AkzoNobel Hires Top Executive for Decorative Paints Business in China


February 22, 2011 - AkzoNobel's strategic medium-term growth ambitions to double revenue in China, from $1.5 billion to $3 billion, will be further fuelled by the appointment of Lin Liangqi as the new Managing Director, Decorative Paints for China & North Asia.

As the company looks to accelerate its strategic growth agenda in the region, Mr. Lin - who joins from Philips Lighting - will be charged with using his extensive experience and expertise to drive further growth in one of the world's most dynamic markets.

Due to officially take up his new position on April 1, he was most recently CEO at Philips Lighting Greater China and has held several key roles within the company, which he joined in 1994.

"We are very pleased to welcome Lin Liangqi to AkzoNobel," said Tex Gunning, the company's Executive Committee member responsible for Decorative Paints. "His strong leadership abilities, coupled with his strategic vision and financial savvy, will be instrumental in further building a strong Dulux brand in the dynamic mid-tier Chinese market, making the most of our ever-expanding network of close to 4,000 controlled stores."

"His extensive experience - notably in China and India - will help us achieve our business ambition of significantly increasing the Dulux brand's market share in the next five years."

Mr. Lin (48) holds a PhD from the University of Leuven in Belgium and has a proven track record of using solid financial management and an intuitive understanding of the evolving regional market to achieve substantial growth.

AkzoNobel is the largest global paints and coatings company and a major producer of specialty chemicals. We supply industries and consumers worldwide with innovative products and are passionate about developing sustainable answers for our customers. Our portfolio includes well known brands such as Dulux, Sikkens, International and Eka. Headquartered in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, we are a Global Fortune 500 company and are consistently ranked as one of the leaders in the area of sustainability. With operations in more than 80 countries, our 55,000 people around the world are committed to excellence and delivering Tomorrow's Answers Today(TM).

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