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Global Marketing Leader

Consumer Goods.
Technology.
Global Retail.

A marketing leader shaped in three of the world's most demanding commercial environments. Currently leading Global Marketing for IKEA Retail across 30+ markets, 620 stores, and 4 billion annual customer touchpoints.

Vincenzo Riili, Global Marketing Leader
Vincenzo Riili — Sweden
Currently: IKEA Retail, Global Marketing
Previously: Google EMEA Senior Leadership
Foundation: Unilever & PepsiCo
Scope: Full Marketing P&L
Impact: Tripled B2B Revenue (Google)
Recognition: Forbes Best CMO
Conviction: AI as Growth Lever
Expertise: Brand, Media, CRM, Performance
Currently: IKEA Retail, Global Marketing
Previously: Google EMEA Senior Leadership
Foundation: Unilever & PepsiCo
Scope: Full Marketing P&L
Impact: Tripled B2B Revenue (Google)
Recognition: Forbes Best CMO
Conviction: AI as Growth Lever
Expertise: Brand, Media, CRM, Performance
4
Iconic Companies
30+
Markets
B2C & B2B
Full Spectrum
Global + Local
Scale

The Story So Far

I started my career at Unilever, where I learned that marketing is not a creative department but a commercial discipline. Over a decade I managed multi-brand P&Ls globally, relaunching full core portfolios from new packaging to new positioning, turned around underperforming categories, and launched new brands from scratch. I learned to read a business case or supply chain investment as fluently as a consumer insight. That foundation, the rigor of knowing your numbers and your consumer better than anyone in the room, has shaped everything I've done since.

From there I ran marketing for the Pepsi Lipton joint venture across EMEA, which taught me something different: how to build consensus and drive growth when you're answering to two corporate giants with very different cultures and priorities. We launched Pure Leaf as a premium European business and relaunched the Lipton brand with the new generations. It was a masterclass in navigating complexity.

Then came Google, where I spent a decade as part of the EMEA senior marketing leadership with CMO responsibility for key European markets. I led both B2C and B2B marketing for products that billions of people use daily: YouTube, Android, Gemini, Google Assistant. Google taught me speed, the power of data, and how AI changes everything about how we reach people.

Today I lead Global Marketing for IKEA Retail, the largest retail operation of one of the world's most iconic brands. It is one of the most challenging and fascinating briefs I have ever taken on: steering a massive omnichannel transformation across 30+ markets, making 3.1 billion online visits and 620 physical stores feel like one seamless experience, while making sure a brand that has shaped how generations think about life at home stays just as relevant for the next one.

Across all of it, one thread connects everything. I believe the best marketing organizations need to master both long-term brand building and the AI-driven capabilities that modern growth demands. I care most about making that happen: building teams, raising the bar from global centers of excellence to local market teams, and making sure great work happens consistently, not accidentally.

Career Path

IKEA Retail (Ingka Group)

Global Marketing Leader
2026 — Present

Google

EMEA Senior Marketing Leadership, CMO Key European Markets
2016 — 2025

Pepsi Lipton International

CMO EMEA
2013 — 2016

Unilever

Global Director
2003 — 2013

Leadership DNA

01 — Consumer Goods

The Science of Business

Lessons from Unilever and PepsiCo: P&L rigor, consumer forensics, supply chain innovation, and managing complex matrix organizations.

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02 — Technology

Leading Without a Map

Lessons from the tech frontier: thriving in ambiguity, speed as strategy, and evangelizing the future at Google.

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03 — Ecosystem

The CEO of the Ecosystem

Beyond the P&L: orchestrating ecosystems, government relations, and building influence without authority.

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Voice of the Industry

Full Media Archive →

"The best marketing organizations master both long-term brand building and the AI-driven capabilities that modern growth demands."

— Vincenzo Riili

Recognition

The Marketing AcademySelected Fellow (EMEA)
ForbesBest Italian CMO
Compass AwardBest Competitive Defense
Unilever GrowthFastest Growing Brand

Selected Work

Publications & Analysis

AI / Fashion

The AI Fashion Revolution

How artificial intelligence is fueling new, hyper-personalized shopping experiences in the fashion industry.

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Trends

Future of Luxury Trends

Strategic analysis on the four trends defining the future of luxury and fashion consumption.

Read Analysis →
Leadership

The Marketing of Google Italy

Comprehensive interview on the role of the CMO and the culture of innovation at Google Italy.

Read Interview →