PARIS — Pandora said Monday that Berta de Pablos-Barbier will take up the role of chief executive officer on Jan. 1.
Currently the chief marketing officer of the Danish jewelry giant, she was slated to take over from incumbent president and CEO Alexander Lacik at the 2026 annual general meeting on March 11.
Lacik will remain with Pandora as special advisor to the board and executive leadership team until the AGM.
Jennie Farmer, who joined Pandora in January and is currently senior vice president brand experience and channels, will succeed de Pablos-Barbier as CMO of the Copenhagen-based jeweler.
The leadership transition, which was announced in September, “concludes ahead of [the] initial schedule,” the company said.
“The handover from Alexander to Berta has been exceptionally smooth. With Jennie Farmer stepping in as CMO, we are pleased to be able to conduct the leadership transition faster than planned,” Peter Ruzicka, chair of Pandora, said in a statement. “We look forward to the next era of growth under Berta’s leadership.”
Farmer was most recently chief marketing officer at furniture retailer Oka and chief commercial officer at U.K.-based workspace developer The Office Group. Prior to that, she held several management positions at LVMH Estates & Wines; De Beers Jewellers, now De Beers London, and its Forevermark sibling.
De Pablos-Barbier said her “immediate focus will be to navigate the current market turbulence while gearing up to leverage our untapped opportunities as a full jewellery brand and drive long-term growth” to build “a bigger Pandora.”
Lacik, who took on the president and CEO role at Pandora in April 2019, is credited with leading its successful turnaround and launching its Phoenix strategy to transform it into a full jewelry brand, extending beyond its core charm business and reinforcing its sustainability strategy.
In September, the Swedish native, who is 60, told WWD he has no plans for another major executive role.
