Julie Van Ongevalle: President and Chief Executive Officer, Opella

Julie Van Ongevalle, President and Chief Executive Officer, Opella

At a Glance

Nationality

Belgian

Education and Business Experience

Julie Van Ongevalle’s career shift from the beauty industry to healthcare is inspired by Sanofi’s mission to help people lead healthier, fuller lives. She is determined to seize the huge opportunity to positively impact how people live by listening to their needs and providing them with the right solutions. For Julie, it all starts with building a stronger connection with the consumer by better understanding their needs today and tomorrow.

Prior to joining Sanofi, Julie worked at the Estée Lauder Companies, where she held roles of increasing responsibility across the company, starting in 2004. As Global Brand President of Origins, beginning in 2014, she led a global organization of 4,000 people, growing the company’s market share across geographies. Prior to Origins, she spent eight years at MAC Cosmetics, first as General Manager Benelux, then of the EMEA Region and North America. Julie started her career as a marketing manager at GSK Consumer Healthcare and then in the same role at Clinique.

Julie holds a master’s in commercial and financial sciences from the Institut Catholique Hautes Etudes Commerciales (Belgium).

Married, with four children, Julie’s philosophy is to stay optimistic and have faith in life: “life can sometimes be challenging, but it is also beautiful”.

A successful brand to me does not only exceed consumers’ needs and wishes but creates a positive emotional connection with them.