Oettinger Davidoff Group Appoints New CEO

BASEL, Switzerland, Dec. 13, 2010 /PRNewswire/ -- The Board of Directors of Oettinger Davidoff Group has appointed Hans-Kristian Hoejsgaard (52) of Denmark as its new CEO. He succeeds longstanding CEO Dr. Reto Cina, who is retiring at the end of May 2011 after 14 years of successful work for the Oettinger Davidoff Group. The Oettinger Davidoff Group, based in Basel, is one of the world's leading cigar companies. It owns a series of globally recognized brands, including the premium brand Davidoff, and has its own retail outlets in more than 120 countries around the world.

(Photo:  http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20101213/AQ16240LOGO)

Hans-Kristian Hoejsgaard himself is from a Danish family that has been in the tobacco business for generations. He worked for the family firm for several years from 1980 after earning an HD Diploma in business and administration and studying political science at the University of Copenhagen. Following management training at the Southern Denmark Business School he took on a series of increasingly demanding management roles at several international, mainly privately owned companies with world-leading brands. Until 1993 he worked for Seagram, one of the world's largest spirits companies, in Italy, Hong Kong and finally as General Manager in Thailand.  Then he moved to Guerlain, the French luxury perfume and cosmetics company, where he was CEO for the Asia/Pacific region until 1998. He was President of the worldwide Lancaster Group, a major international perfume and cosmetics company, until 2002, and was then appointed CEO of Georg Jensen, the leading Danish jewellery, watch and silverware group. In 2008 he took over as CEO and Member of the Board of Timex Group, an internationally active American family firm that has enjoyed 150 years of success in the watch industry.

Hans-Kristian Hoejsgaard has completed numerous advanced training courses at the business schools of Harvard, Insead and Wharton. He will join the Oettinger Davidoff Group on 1 March 2011 and start work as CEO on 1 June 2011.

"We are very pleased to have found such a competent, internationally experienced personality as Hans-Kristian Hoejsgaard to succeed Reto Cina as our CEO," says Andreas Schmid, Chairman of the Board of Directors. "His knowledge of the tobacco industry and his many years of managing brand products in the luxury goods sector will stand him in very good stead in his demanding role as CEO of our globally active family firm."

Hans-Kristian Hoejsgaard himself says: "I am looking forward to joining a visionary family firm that over the decades has built Davidoff up into what today is a globally recognized, leading luxury brand for quality products. It will be a privilege for me to lead the Oettinger Davidoff Group and the team behind it, and to work together on the further globalization of the company and brand as we take the Davidoff cigar business to the next level."

SOURCE Oettinger Davidoff Group