beauty brands?

Six leaders at newer or faster-growing brands moved into their seats between February and August 2026. Their briefs are growth, creator reach and keeping a brand identity intact while scaling.

7. Oshiya Savur, e.l.f. Brands

Oshiya Savur is Chief Marketing Officer of e.l.f. Brands, named in April 2026. She was previously Chief Marketing and Brand Officer at the Maesa beauty incubator and has worked at Charlotte Tilbury, Revlon and Unilever, according to Marketing Dive.

She joins a company that reported 28 consecutive quarters of growth, with net sales up 38% to $489.5 million in the third quarter of fiscal 2026. For the playbook she inherits, see how Rare Beauty and e.l.f. won beauty and Rhode's $1B e.l.f. deal.

8. Kory Marchisotto, e.l.f. Brands

Kory Marchisotto is President of e.l.f. Brands, a newly created role announced in April 2026, after years as the company's Global Chief Marketing Officer. She now oversees e.l.f. Cosmetics, e.l.f. Skin, Well People and Keys Soulcare.

She joined e.l.f. in 2019 and is credited with launching the brand on TikTok early. Her promotion is the clearest recent example of a beauty CMO moving up to run the business.

9. Nicole Solorzano, Glossier

Nicole Solorzano is Chief Marketing Officer of Glossier, appointed in March 2026 after serving as head of marketing at haircare brand Ouai. BeautyMatter described the hire as the first C-suite move by new CEO Colin Walsh.

TheIndustry.beauty reports she oversees product marketing, content and community and leads the brand's global vision during a strategic reset. For the model she inherits, read Glossier's public relations playbook.

10. Ashley Murphy, Rare Beauty

Ashley Murphy is Chief Marketing Officer of Rare Beauty, promoted in February 2026. She joined before the brand's 2020 launch and most recently served as Vice President of Consumer Marketing, according to Global Cosmetics News.

She succeeds founding CMO Katie Welch, who joined Chanel as US Head of Brand and Communications in January 2026. Joyce Kim, the founding Chief Product Officer, became Chief Brand Officer in the same announcement.

11. Jérôme Leloup, Charlotte Tilbury Beauty

Jérôme Leloup is Chief Marketing Officer of Charlotte Tilbury Beauty, effective March 2, 2026. He moved to the Puig-owned brand's London headquarters after six years as Brand VP of Rabanne.

His career spans 25 years, including 13 at Puig, seven at Parfums Christian Dior and five at L'Oréal, according to Jing Daily.

12. Kira Jackson, m.ph beauty

Kira Jackson is Chief Marketing Officer of m.ph beauty, Mary Phillips's makeup brand, named in August 2026 as its first marketing chief. The brand launched direct to consumer and entered Sephora about a year earlier.

Jackson was most recently Chief Brand Officer at the activewear label SET Active, so her hire brings a fresh outside view to a young beauty brand.

What do these beauty CMOs have in common?

Eight of the 12 leaders on this list moved into their current roles between 2025 and 2026, which makes beauty marketing leadership one of the most active hiring markets in consumer goods. That count comes from the appointment dates reported in the sources below, and it includes Marchisotto's promotion to president.

Three of the 12, Dubey, Wen and Gandon, hold combined digital and marketing titles at L'Oréal and Estée Lauder. Two of the 12, Gandon and Arnold, arrived from consumer goods companies outside beauty (Nestlé and PepsiCo). Three of the six brand-side hires, Savur, Solorzano and Murphy, came from other beauty companies or the brand's own ranks, which suggests category knowledge still counts at challenger brands.

How should beauty brands use these CMO moves?

Beauty brands can use these appointments as a map of who decides budgets, retail placement and creator strategy this year. A new CMO usually reviews agencies, creators and media plans in the first months, so a new seat is a reason to refresh an introduction.

To see who earns their placements, compare the 24 best beauty PR agencies, the beauty marketing campaigns that worked and 50 beauty brands with great social media programs. For the retail side, read how beauty brands win Sephora and Ulta, and for creator-led demand, see TikTok Shop as a beauty retailer and why credibility replaced influencer reach.

Several of these leaders also answer to how Generative Engine Optimization affects which beauty brands AI answers name.

The through-line across all 12 is that the beauty CMO seat now sits closer to the CEO, the data and the retailer than it did five years ago, and the people in it are rewarded for growth they can show.

Sources

This list draws on company announcements, regulatory filings and trade reporting. Titles and dates were checked in October 2026, and roles can change.

• L'Oréal 2025 Universal Registration Document (Executive Committee composition, March 1, 2026)
• Marketing Week, "L'Oréal Groupe's CMO Asmita Dubey on the key to navigating 'permanent transformation'"
• Gold House biographies of Asmita Dubey and Han Wen
• Business Wire, "Aude Gandon Appointed Chief Digital & Marketing Officer, The Estée Lauder Companies" (July 2025)
• The Estée Lauder Companies, "Announces Brand Leadership Appointments" (September 3, 2026)
• MediaPost, "Sephora Names Ex-Pepsi Exec New CMO"; Marketing + Media Alliance biography of Zena Arnold
• WWD, "2025 Beauty Industry Shakeup" (Ulta leadership changes); BeautyMatter, "January 2025: Who Moved Where in Beauty"
• Marketing Dive, "E.l.f. promotes longtime CMO Kory Marchisotto to president" (April 2026); Cosmetics Business, e.l.f. leadership report
• Business of Fashion, "Glossier Appoints New CMO" (March 19, 2026); BeautyMatter, "March 2026: Who Moved Where in Beauty"; TheIndustry.beauty, March 2026 review
• Global Cosmetics News, "Rare Beauty Promotes Joyce Kim and Ashley Murphy" (February 13, 2026)
• Cosmetics Business (March 2, 2026) and Jing Daily (March 4, 2026) on Jérôme Leloup at Charlotte Tilbury
• TheIndustry.beauty, "People Moves, August 2026" (m.ph beauty and Kira Jackson)