Revlon Names Debra Perelman Its First Woman CEO
Debra Perelman, second from left, with Brooke Garber Neidich, Christine Quinn and Dr. Harold Koplewicz at the Child Mind Institute’s 2nd annual Child Advocacy Award Dinner in 2011. Image by Getty Images
Beauty conglomerate Revlon Inc., whose repertoire includes iconic brands such as Revlon, Elizabeth Arden, and Almay, announced Debra Perelman as its next president and chief executive officer. She’s the first woman to hold those titles, Fast Company reported Wednesday.
Perelman, 44, who was named chief operating officer four months ago, is the daughter of billionaire Ronald Perelman, who owns 80% of Revlon through his investment firm, MacAndrews & Forbes. In an interview with Fast Company, Debra Perelman said nepotism had nothing to do with the promotion, dubbing her father’s majority stake in the company as “just a fact.” She has two decades of experience holding leadership roles and overseeing strategy at both Revlon and MacAndrews & Forbes.
The younger Perelman will become one of a small number of women running large, publicly held companies. Just 24 women sit atop Fortune 500 companies (at $2.7 billion in revenue last year, Revlon ranked No. 795 on the list of America’s largest businesses), and top female leadership is surprisingly scarce among beauty giants, Fast Company found.
Contact Alyssa Fisher at fisher@forward.com or on Twitter, @alyssalfisher
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