Ahold Delhaize has nominated Margaret Versteden-van Duijn as CEO of its Europe & Indonesia business, elevating the longtime company executive who currently oversees Dutch banners Albert Heijn, Etos and Gall & Gall.
Versteden-van Duijn will become executive vice president of Europe & Indonesia effective Oct. 1. Her appointment to the Ahold Delhaize Management Board remains subject to shareholder approval at an extraordinary general meeting, after which she will assume the CEO title.
She succeeds Claude Sarrailh, who is leaving Ahold Delhaize to become CEO of Esselunga, an Italian food retailer. The two executives are working together during September ahead of Sarrailh’s departure at the end of the month.
Versteden-van Duijn joined Ahold Delhaize in 2015 as chief marketing officer of bol, the company’s e-commerce platform in the Netherlands and Belgium. She became brand president of bol in 2021 and joined the Ahold Delhaize Europe & Indonesia leadership team that year.
She was named brand president of Albert Heijn, Etos and Gall & Gall earlier this year, giving her responsibility for three of Ahold Delhaize’s major Dutch retail brands.
Ahold Delhaize President and CEO Frans Muller cited Versteden-van Duijn’s operational leadership and experience across the company’s European businesses, including digital operations, business development and omnichannel retailing.
Before joining Ahold Delhaize, Versteden-van Duijn held positions with Bain & Company, Nike and Boston Consulting Group. An Australian and Dutch citizen, she has worked in Australia, Malaysia, Germany, France, Central and Eastern Europe and the Netherlands. She holds a bachelor’s degree in business systems from Monash University and an MBA from INSEAD and serves on the board of Hero Group.
Ahold Delhaize has begun succession planning for the leadership of Albert Heijn, Etos and Gall & Gall. Until successors are named, Versteden-van Duijn will retain overall responsibility for the three businesses while transitioning into her broader Europe & Indonesia role.