Johannes Huth

About Johannes Huth

Johannes Huth is a Franco-German executive widely recognized for his long career in private equity and the governance of listed companies. Over 25 years at KKR, he held senior leadership roles, including Partner and Head of KKR EMEA, and later Chairman for Europe, the Middle East and Africa. In June 2024, he announced his retirement from his active KKR roles, while continuing as a senior advisory partner and remaining involved with select boards. In the listed-company space, Huth is especially associated with Coty. KKR brought him onto Coty’s board in 2020 as part of the strategic transaction centered on Wella, with the stated goals of strengthening the balance sheet, simplifying the capital structure and supporting Coty’s transformation. Coty later confirmed that he remained a board member during subsequent ownership and capital-structure changes. His professional profile is defined by long-term investing, financial discipline and hands-on support for management teams during complex transformation programs. He is closely linked to major capital-allocation decisions, portfolio reshaping and strategic partnerships that balance operational improvement with shareholder value creation. His core expertise includes governance, restructurings, board oversight and constructive engagement with controlling shareholders as well as institutional investors. For a company such as Imerys, where governance, industrial strategy and ESG transition are central, a figure like Johannes Huth brings highly relevant experience in capital discipline, strategic supervision and sustainable value creation. Recent Imerys disclosures underline the strategic role of the board in guiding the group and monitoring its transformation commitments, which aligns with the type of oversight associated with Huth’s career.