Jan Kunath, 59, has decided not to renew his contract, which expires at the end of this year. Kunath’s responsibilities will be transferred to other members of the REWE Group Executive Board, ensuring a smooth transition. In the future, the Executive Board members for Full-Range Austria, Full-Range CEE, and PENNY International will report to CEO Lionel Souque, while the Toom DIY Store division will be assigned to Christoph Eltze’s portfolio.
Cologne. With the departure of Jan Kunath at the end of 2025, the REWE Group will be saying goodbye to a manager who has played a major role in shaping our company in both its domestic and its international business dealings for over 30 years,
said Erich Stockhausen, Chairman of the REWE Group’s Supervisory Board. He went on to note that Kunath has contributed a wealth of knowledge—of the industry, restructuring and modernization—while serving in a variety of high-level leadership positions in the Full-Range, Discount, Wholesale, REWE Digital, Purchasing, and DIY Store divisions. His dedication and commitment have helped to put the REWE Group on its current path of consistent and sustainable success. On behalf of all shareholders and the entire Supervisory Board, I would like to thank Jan Kunath for his years of service and exceptional loyalty to our company,
Stockhausen said.
Jan Kunath was born in 1965. He holds a degree in business administration, and he is married and has two children. He began his career with the REWE Group in 1992, first serving in a variety of managerial positions in sales and merchandising. In 2004 he became CEO of the Bon Appetit Group (Switzerland), and he was named to the Executive Board of REWE International in 2006. Returning to Germany in 2007, he served as CEO of the Full-Range National division from 2007 to 2009. In May 2009, he was appointed as a fully authorized representative of the REWE Group for B2B and Specialized Stores (DIY stores and consumer electronics). In that capacity, he became Head of the Management of PENNY National in September 2010. He has been a member of the Executive Board of the REWE Group since 1 January 2011, and beginning on 1 July 2017, he has served as Deputy Chief Executive Officer of the REWE group with responsibility for Retail International (Full-Range Austria, Full-Range CEE, PENNY International) and the Toom DIY Store division.
On behalf of all of the members of the Executive Board and the company’s more than 390,000 employees, REWE Group CEO Lionel Souque joined Stockhausen in expressing his heartfelt appreciation to Jan Kunath for years of close and fruitful cooperation, with a consistent focus on the company’s long-term success and the well-being of the entire REWE Group team. Jan Kunath has contributed a great deal to the REWE Group,
he said. He has dedicated his expertise, his extensive knowledge of the company from the perspective of many different divisions, and his decades of experience to achieving our successful and sustainable trajectory. Together, we have achieved major milestones for the company, including the restructuring of Penny and the time-sensitive withdrawal from the Ukrainian and Russian markets. Together, we were able to steer the REWE Group through the storm that began with the pandemic and affected everyone involved in the business world. My heartfelt thanks go to him for years of partnership built on trust and friendship.
His responsibilities will be transferred to other members of the REWE Group Executive Board; the position he currently holds will not be filled. In the future, Executive Board members Marcel Haraszti (Full-Range Austria), Espen B. Larsen (Full-Range CEE) and Michael Jäger (PENNY International) will report to REWE Group CEO Lionel Souque. The DIY Store division will be assigned to the portfolio of Christoph Eltze, and Toom CEO René Hassfeld will report to him. Back in 2022, the expansion of the REWE Group Executive Board already laid the foundation for increased international cooperation. Since 2022, the areas of People & Sustainability (Daniela Büchel), Logistics (Peter Maly), Procurement International (Hans-Jürgen Moog), Digital & Technology (Christoph Eltze), and Finance (Telerik Schischmanow) have been more closely intertwined, also across international borders, through structures (boards) created specifically for that purpose.
REWE Group Deputy CEO Jan Kunath expressed his satisfaction with where he and the company are today: I have served the REWE Group for more than 30 years, and during that period our industry has changed and advanced enormously. It has been an intense period, particularly in the last few years, with the dramatic technological changes and innovations that have taken place. Looking back, I am very proud of what we, as a company, have accomplished over those three decades. And I’m grateful to have been part of the entire, amazing REWE Group team. It has been a fantastic experience for me, as a retail enthusiast and expert. The end of this year is the right time for me to move from operations to strategic and advisory management. I’m already looking forward to getting to know new sectors and divisions, and to contributing my experience there.
