Imperial Brands announced on Wednesday a leadership transition plan as chief executive Stefan Bomhard has decided to retire. The tobacco giant also reported solid financial performance for the six months ended 31 March 2025, showing growth across all regions.
Lukas Paravicini, currently chief financial officer, will succeed Bomhard as CEO effective 1 October 2025. Bomhard will continue to serve on the Imperial Brands Board until 31 December 2025 and remain available until May 2026 to support the transition.
Murray McGowan, currently Imperial Brands' chief strategy and development officer, will succeed Paravicini as CFO and join the Board on 1 October 2025.
Thérèse Esperdy, Chair of Imperial Brands, said: “Under Stefan's leadership, Imperial Brands has delivered consistent growth and outstanding returns for shareholders. One of Stefan's many great achievements was the way he comprehensively refreshed our executive leadership, making strong hires from other consumer businesses and nurturing internal talent.”
She added: “Today's appointments follow a rigorous selection process and demonstrate our deep management bench strength. Lukas and Murray have both played key roles in Imperial Brands' growing success over the past four years and were important architects of our recently unveiled 2030 strategy. Under their executive leadership, I am confident we will continue to deliver for shareholders while moving purposefully towards a healthier future.”
Stefan Bomhard
Bomhard, who will depart after five years as CEO, commented: “With the team now preparing to implement our 2030 strategy, it feels like an appropriate time to hand on the baton to Lukas and Murray. In the coming months, I look forward to supporting them as they transition into their new roles. I would like to thank all the people of Imperial Brands. The strengthening of our business has been very much a team effort.”
Paravicini, who has been CFO since May 2021, said: “I am excited to be working with our excellent team to build on our growing track record of growth. As we deliver on the next stage of our strategy, Imperial Brands will continue to play its distinctive role as the strong challenger business in our industry. By getting even closer to our consumers, staying focused and investing to be more agile, we will deliver sustainable growth in tobacco and profitable scale in next generation products.”
Before joining Imperial, Paravicini served as chief operating officer and chief financial officer for Fonterra, and had a 22-year career in Nestlé, where he worked across diverse consumer categories and regions.
Half-year financial performance
For the six months ended 31 March 2025, Imperial Brands reported adjusted earnings per share up 6.0 per cent at constant currency, driven by further share count reduction. The company's tobacco pricing strategy has successfully offset volume declines, while next-generation products (NGP) delivered net revenue growth of 15.4 per cent with growth across all categories.
The company achieved aggregate market share gains of 6 basis points in its five priority markets, exceeding its strategic objective. Group adjusted operating profit grew 1.8 per cent, driven by improved profitability in tobacco and lower losses in NGP, and tobacco and NGP net revenue went up by 3.2 per cent, while reported revenue declined 3.1 per cent, reflecting volume declines in high excise markets and adverse foreign exchange.
“We have delivered another six months of broad-based constant currency growth across all regions, demonstrating the strength of our distinctive challenger approach and the benefit of long-term investments in our consumer capabilities, sales execution and performance culture,” Bomhard said.
“Despite the uncertain global economic environment, we are on track to deliver our full-year results in line with our guidance, supported by tobacco pricing already taken in the first half and continued momentum in NGP.”
Bomhard added that Imperial Brands remains committed to its 2030 strategy unveiled in March, which outlines the company's plans to strengthen both its combustible and NGP businesses to “generate another five years of sustainable growth and long-term shareholder value through a progressive dividend and an evergreen share buyback.”
The company maintained its guidance for full-year, expecting to deliver low-single digit growth tobacco and NGP net revenue and to grow group adjusted operating profit close to the middle of its mid-single-digit range.
