LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Panasonic Europe B.V has announced the retirement of Laurent Abadie on March 31st 2019 and the appointment of his successor, Junichi Suzuki to take place on 1st April 2019.
Mr Suzuki will become Chairman & CEO, Panasonic Europe Ltd. while also inheriting from Laurent Abadie the responsibility as COO, Panasonic Holding (Netherlands) B.V. and as Regional Head for Europe & CIS as well as becoming Managing Director, Panasonic Marketing Europe GmbH.
While in general Europe is in a drastic change phase, the objectives for the 56-year old Junichi Suzuki are clear:
‘We see two important trends emerging: the need for a carbon-free society and an ever-increasing aging society. I’ve been living nearly 30 years in Europe and I believe that Europe is already leading the world on both. Panasonic’s over-arching mission has always been to contribute to society and I look forward to working with my colleagues in Europe to meet the requirements of these trends to do so.
‘My personal mission is to ensure that Panasonic is the leading technology and solutions provider in Europe in these areas, with a particular focus on our heating and cooling solutions, Automotive, and on “Future Lifestyles in the home”. Our efforts in the coming years will therefore focus on further developing local R&D activities and strengthening the organisation to continuously understand and predict the future.’
Building the bridge – Understanding Europe the best
Mr. Suzuki, currently Managing Director of Panasonic Russia Ltd as well as Panasonic Marketing CIS, will take the role as CEO of Panasonic Europe and as regional head for Europe & CIS including all other above named responsibilities from 1st April 2019.
Mr. Suzuki has worked in Europe and the CIS region for nearly three decades, where his first role in 1990 was within the Belgium sales company. Since then, he has gained experience in many sales and marketing companies spanning both B2C and B2B markets, including being the Director of Planning at Panasonic Europe. Mr. Suzuki continues,
‘I have spent over half my life in Europe, my children have grown up here, and I want to thank Europe for the fantastic experience and support I’ve received so far. I will now be in a role where I can fully repay my thanks to employees, partners and customers – to all those who have supported me in my business life so far. As a Japanese native and a long-standing European resident, I believe I am the perfect bridge for our business between Japan and Europe to achieve future strong success.’
Laurent Abadie to retire after 15 years with Panasonic
Mr. Abadie joined Panasonic on 1st March 2004 as Deputy Managing Director of Panasonic France. Panasonic has been appreciating his great global business leadership since he became Executive Officer of Panasonic Corporation in April 2008.
Over the past decade as the Regional Head for Europe, Mr. Abadie has been shaping the strategic direction of Panasonic in Europe while delivering an innovative approach to Europe’s commercial challenges.
About Panasonic:
Panasonic Corporation is a worldwide leader in the development of diverse electronics technologies and solutions for customers in the consumer electronics, housing, automotive, and B2B businesses. Celebrating its 100th anniversary in 2018, the company has expanded globally and now operates 591 subsidiaries and 88 associated companies worldwide, recording consolidated net sales of 7.982 trillion yen for the year ended March 31, 2018. Committed to pursuing new value through innovation across divisional lines, the company uses its technologies to create a better life and a better world for its customers. To learn more about Panasonic: http://www.panasonic.com/global.
