Ed van de Weerd

CEO at AS Watson Health & Beauty Continental Europe | CEO Kruidvat, Trekpleister | Driving Retail Innovation & Customer Relevance

Eindhoven, North Brabant, Netherlands

About

In my role as CEO of AS Watson Health & Beauty Continental Europe, I oversee the beloved retail brands Kruidvat, Trekpleister, and Prijsmepper. On this profile, I write about the three topics that drive our business: - ๐—ฅ๐—ฒ๐˜๐—ฎ๐—ถ๐—น ๐——๐˜†๐—ป๐—ฎ๐—บ๐—ถ๐—ฐ๐˜€: Navigating the speed of FMCG and omnichannel integration. - ๐—–๐˜‚๐˜€๐˜๐—ผ๐—บ๐—ฒ๐—ฟ ๐—ฅ๐—ฒ๐—น๐—ฒ๐˜ƒ๐—ฎ๐—ป๐—ฐ๐—ฒ: How we ensure 1,500+ stores remain the heart of the neighborhood. - ๐—œ๐—ป๐—ฐ๐—น๐˜‚๐˜€๐—ถ๐˜ƒ๐—ฒ ๐—Ÿ๐—ฒ๐—ฎ๐—ฑ๐—ฒ๐—ฟ๐˜€๐—ต๐—ถ๐—ฝ: Building cultures where teams feel safe to experiment and learn. My foundation in retail wasn't built in a boardroom, but in my parentsโ€™ pet store. Growing up there taught me the most valuable lesson of our industry: immediacy. In retail, you don't wait months for feedback. You know at the end of the day if youโ€™ve served your customer well. Even at AS Watson, with over 1,500 stores, the same principle holds. Over the years, my career has taken me from Europe to Asia Pacific and back, across sectors like FMCG and telecommunications. Iโ€™ve always believed that the key to success lies in building strong relationships โ€” whether thatโ€™s with colleagues, customers, or the communities weโ€™re part of. I donโ€™t believe in leading from the top down. For me, leadership is about setting a vision and working alongside my team to get there. For AS Watson, I believe in a long-term strategy that prioritizes sustainable growth and creating positive impact. We make feeling good, healthy and beautiful accessible to everyone. If youโ€™re interested in our brands and the broader retail industry, feel free to follow me. I try to share updates, insights, and industry trends regularly. ๐—จ๐—ป๐—ณ๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐˜๐˜‚๐—ป๐—ฎ๐˜๐—ฒ๐—น๐˜†, ๐—œ ๐—ฐ๐—ฎ๐—ป๐—ป๐—ผ๐˜ ๐—ฒ๐—ป๐—ด๐—ฎ๐—ด๐—ฒ ๐˜„๐—ถ๐˜๐—ต ๐—ฏ๐˜‚๐˜€๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ฒ๐˜€๐˜€ ๐—ถ๐—ป๐—พ๐˜‚๐—ถ๐—ฟ๐—ถ๐—ฒ๐˜€ ๐˜๐—ต๐—ฟ๐—ผ๐˜‚๐—ด๐—ต ๐—Ÿ๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ธ๐—ฒ๐—ฑ๐—œ๐—ป. ๐—ฃ๐—น๐—ฒ๐—ฎ๐˜€๐—ฒ ๐—ฟ๐—ฒ๐—ฎ๐—ฐ๐—ต ๐—ผ๐˜‚๐˜ ๐˜๐—ต๐—ฟ๐—ผ๐˜‚๐—ด๐—ต ๐˜๐—ต๐—ฒ ๐—ฝ๐—ฟ๐—ผ๐—ฝ๐—ฒ๐—ฟ ๐—ฐ๐—ต๐—ฎ๐—ป๐—ป๐—ฒ๐—น๐˜€.

Experience

  • AS Watson Benelux (8 yrs 2 mos)
    • CEO AS Watson Health & Beauty Continental Europe
      Sep 2025 - Present ยท 10 mos

    • CEO
      Jul 2019 - Present ยท 7 yrs

    • Managing Director Kruidvat the Netherlands
      May 2018 - Sep 2025 ยท 7 yrs 5 mos

  • International Commercial Director at AS Watson
    Feb 2024 - Present ยท 2 yrs 5 mos

  • Chairman Raad Nederlandse Detailhandel at Raad Nederlandse Detailhandel (RND)
    Jun 2021 - Present ยท 5 yrs 1 mo

  • Non Executive Director at ROSSMANN Czech Republic
    Jul 2019 - Present ยท 7 yrs

  • Non Executive Director at ROSSMANN Magyarorszรกg
    Jul 2019 - Present ยท 7 yrs