Josep Oliu, chairman of Banc Sabadell, has resigned from Puig’s board seven months early as the Spanish beauty group negotiates a potential merger with Estée Lauder. Oliu, a director since 2002, will be replaced on the board by CEO José Manuel Albesa — the first non-family member to lead the company in more than 20 years — at the May shareholder meeting. First-quarter net revenue reached 1.22 billion euros ($1.43 billion), a 4.7% like-for-like increase but below expectations. The company cited the Middle East conflict as a 1.2% drag on travel retail in March but maintained its full-year outlook with flat EBITDA margins.
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