There are some exceptional stories that make us believe in the phrase, if there is a will, there is a way. Just like some rare inspirational journey, we have come across a small-town girl of Kolhapur who dared to dream big and now is a beacon of inspiration. The person we are talking about is Leena Nair. Leena is currently leading the headlines for receiving the highest UK honour, the CBE award from Prince William of Wales.
Earlier, Leena worked as a chief HR officer at Hindustan Unilever and is now the global CEO OF Chanel. But do you know how she started her journey and became the global CEO of Chanel? So, without further ado, let’s dive deep to know the success story of Leena Nair.
Leena Nair’s early life and educational qualification
Leena was born on June 11, 1969, in a Hindu Malayali family in Kolhapur, Maharashtra. She completed her schooling at Holy Cross Convent High School in Kolhapur. Leena completed her graduation in Electronics and Telecommunication from Walchand College of Engineering in Sangli, Maharashtra. She was the first woman in her family to pursue higher studies. Later, in 1992, Leena graduated as a gold medallist from XLRI – Xavier School of Management.
Leena Nair faced a lot of family constraints for her education
Earlier, this year, Leena appeared in a podcast by Stanford GSB, where she recalled how getting an education has been a struggling journey for her. In the podcast, Leena recalled how people objected to her from pursuing her higher studies. She also shared that everything was a negotiation in Kolhapur, a small town from where she belonged, as not enough women from her town opted for engineering like her. In fact, Leena’s mother was also quite worried about her marriage as she was very ambitious. In her words:
“I grew up in a small town in India, on the west of India, and I remember everything was a negotiation. Studying, going for engineering was a negotiation because not enough women from the town had ever gone for engineering. And I remember my mom saying, ‘oh my God, you’re so ambitious. Who’s gonna marry you?’ When I was going for MBA, I was going to an institute, which was on the other end of India, so in the east. It used to take 48 hours by train to reach from my town. And as far as my family was concerned, that was another planet.”
Her father was also no exception and put forward a strange condition to fund her studies. He told her that if she got married at 23 to a man chosen by him, then only he would allow her to study. Eager to continue her studies, Leena agreed to her father’s condition. In her words:
“My father said, ‘I will educate you, but I can’t promise that you will have a career because I don’t know if attitudes are gonna change. I can’t change the world around you, but I’ll educate you.’ And he said, ‘uh, you’re gonna go so far away. I will send you on the promise that you will marry the man I choose for you to marry before you turn 23.”
Leena Nair got married to Kumar Nair
In the same interview, Leena revealed how her father fixed a date for her to meet her husband, Kumar Nair. It was an arranged marriage, and Leena’s father chose his son-in-law. Leena shared that her father called her on her 23rd birthday and wanted her to meet Kumar. During the same time, she was working at Unilever as a management trainee. Initially, she was reluctant to marry but later agreed with her father to keep her promise. The couple tied the knot in 1995 and welcomed two sons, Aryan and Sidhant. Revealing how she met her husband, Kumar Nair, who is a financial service entrepreneur, Leena said:
“I was working in Unilever as a management trainee. And I turned 23, on my birthday, he called up and he said, ‘I have someone I want you to meet.’ I said, ‘You must be kidding me. I’m not meeting anybody.’ I’m now this, you know, newly flourishing MBA, I know better. I’m not doing this. And, uh, he insisted. He said, ‘a promise is a promise. And I met my husband, I met him, and we had coffee and I said, yes in 30 minutes, believe it or not. And we’ve been married for 30 years.”
Leena Nair became the CEO of the French luxury fashion house, Chanel
Before becoming the Global CEO of the French luxury fashion brand, Chanel, Leena worked at Hindustan Unilever (HUL) for nearly three decades. Leena joined HUL as a summer intern and became a management trainee in 1992. Soon after joining the company, she became the first woman to ever work the night shift on HUL’s factory floor. Over the years, Nair held multiple key roles in HUL including factory manager for Indian brands, senior vice president, HR lead and Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO). In 2016, Leena became the first young female Asian to become the CHRO. By 2030, she assured to raise the percentage of female managers in HUL, from 38 percent to 50 percent. In December 2021, she became Chanel’s first female and Indian-origin Chief Executive Officer. During her tenure at Chanel, the French luxury fashion house became the biggest investor in the UK, whose annual funding rose from USD 20 million to USD 100 million.
Leena Nair’s achievements
Leena Nair’s exclusive works for Hindustan Unilever and Chanel have won her many accolades. In 2021, Leena won The Great British Businesswoman’s Role Model of the Year Award. In 2023, she secured the 68th position on Forbes’ list of Most Powerful Women. In the same year, India’s Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, met Leena to discuss how to enhance the skill development of artisans in India. In 2025, Leena received the highest UK honour, that is, the Commanders of the Orders of the British Empire (CBE) award from Prince William of Wales for contribution to the retail and consumer sector.
Leena Nair’s journey from a small-town girl from Kolhapur to the Global CEO of Chanel is truly inspiring for those who dare to dream big.
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